Beautiful But Blind?

[goodwood]

Hey hey -
just asking what you think about the possibility that you could be blind, but look like brad pitt.
i have to have reconstructive surgery to put my face back together but a possible side effect is that i could be blind.
of course i want my face back, perhaps a bit better than it was, but i don't want to be blind.
the blind thing is because there are so many optical nerves involved in the area that needs surgery.
cosmetically i could live with no cheek bone and bone structure and be fine. just ugly.
i don't know what to do. surgery is scheduled for wednesday morning. i am panicing.
reference my blog for more details. thanks.
- good wood

 

[Principessa]

:eek5: FUCK! :yikes: That sucks royally dude. :frown1: Did you get a second opinion? Anytime they say major surgery, or life altering side effects you gotta get a second opinion. Also, if they are talking removal of cheekbone they can re-build that and should! What about muscle and nerve damage? Why haven't you spoken to a lawyer about sueing the apartment complex where you fell yet?

Call your sister and your mother and ask for their input. I know your relationship is at best strained with your parents, but this is the kind of thing where their input may be beneficial. They may know a reall good cosmetic surgeon or optical surgeon.

Hey hey -
just asking what you think about the possibility that you could be blind, but look like brad pitt.
i have to have reconstructive surgery to put my face back together but a possible side effect is that i could be blind.
of course i want my face back, perhaps a bit better than it was, but i don't want to be blind.
the blind thing is because there are so many optical nerves involved in the area that needs surgery.
cosmetically i could live with no cheek bone and bone structure and be fine. just ugly.
i don't know what to do. surgery is scheduled for wednesday morning. i am panicing.
reference my blog for more details. thanks.
- good wood

 

[canuck_pa]

Blindness has nothing to do with beauty. And beauty isn't just the outside appearance.

Goodwood, you have a very difficult decision to make. Personally I don't know what I'd do were I in the same situation. Has your surgeon given you the odds of becoming blind? Have you discussed the prognosis with anyone besides your doctor? Do you have a support group (friends, family, spiritual) that you can talk to and will be there for you whatever the outcome? Could you become blind in both eyes? Are you prepared for the outcome? Are you able to make an informed decision? Should you postpone?

Whatever you decide I'm sure everyone will join me in sending most sincere best wishes to you for a complete recovery.

(edit) I was writing my post as njqt466 was posting her's. I didn't read your blog before responding. Please follow her advise before proceeding. You need to have all the answers before you can make an informed decision.

 

[2322]

Not knowing the risk involved makes helping you difficult. What we need to know is how remote the risk is, but just that this thread exists makes me assume it's not small.

Because of that, I'd say postpone the surgery. Medical techniques improve all the time and you can always get it done later when techniques improve OR you decide that your life is ruined by your face. Perhaps you can try living with it for a year or two and then reconsider?

Sight is beyond precious. I know of no ugly people who would trade their homeliness for beauty at the price of their sight, but I can think of some blind people who wouldn't mind being ugly to have a normal ability to see.

Perhaps you can consider partial reconstruction? I don't know what your options are.

Either way, in the end, you make the decision. Don't let anyone tell you what to do. You have to do what makes you happy.

 

[dolfette]

as a girl who finds disfiguring scars attractive, i think my advice might be biased.

 

[got_lost]

:frown1: Did you get a second opinion? Anytime they say major surgery, or life altering side effects you gotta get a second opinion.

Really?
Is this the 'amercian' rule?
Do you distrust all dr's?
And hasn't Goodwood seen Dr's in St Louis and Dallas already?

Why haven't you spoken to a lawyer about sueing the apartment complex where you fell yet?

Now this I really don't get (sorry if I'm being particularly british today...)
But Goodwood clearly described the accident as being 'an accident' (albeit a blood unlucky and horrific one).
All that was involved was him, his dog and the dog's lead.
Yes he was walking down some stairs at the time, but why the heck is the owner of the stairs responsible for the dogs lead getting tangled around Goodwoods legs and the dog seeing a rabbit!?!?


