Recovery from retina tear

[FREE866]

Hi there
Totally out of the blue on saturday I experienced floaters, blurryness and white flashes
Had to have emergency laser surgery for torn retina
doc has said surgery went well
will see him in 2 days to assess to see if scar tissue has formed to seal tear
worst part is he having me spend most of my time lying on my left side.....its very stressful.....been doing lots of deep breathing, meditation, etc
said i will have to do this for 30 days
im hoping he is just being ultra conservative and will follow his orders but anyone have experience of recovering from tear?
what was your experience?
thx

 

[MRG]

I had a detached retina several years ago. Please bring patience and follow doctor's orders. They suck I know.

I had a rough recovery, my retina was blasted by a doctor who said "whoops" during a laser procedure causing the detachment. I had some distortion for a while and still have some artifacts: dead spot and I still have a couple of minor surgery bubbles left. The surgeon was surprised about the bubbles, said we could talk about a vitrectomy but I don't think I'm going to do that. I recently had one in my other eye and don't think the risk reward is there.

Wishing you a uneventful recovery.

 

[Dtail]

I had a torn retina and had laser surgery to correct it. In general, a detached retina is more serious.
I did not do any of the recommendations that were given to you. I did have the white flashes, which is one of the telltale signs.

 

[Koolau]

I had a torn retina and by luck was due for a routine exam a couple of days later. Doc "rushed" me to a specialist who was able to freeze the tear (instead of using a laser.) My recovery was very simple - IIRC, don't pick up heavy objects, rest my eyes more often. 10 years later, I seem to have no lasting effects. Not sure this helps you but best of luck with your recovery.

 

[braumeister]

My mother had a detached retina and an incompetent doctor, so she never recovered from it.

As a result, I've mentioned it to a couple of good ophthalmologists and they both gave me the same response: It's definitely emergency surgery, so call and come in immediately. They'll take care of it 24/7.

 

[Telly]

I'm pressed for time, so this'l be short!
The flashes are caused by PVD, pulling on the retina. And that is a good source of retinal tears.
Mine was U-shaped, tearing down from the top, so see effects at bottom of vision. Op. dotted all around the tear with an Argon laser. Creates holes in the retina that scar tissue would grow through. Estimate of 10 days for scar tissue to grow through good. Horse race in time - would scar tissue grow fast enough to hold retina? Like another poster said, no heavy lifting, etc. etc. I took it REAL easy for those 10. Gravity would be working against me. Didn't use PC nor did anything much. Only vehicle travel was to and from Doc. I took it real easy. Success!

 

[FREE866]

Thx everyone
Reading these responses made me nervous I will say
Man I hope there’s no long term damage.

 

[FREE866]

Telly. Why no computer use?
I’ve been on computer a lot.

 

[MRG]

One thing I learned from this and other discussions about retina problems; the solutions are as diverse as the doctors and their patients. After my surgery I got a second opinion as the distortion was driving me nuts. The second doctor wanted me to continue steroids and my surgeon was of different opinion. I stuck with the surgeon's thoughts.

 

[FREE866]

I’m on zero medications

 

[Sunset]

I would follow at a minimum the doctors suggestions... after all 30 days will seem very short and worth it after it's healed, compared to not following the rules, jumping or running and going blind.

I know a fellow that had back surgery, couldn't be bothered to follow the doctor rules about wearing the brace for a couple of weeks, and don't lift stuff. He didn't heal right and now no doctor will touch him to "fix it". He is is using a scooter last time I saw him..

 

[FREE866]

I would follow at a minimum the doctors suggestions... after all 30 days will seem very short and worth it after it's healed, compared to not following the rules, jumping or running and going blind.

I know a fellow that had back surgery, couldn't be bothered to follow the doctor rules about wearing the brace for a couple of weeks, and don't lift stuff. He didn't heal right and now no doctor will touch him to "fix it". He is is using a scooter last time I saw him..

I need to hear this. Very valid point. Thank you. Just mentally battling this. I have read that like 95% of laser surgeries are successful. Just have to trust the process

 

[gcgang]

Had a detached retina. Flew from Maui to Honolulu on 1st flight out and had, what I found out later, one of USA’s top surgeons, Dr Sarah Reed, do surgery.

She explained they’ve pasted it up and put a “brick” on it to hold it in place, The brick being a gas bubble. Had to lie face down for two weeks in a hotel before the bubble got smaller and I could take the short flight back to Maui, because the elevation change causes the bubble to expand.

Don’t remember how much longer I had to just lay there after I got back home, but I do remember binging Dexter on my iPad as I laid face down on a couch for the two weeks in Honolulu, and then experiencing slight bubble pain, not on the flight back, but on the drive home as our house is at 2400 feet elevation.

