Visit to the Pediatric Cataract Specialist

Today was the long awaited day to meet with the specialist to receive details and additional information. When the receptionist called me on the phone at 11:00 with a shaky voice asking me if we were the 1:30 appointment, I froze thinking she was going to have to reschedule, but to my surprise wanted to know if we could get there at 1:00 instead. I was so excited to call Phillip and tell him we had 30 minutes less to wait for these long awaited answers.

My mom kept Ashton overnight and brought him to the doctor, as she wanted to come and hear from the doctor, not to mention she just wanted to this spend valuable time with him. She met us there which allowed me to get in an extra 30 minutes at work. Thanks mom! :)

When we arrived, we were sent back almost immediately as we were now the first appointment after lunch. :) To say Ashton was apprehensive would be a little understated, but we have kept him informed with the process and what to expect as we are walking through this journey together.

Overall, the process was identical to the last visit as far as the eye tests are concerned. Ashton was sad we had to do the dilatation again like last time. But at least we earned his best friend another sticker. That seems to keep him motivated!

When the doctor looked into his eyes she confirmed what the previous doctor had stated with the finding of bilateral nuclear cataracts (both eyes cataracts in the center of each eye). She felt they can be corrected through surgery with only a 30% chance of needing to have them redone in the future. She said they would schedule it in two surgeries, a week apart hopefully starting next week. He will require bifocals after the surgery to give about 20/40 vision. She confirmed he should be able to live a normal life and successfully attain a drivers license.

It's hard to decide which I'd prefer and maybe on the other side of this I could tell you my preference. The question inside of me is... one surgery, eye patches for two days of misery and move on or two surgeries a week apart, one eye patch at a time but going under anesthesia twice. It is something I have wrestled with all week, but we will move forward as the doctor feels two surgeries would be most beneficial to Ashton to reduce chances of infection.

The first surgery will be in Ashton's left eye since it is a little bit weaker than his right. The doctor's and our highest concern is Ashton learning how to use his eyes as well as him developing correctly both physically and mentally. The lady was supposed to call us and schedule the surgeries this afternoon, but we did not hear from her. Needless to say, I plan to call first thing in the morning. Once I have the dates we have to schedule an extra appointment for specific eye measurements with another doctor. They will uses these measurements during his procedures.

Overall, we are very happy and secure with the doctor we met with today. She was wonderful with Ashton. She was patient with our questions, and her expectations are very high for Ashton's recovery. I will post tomorrow with specifics regarding surgery dates.

Words cannot describe how much Phillip and I appreciate your outpouring of love upon our family. We have felt the prayers and know God is listening to our petitions for Ashton to regain his vision. Thank you for sharing God's love with us.