With regards to a choice of being blind and pretty or scarred and able to see....
I think the answer is obvious. It's your life - experience it as fully as possible and for that you're best of seeing!

But maybe establish 'how much of a risk' it really is.
Having been in your country recently and watching some pharmaceutical commercials there seems to be a need to make many things out to be worse than they really are (probably for fear of being sued).

So how big a risk is going blind, from this procedure?
And what will be the long term side effects if you don't have it done?

 

[ManlyBanisters]

I agree with you on the suing thing, K8 - and have now firmly reseolved never to invite NJ to a house I own lest she become tangled in herself and try to blame me for any resulting damage.

The second opinion - well, if you have the time and money that's not a bad idea. I mean it certainly can't hurt and NJ has had some pretty shocking advice from one doctor only to have it countered by another with a far more optimistic, and seemingly correct, prognosis.

 

[Principessa]

Really? Is this the 'amercian' rule?

If it's not, it should be. FWIW: You've been here enough to know it's spelled 'American.'

Do you distrust all dr's?[/QUOTE] No, only the foreign ones, and the ones schooled in the southeast United States. I like the Jewish, Cuban and Israeli ones. :biggrin1: j/k Someone graduates at the top of the class and someone at the bottom. You have no way of knowing if you have the valedictorian or the doctor who just scraped by.

And hasn't Goodwood seen Dr's in St Louis and Dallas already?

Texas has some of the best doctors and hospitals in the country. I have no idea what podunk hospital he had to go to in St. Louis.

Now this I really don't get (sorry if I'm being particularly british today

No, you aren't, I can tell because you are being uncharacteristically snippy.

But Goodwood clearly described the accident as being 'an accident' (albeit a blood unlucky and horrific one). All that was involved was him, his dog and the dog's lead. Yes he was walking down some stairs at the time, but why the heck is the owner of the stairs responsible for the dogs lead getting tangled around Goodwoods legs and the dog seeing a rabbit!?!?[/QUOTE]

I understand that it was an accident, but you have managed and healthcare we do not.

Quite often how much money and/or health insurance you have determines the level of care you receive. Goodwood has already stated that he was unemployed. I do not know if he has COBRA insurance from his previous position. The wretched choice he has been given may well be because they may view him as an unemployed bum and therefore it doesn't matter what he looks like and whether or not he can see.
*SNIP*

So how big a risk is going blind, from this procedure?

And what will be the long term side effects if you don't have it done?[/QUOTE]
What one does in America is to ask the doctor who made this diagnosis those questions then get another opinion or 3 or 4 and see if they match up. We also like to consult the individual experts so in addition to a cosmetic surgeon he has probably already spoken to an eye specialist as well as an expert in maxillofacial surgery.

 

[ManlyBanisters]

But Goodwood clearly described the accident as being 'an accident' (albeit a blood unlucky and horrific one). All that was involved was him, his dog and the dog's lead. Yes he was walking down some stairs at the time, but why the heck is the owner of the stairs responsible for the dogs lead getting tangled around Goodwoods legs and the dog seeing a rabbit!?!?

I understand that it was an accident, but you have managed and healthcare we do not.

Quite often how much money and/or health insurance you have determines the level of care you receive. Goodwood has already stated that he was unemployed. I do not know if he has COBRA insurance from his previous position. The wretched choice he has been given may well be because they may view him as an unemployed bum and therefore it doesn't matter what he looks like and whether or not he can see.
.

Forgive me if I am being a little dim here, NJ - but how does any of that make it the fault of the owners of the apartment complex?

 

[Principessa]

Forgive me if I am being a little dim here, NJ - but how does any of that make it the fault of the owners of the apartment complex?