If your doc says a month of lying there, I’d do it. All has been good with me 4 years later.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

I had retina issues when I was very low in vitamin D - Vitamin D3 preserves blood retinal barrier integrity in an in vitro model of diabetic retinopathy - PubMed (nih.gov). I think that also contributed to tight muscles pulling on my eye, which is probably why weight lifting can also cause retina problems for some people. I didn't have a tear but I was having flashes and floaters so the doctor said I was high risk for awhile there. I'm out of the danger zone now and my vision has returned to normal after nutrition and gut testing, diet changes, and gentle yoga and posture exercises. And not staying on the computer too much to avoid "mouse shoulder" also seems to help.

 

[RE2Boys]

Detached retina about 20 years ago, lost 80% of vision in one eye. Went to my regular eye doctor who took one look and sent me to a retinal specialist two floors up with the warning not to eat anything as I may have immediate surgery. The surgery was about 36 hours later, had a scleral buckle procedure. Was told to sleep on my side, constantly look at the floor as much as possible, no lifting, little activity for several days, can't remeber how long I was limited. But full vision was eventually restored.

The bummer was that while hiking, experienced lot of flashes in the OTHER eye about two years later. Doc said he could laser repair in office but really recommended the full buckle procedure again. So I've had it done in both eyes. The second time did not turn out perfect and can only correct to about 20/40. Both times it took several months for my vision to stabilize before I could get a new prescription.

Last year, a friend had a torn retina but delayed consulting a doctor. He is now partially bind in that eye.

 

[Telly]

Telly. Why no computer use?
I’ve been on computer a lot.

I probably took it to excess, but didn't want to chance it, as there was only one try. I cut out just about everything that had even the slightest impact, or a lot of eye movement, etc. No lifting, vacuuming, driving, mowing lawn on tractor, exercise walking, on and on. I did watch some TV. My checkups were at two days, and then at ten days from laser hole-punching.
I was so glad to hear the news at ten days. Scar tissue had grown through all of the holes very nicely, and had a good hold of the retina in that area.

I have had no problems with the fix. I do note one odd effect that developed over time, nothing to worry about. The laser work was at the top of my retina, which is the bottom of the viewing area, due to the convex eye lens inverting the scene. Exactly like holding a magnifying glass out at arm's length and looking through it. The brain sees the world upside-down via the optic nerves.

I think some retinal cells somewhat regenerated in the lasered area, but are on their own. In special lighting conditions, I have a white glow, that dies out in a few seconds. It's at the very bottom of my viewing area. If I am outside in a bright time, like sunlight, then go into a darker, but not totally dark area, I see the glow. It's an effect like those balls, etc. that you could charge up near a lamp and take into a dim room. But my glow dims out in seconds. At home, in the afternoon if it is a bright day, I can see it every time I walk from a particular bright room, to an adjacent darker one. It's at the bottom of the viewing area for that eye, so it is not a problem, and goes away. My own built-in light show!

Forgot to mention that my laser fix was laser only, no cryo of the vitreous before lasering, which is common.
When the lasering stopped, and my eye started to slowly recover from the blinding green laser light, I was in a ruby world. Everything was a fantastic ruby red, which lasted for quite a while, till the green receptors slowly came out of severe green overload.

 

[Koolau]

I probably took it to excess, but didn't want to chance it, as there was only one try. I cut out just about everything that had even the slightest impact, or a lot of eye movement, etc. No lifting, vacuuming, driving, mowing lawn on tractor, exercise walking, on and on. I did watch some TV. My checkups were at two days, and then at ten days from laser hole-punching.
I was so glad to hear the news at ten days. Scar tissue had grown through all of the holes very nicely, and had a good hold of the retina in that area.

I have had no problems with the fix. I do note one odd effect that developed over time, nothing to worry about. The laser work was at the top of my retina, which is the bottom of the viewing area, due to the convex eye lens inverting the scene. Exactly like holding a magnifying glass out at arm's length and looking through it. The brain sees the world upside-down via the optic nerves.

I think some retinal cells somewhat regenerated in the lasered area, but are on their own. In special lighting conditions, I have a white glow, that dies out in a few seconds. It's at the very bottom of my viewing area. If I am outside in a bright time, like sunlight, then go into a darker, but not totally dark area, I see the glow. It's an effect like those balls, etc. that you could charge up near a lamp and take into a dim room. But my glow dims out in seconds. At home, in the afternoon if it is a bright day, I can see it every time I walk from a particular bright room, to an adjacent darker one. It's at the bottom of the viewing area for that eye, so it is not a problem, and goes away. My own built-in light show!

Forgot to mention that my laser fix was laser only, no cryo of the vitreous before lasering, which is common.
When the lasering stopped, and my eye started to slowly recover from the blinding green laser light, I was in a ruby world. Everything was a fantastic ruby red, which lasted for quite a while, till the green receptors slowly came out of severe green overload.

Rose colored glasses! I'm guessing it was magical (especially, knowing your sight was now safe.)