I have been delaying getting the last three stitches removed from my eye. I know, that sounds crazy but consider that my present health insurance is so bad, so evil that I can never achieve my deductible, hence I have to pay all costs incurred. For instance, every time I went to get three or so stitches removed, I was being charged almost $300. If I had ten stitches... you can do the math.
I was hoping to be able to muddle along with the remaining three intact until January when the Obamacare/Affordable Care Act kicked in for me. The stitches were (apparently) holding up okay, but I had suffered several blood vessel ruptures and irritations, no doubt due to the remaining stitches. So on Tuesday, after seeing my eye all red again, I decided I'd better get them out. Yale said I could be seen in the afternoon.
This time, instead of my cornea surgeon removing the stitches (and she's great!) the resident comes in. He explains that Dr. Chow will see me- after he extracts the stitches. I suppose I should have politely said, "No thank you; I'll wait for the higher ups". But this is a teaching hospital and instead I complied.
First of all, I had an utter skeeve out moment when he comes straight at me with this giant pair of eye pulling pliers. I'm generally made of tougher stuff, and let's face it, I've had lie a hundred people run around in my eye, but I actually kind of shuddered. (I think they're supposed to sneak up on you sideways, past your blind spot so that you don't freak out). The resident told me to please try and hold still. I said, "Look sonny, I don't even know you and you're walking all over my eyeball with yet another sharp insturment". But I allowed him to proceed. I also chanced to add to him that despite my eye being numbed, I sorta felt like there was a little prickly sensation on my eye lid. He maintained that that was due to his "rooting around". Made sense to me although I think you can see where this is going...
I was dismissed and Bob and were in a celebratory mood as my eye was stitch free after almost three years. Except that night as we were looking at something on the Internet, I confessed to Bob that my eye was really uncomfortable and I suspected there was a bit of stitch remaining.
I woke up with my eye nicely pink, puffy and watery but went to work anyway, figuring that maybe I'd give it a day to subside. Instead, I was forced to wear sunglasses all day at work not only because my eye was so photo-sensitive and squinchy, but I looked utterly miserable. You start feeling like maybe you're wrong and just being a weeny as they've told you everything looked good. But I knew that feeling; as if my eye were nauseous. Really low-grade gross!
Needless to say, I re-called Yale and they got me in to see (yet another) doctor as mine was conveniently at a conference. They took looks- another intern, a resident, two doctors and a technician (everyone wants to see Rita's poor eyeball!) and I was vindicated: CONFIRMED! a tiny end of a stitch remained- enough to cause serious discomfort. It was successfully removed, I felt immediate relief and alls well that ends well, I guess! But it does serve to bolster the odd idea that you attempt to do something good (ie; remove those final stitches) and someone else does something that makes everything worse (leaves a bit of nylon in your eye). I know, there really is no lesson here at all, other than my eyes fine, if a bit tired from all the attention.
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