A new lens

Sunday, March 18, marked 30 years after the little mishap that claimed the sight in my right eye. I had been spinning, and I fell into a sharp corner that pierced my eye. 

A few weeks ago, Beverly, the ocularist I've been seeing these three decades, finished my latest prosthesis. Here, for those of you who are interested, I'll share the story of how a prosthetic lens is fashioned.

 

First, a plastic mold is placed on my eyeball, and Beverly squirts a gel into it.

 

The gel firms up on my eye, capturing every groove and ridge. The eyeball is not a smooth surface, especially mine, after the trauma of the accident, and later the car crash that caused an air bag deploy into my face. 

From the mold, this impression is made - see its strange shape with a big bulge on the right side?

 A clear plastic shell is made from the impression. Beverly fits it onto my eye, so we can see how it feels and adjust the shape, smoothing the areas that rub or ache. The black markings show her where my pupil and iris should be painted.

 From the plastic shell, Beverly creates the white lens. A bit of paint, a bit of thread to make the veins (below), a few more trials and fittings, and voila! A new prosthesis that fits almost like a glove, sticking to my eyeball closely enough to track the movement of my left eye. (Thankfully, my accident took the sight nerves but not the motor nerves - my bad eye moves just like my "good" eye.)

Here is the before shot, my prosthesis made a few years ago. 

My eye's surface changes slowly over the months/years, so that the prosthesis will only fit well for so long before it needs to be replaced. Yes, I have quite a few lenses that no longer fit. Odd thing to collect, indeed.

 And here is the after shot. This one really fits well and looks very natural. 

Beverly is an amazing artist and a great friend. She's known me longer than probably 95% of the people in my life! I've let her know that she's not to even consider retiring.