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Avatar universal

Just had retina surgery, need some comfort

Hi, i just went to a retina specialist for an exam to make sure my eyes were ok after experiencing an increase in floaters and lo and behold he told me i had a small tear in my retina. So, we did the surgery to repair it. I am a complete anxiety case and now am just worrying about every little thing. The surgery itself was kind of scary, he put a lot of pressure on my eye with the lens he used and I had a hard time keeping my head where it was supposed to be. It was very uncomfortable almost painful and of course now I am worred that that much pressure on my eye might have caused some other problem. Anyway, apparently did not feel the need to explain much to me about what to expect in the next few weeks. He said no lifting over 25lbs, not a lot of bending etc.  I get that, and am going to be careful but am deathly afraid that I'm going to do something to cause a problem. is there anything else I should avoid...how careful do I have to be...what about vacuuming,laundry, god forbid sex if I ever feel like that again? Right now I can't even imagine but that's besides the point. Anyway, just wondering what I should expect. Should I be worried that something could go wrong, what should I look for ? When shoudl I worry? Ah the life of an anxiety-riddled patient. Any advice?
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Avatar universal
Thank you. I did actually discuss it, several times,  and he was very vague, that's why I came here. He said no strenuous exercise, no heaving lifting like over 25lb and not a lot of bending. That really wasn't specific enough for me. Just because he apparently does plenty of these surgeries doesn't mean that I have had it before and understand it.  I have a life to live and can't possibly ask him about every aspect of it, vacuuming, laundry etc. Was hoping someone could give me some constructive advice so I don't end up having problems, but so I can go on with my life without the terror of worrying that every move I make is going to cause a problem.
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711220 tn?1251891127
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
You really need to discuss this with your surgeon.  Every surgeon has a different post op routine.  I recommend that my patients NOT read, NOT have sex, and NOT lift anything over 20 lbs.  That usually means not working for one to two weeks.  The healing process for treatment to a retinal tear takes about 7 to 12 days for pigmentation  (the retinal starting to stick to the wall) and take about two months for complete healing.

You need to watch for signs such as loss of peripheral vision, decrease in vision, and an increase in flashes and/or floaters.

Dr. O.
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