The big news here is ITCHINESS.   I am not talking mosquito bite-level, but poison-ivy level.   It’s distracting and keeping me awake.  Benadryl did not help it… I’ve got high hopes that Zyrtec will.   I have decided to wear my glasses in order to remind myself not to rub the eye.  At night, I’m still wearing the protective patch.  The doctor says itch is a normal symptom, and will look at it during my appointment this Friday – so long as I don’t have any RSVP (rejection) symptoms.

For those unfamiliar, these are the RSVP symptoms that require you to immediately go to your doctor about potential rejection after initial healing period.  Have your Dr. explain them.

• Redness that gets worse  (eyes will be red after surgery and should slowly clear, but if they suddenly go red again, take action.)
• Sensitivity to light suddenly (again, immediately after surgery you will be sensitive to light, but this is an increase later.)
• Vision (foggy or cloudy, or “curtain” effect)
• Pain increase (aside from small, normal twinges that everyone has.)

Since I don’t have these symptoms…I have a hunch my itch related to this (wretched) 18mm bandage contact lens and/or dryness.   Friday I have my follow up, and am hoping that this lens will be removed for good.

A few random facts I’ve picked up others might benefit from

• I also learned that you’re supposed to allow 5 minutes between antibiotic drops and steroid drops, but this is not on the post-op sheet.   Also, one of the staff at Dr. Holland’s office said the drops can be done immediately after one another (wrong.)   I’m going to suggest that Dr. Holland’s staff update this info for future patients.
• Eye pressure increases often include nausea.
• Rinsing the eye with preservative-free saline (Unisol-4) feels great.  I lay back on a towel and just flow it in while blinking.

The last thing is that my night driving is transformed.  The dark mornings due to Daylight Savings Time meant that I drove my daughter to school yesterday in the near-darkness.  It was great to be able to drive without huge luminescent blobs in my field of vision.

I found a nice PDF handbook for patients about corneal transplant surgery at University of Michigan’s site.