Well, I had my iridotomy done yesterday, on both eyes. It was
certainly a strange experience.

My appointment was at 9 am. When I got there, I first had some brief
tests done on my eyes to check my prescription as well as the pressure
in my eye. I received my first numbing drops. Everything was fine.
In my rush to get myself, my wife and my son ready in the morning, I
forgot to grab some tylenol to take before the procedure.
Fortunately, I asked and they had some in the office. After taking
the tylenol, I met the doctor who would be performing my procedure.
He discussed the laser alternatives, since I am a LASIK candidate, but
I explained my reasons for deciding against it. He told me he just
wanted to make sure I was aware of the tradeoffs and risks. I have
been told several times by the doctors and others that I am one of
their most well informed patients. It boggles my mind that some
people go in there having done no research. After that discussion, I
received my second set of numbing drops and was lead to the laser.

I don't know what I was expecting as far as the laser was concerned.
I guess I was expecting some dedicated room with a huge machine.
Needless to say, I was severely underwhelmed. The actual machine was
smaller than most of the devices they use and it didn't even have its
own room.

I sat down and received a numbing drop in my right eye. The doctor
had me put my chin in the rest. He told me he was going to put a lens
in my eye to help focus the laser. Once the lens was in place, I was
not able to see nor was I able to blink. After a few seconds he told
me that I would here a snap and feel the laser. I had no idea what to
expect. Suddenly I heard a snap and felt the laser. That was it? I
barely felt anything. I heard it described as feeling like your eye
was snapped with a rubber band. I guess that's pretty accurate, but
the description sounds more painful than it actually was. It took a
handful of zaps for the first hole, and another handful for the second
hole. Once he was done, he removed the lens and THAT felt really
strange. A lot of the "goop" (their word, not mine) remained in my
eye. It was difficult to blink and see. The aid rinsed my eye out
with saline, but it didn't really help much. I still couldn't see
squat and blinking felt weird. The second eye went much like the
first. It was a little more uncomfortable, but not too bad.

Basically, what they told me was true. I felt some discomfort, but no
real pain. I had to sit in the waiting room for 45 minutes before
they could check the pressure in my eye. After 45 minutes, I still
had goop in my eyes. My eyes felt a little scratchy and were a little
painful, but nothing too bad. They took me back to check the pressure
in my eyes and I received another set of numbing drops. Yay, the pain
disappeared. I love those things... Anyway, the pressure in my eye
was normal. I was then sat down and given information on my surgery
and two blue bags, one to bring to each of my procedures. They
contain the shield, sunglasses, some eye pads, some tape and two
bottles of eye drops: Pred Forte and Acular LS. I was also given
three prescriptions. One for steroids to use in my eyes for the next
four days, the other two for the 3 days prior to my surgery.

Since then, I really haven't felt much in terms of pain. My eyes feel
a little "off", but nothing too bad really. I've been putting the
steroids in four times a day. They burn for a few seconds, but after
that, the only problem is the nasty taste I get in the back of my
throat from the drainage. I do have a slight vision abnormality.
Sometimes when I deliberately blink, I see something. It's hard to
describe. If you've ever noticed the reflection of your eye lashes in
your glasses, that's pretty close to what I see. It's annoying, but
it's definitely something I can live with, and I'm hoping that as my
irises heal, and as my brain adjusts, it will be something I rarely
notice. My wife and I went to see a movie yesterday and it didn't
distract me much, and last night I barely noticed it. I wasn't in a
car last night, but I don't seem to have any halos or glares or
anything so it shouldn't be affected.

I've read other accounts where people say the iridotomy is the most
uncomfortable part of the entire procedure. If that's the case with
me, the actual surgery is going to be a breeze.