It doesn't. It's just a way to insure he gets the money to get decent healthcare w/o having to declare bankruptcy. Is that wrong? Yes. Does it happen everyday? Yes again. Hence one of the most basic problems with the patheic excuse for healthcare in this country. :irked:

 

[ManlyBanisters]

It doesn't. It's just a way to insure he gets the money to get decent healthcare w/o having to declare bankruptcy. Is that wrong? Yes. Does it happen everyday? Yes again. Hence one of the most basic problems with the patheic excuse for healthcare in this country. :irked:

But don't you understand that one of the reasons healthcare is so expensive in the US, and at least partly why the government are so unwilling to take it on I reckon, is the litigation mentality that has become the norm in the US (many other countries are following suit but that's one area where I really do see the US as world leaders).

 

[Principessa]

But don't you understand that one of the reasons healthcare is so expensive in the US, and at least partly why the government are so unwilling to take it on I reckon, is the litigation mentality that has become the norm in the US (many other countries are following suit but that's one area where I really do see the US as world leaders).

I agree that we have become way too litigious a society on this side of the pond. I also realize the Catch-22 of how things like frivolous lawsuits and healthcare end up becoming enmeshed. However, it seems to me if we could somehow fix healthcare and in the process get rid of all the medical quacks, charlatans, and snake oil salesmen things would improve greatly.

The only reason I mentioned sueing is because I thought it was a way for Goodwood to get the best possible care w/o going bankrupt. NOT because I thought this was a supreme court case. I just want him to receive the best possible care and in the US that doesn't always happen unless they know you have the money or insurance to pay up front.

 

[nudeyorker]

They have to tell you the possible side effects of surgery. Have a candid talk with your doctor to set your mind at ease. When I had my automobile accident they told me the same thing. Luckily I just have the bad vision I was born with. I'll keep you in my thoughts on Wednesday.

 

[ManlyBanisters]

I agree with Kotch on the sight thing - I'd rather be blind than dead, but I think I could cope better with being disfigured or losing a limb or my hearing.

Goodwood - you need to have the risk and the levels of potential sight loss explained to you in as much detail as you can understand - you're a clever chap so that sould be quite a lot. For a risk of 20% or less or blindness in one eye I'd have the operation. Of course that is easy for me to say as I am not in that situation.

NJ - two wrongs... do you need me to finish? You can't fix a system by sitting there knowing it is wrong and not taking the moral highground.

 

[goodwood]

thanks for the thoughts.
i can't seem to get a percentage of the chances of blindness from any doctor. : /
K* - i am with you. i would feel like a complete ass hole to sue the apartment complex because of an accident that was in no way their fault. However i am told by a friend that owns many rental properties that he carries insurance for just this reason and he told me to contact the apt. complex, explain what happened and the injuries sustained and the medical care i required as a result. I have yet to call the apt. complex. While i am not suing them, i feel badly to even ask them to pay for my accident.

 

[798686]

Really sorry to hear about your accident, dude.

If the risk was just to one eye rather than two, I'd be more likely to go for it. I'm not sure I'd risk losing sight in both eyes, though - unless the surgery is absolutely essential. But as most others have said here - it depends on the percentage of the risk.

If the owner of the apartment block has insurance for accidents, then this is the sort of thing he's insured for - and you'd just be making a claim rather than suing him.

Good luck anyway mate - all the best with the surgery if you decide to go ahead with it.

 

[Mem]

Good Luck Goodwood. I would never risk my eyesight with any operation. Chances are that nothing will go wrong and that he actually had to tell you of the possibility as a formal matter.

 

[lucky8]

There's a girl around my age that lives by me who is blind, and she is hot as hell. I see her out walking sometimes and she is definately one hot chick. I feel bad for her

 

[canuck_pa]

To those few that feel it necessary to get nasty, cut it. We're hear to try to help Goodwood and you're not helping. Put your disagreement aside.

 

[Principessa]

There's a girl around my age that lives by me who is blind, and she is hot as hell. I see her out walking sometimes and she is definately one hot chick. I feel bad for her

Why do you feel bad for her? Because she can't see her own hotness in the mirror? She may have been blind since birth. In which case it's not like she misses viewing sunsets.