The visual disorder I have—keratoconus—is hard to explain to people. Suggestions are often made to me that I should get LASIK surgery or wear contacts. Truthfully, if there had been a way to cure my vision issues or gain more vision, my faithful optometrist, Dr. Neil Schwarts, would have found it.
Because keratoconus is a degenerative corneal condition, LASIK is not recommended. The cornea of the eye of those of us with KC is already thin; we certainly don’t need a procedure that removes any more of it!
KC makes my eyes ache. The need to sift through visual distortions every day is exhausting and while headaches are to be expected, my eyes actually ache. As the day wears on, I can feel the ache begin in the back of the eye and move forward. This is a result of eyestrain and the inflammation of the eye that is part and parcel of KC. As an ELA and ESL teacher—and a writer and lover of good books—I do a LOT of reading.
My eyes have been aching for years, but now my right knee—which I injured playing football with some Sunday School kids many moons ago—has joined in solidarity with my eyes. Getting on and off the train twice a day and climbing a million steps is not helping!
Now that I’ve hit the age of 70—yeah, I’m shocked about it, too—the thing that most surprises me is that I still FEEL like I’m younger! As you’ve grown older, what has been a shock to you?
I've also been alarmed by some of the latest conditions I'm facing, things like a large hiatal hernia and advanced discopathy in my spine. It makes Heaven all the more appealing.