I am a 62 year old, had cataract surgery 2 days ago in my left, non-dominant eye and had a monofocal lens (+11.5D) implanted.
Later that same day, after having had the lens put in and seeing the results, I realized that I had made a big mistake in choosing a distance lens. I should have done with the doctor's original suggestion of -2.5 lens which would have given me good reading and computer sight. I was hoping to be able to see well at distance after decades of wearing glasses but, now, realize, after the fact, that most of what I do (reading, writing, pc, drawing) is mostly near or intermediate distance and I would have been better off opting for near/intermediate and using glasses for distance. I had not realized too what drawback not being able to read without glasses is. I am heartbroken that instead of choosing something that would have been ideal, I chose the other and now bitterly regret it.
I am now thinking about what options I might have to mitigate the effects of my bad decision:
1) I would love a do-over if that is an option. Is that a possibility or do the risks of additional surgery outweigh it? I read somewhere that exchanges are possible but easiest if done within 4 - 6 weeks of the original surgery before the lens become entrenched. Is it worth considering? Would the doctor consider such a request and what might the costs be? Would insurance cover a do-over or would I have to pay out of pocket?
2) The other thought is go for mini-monovision. With my left , non-dominant eye currently at 20/20, would setting my right eye for near (-1.25?) give me back most of my near/intermediate reading abilities? My right eye is is currently nearsighted (-4.0), has some cataract but is 20/20 with glasses at the moment. Only my left eye has been operated on so far.
I was following Craig10x posts here and he seemed very happy and had great results with his monovision of 20/20 for left eye and -1.25 for right eye, needing only light readers for close reading. However, it was his dominant eye that was set for 20/20. In my case, it is my non-dominant eye that is 20/20. Might that make a difference in terms of outcome?
Also, while he seemed very happy with his monovision from his posts from 2011-2013, his latest post that I could find in 2014 sounded like he was considering going 20/20ib both eyes? I don't see any more posts from him after that.
3) When my right eye needs surgery, make it a distance lens to match the left eye. In that case, I would lose what little ability I have left in my right eye to read without glasses. Having always been myopic, I realize , now, after my let eye surgery, that I do not like not being able to read without glasses. I know others have mentioned it here, but it didn't really register until experiencing it now how much I don't like it. Again, why my decision above haunts me.
4) Any other option?
If Dr. Hagan is reading this, i would be interested in what he has to say.
I did some research here and elsewhere prior to my surgery which would have pointed me towards opting for a near/intermediate monofocal lens but for some crazy reason which I myself don't understand, maybe because after decades of not seeing distance clearly, the possibility of seeing clearly distance was too tempting and I got confused and ignored what should have been an obvious choice until it was too late. At present, I can't see distance clearly with the left eye that was operated, not sure if that'll improve over time.
I know I erred badly and now wonder how best to correct the mistake, if it is at all correctable. I'm so torn and don't want to make things worse by blindly making another mistake after the first.