Spindel Eye Associates Review

Dear Dr. Wood,

I want to thank you for allowing me this opportunity to thank everyone – and I mean everyone – at Spindel Eye Associates. I would like to present you with a full understanding of my appreciation. You may share what I’ve written with all of your colleagues – and with anyone, in fact, who might appreciate my story.

Just last week, I sat in the hairdresser’s chair, getting my hair cut and I experienced a miracle. You see, my routine – since I was in the third grade – was to sit in a chair like that without seeing what was being done to my hair. Each and every time, for more than 50 years, I had to take my glasses off and set them aside, which was in itself an act of faith because I would never have been able to see them to pick them back up! I needed to trust that the person would, in fact, return them to me. Since the third grade. Now at 64 years, that’s 56 years. For the last 5 decades, virtually as far back as I remember, I would sit in that chair, looking at the blur in the mirror. I knew it was me. I knew that the person was cutting my hair. I couldn’t tell what they were doing because I couldn’t see that far away. It always happened. They would finish. Sometimes I could tell that they were smiling. Sometimes I had to imagine. They would say, “What do you think?” And every time, I had to say, “Could you give me my glasses back, please?” Every single time.

Last week was different. It was nothing short of a miracle. I sat in that chair without glasses and I could see. I saw every snip and I watched every stroke of her combing my hair – this way and that. To millions of people, that would have been so ordinary, so mundane that it wouldn’t be worth mentioning. But to me, sitting there and watching her, I became aware of the tears that were forming. This was a first. In my entire living memory, I had never been able to see what the person was doing. I want to use the word “miracle” again!

Since having my eye surgery, colors are brighter, driving is easier, and there are those moments when I stop and realize that I’ve never experienced this before. The decision to have surgery was not difficult but it was not easy either. As a person with extreme near-sightedness, I was woefully dependent upon my glasses. I would rarely go swimming because without glasses I couldn’t see well enough to recognize the people around me. Sometimes I would wear my glasses swimming but that was not without fear. I would have been lost without them. I carried my prescription with me in case of emergency. If the surgery had been elective, I might not have done it. The cataracts were making it more difficult for me to see even with glasses!

Once I decided to do surgery, the whole process of testing and measuring began. How impressed I am with the staff at Spindel! Every single person introduced themselves when they greeted me. Every person explained what they were doing and why they were doing it. At the slightest indication that there might be an issue, (the apparent thinning of my retinal wall) a specialist was called in. That appointment was amazing! He explained everything he saw and why it was important. The go-ahead was giving and surgery was scheduled.

I’m not going to lie. I was scared the day of surgery. These are my eyes we’re talking about! Again, every person was calm and kind. Every person was warm and answered every question with good humor. When the first eye was done, I was truly amazed that I could see beautifully immediately! The “patch” has tiny little holes so you can see through it and I DID SEE!

This is when I experienced the only “bump in the road” of the whole experience: It was explained to me that after surgery I could come into the office and they would put a blank lens in my glasses for my “good” eye. I would then have a corrective lens on my pre-surgical eye and a blank on my surgical eye. It should have worked! But it didn’t. I saw two separate –albeit clear- images that sort of overlapped. It was crazy-making. I couldn’t drive like that. I couldn’t live like that for two whole weeks until the other eye was done. Someone along the way had asked me if I wore contacts but I didn’t know why.  I learned why!! When people have the insanely strong prescription like I do, the brain simply cannot compensate for perfect vision in one eye and a corrective lens on the other. I went into the office and explained. Someone came back and talked to you (Dr. Wood) and then came back and explained that we were going to try a contact in that eye that needed corrective lens. It wasn’t my prescription (because my real prescription is so insanely bad!) but it helped. And it did! It helped A LOT! I did that for nearly two weeks. Dr. Spindel instructed me to not put in the contact starting three days from my surgery. For those three days, I couldn’t drive myself. I closed one eye a lot but seriously it was no big deal.

The surgery for the second eye was a little more complex – bigger cataract and worse vision on that side means the eyeball is more oblong. Long story short, I walked out that day with amazing vision.

Post-surgery there are a lot of eye drops. And I mean a lot! Many people will complain about the eye drops but seriously when you consider the reality, it is a small price to pay. The office gives you a finely tuned schedule. Just follow the directions. Again, a small price to pay.

There is a long list of things that have changed for the better in my life. I am wearing sunglasses for the very first time! (Instead of clip-ons!) I am so very grateful for Dr. Spindel, for Dr. Wood, for Dr. O’Block (who is my regular doc) and for every single person in the practice. Without exception, I was treated so well by staff and the results are incredible. I highly recommend this procedure to anyone who needs it!

Thank you for changing my life!

Deborah