Withdrawal jitters and mild disappointment
In preparation for my Christmas gift from my parents, I have quit smoking (again). And, low and behold, it kind of sucks. But not as badly as last time. Of course, the Christmas present isn't the only reason for my quitting smoking. It's also a way to remind myself that I am capable of accomplishing the goals that I put my mind to. But I'm bored, and when I'm bored, I smoke. So, since I can't smoke, what am I to do? The answer: CLEAN. Yes, color me tweaker; I'm cleaning up a storm. Cause I'm bored, and there is little else to do. My floors are almost shiny, and they smell "open air fresh" according to the package.
And what about the Christmas present, you say?
For Christmas, my parents have offered to pay for me to get Lasik laser eye surgery, thus ridding me of the necessity to wear glasses. This would be an amazing gift, I could see out of the corner of my eye, in the shower, read the clock in the middle of the night without moving close, squinting and wiggling my head around.
Alas, a hitch. . .
I went for the free eye exam at the laser eye center in Encino. I expected the office to have a nice expensive look, super professional environment, etc. It looked just like a regular old doctor's office, with a LOT of chairs. We were the first ones there, got in, and got the first few parts of the exam done. Then he takes me to another waiting room with other people in it to continue parts of my exam and discuss the procedure with me. In a waiting room with 3-5 other people in it. . . I may be spoiled, but I'm used to getting this kind of information and these kinds of tests done in private.
After that, and a few dilating drops in my eyes later, I get a second eye exam, one that checks my vision. If you have glasses, you might understand that this is a little odd. Your vision becomes unfocused when the dilating drops are put in your eyes, so getting a vision test AFTER your eyes have been dilated makes very little sense.
So I go home after all of this, and being told that If I get the surgery in the next two weeks it will be 500 dollars cheaper, and my Dad looks at the papers.
Sure enough, there is something wrong.
The doctor, Dr. Abraham V. Shammas, who performs all of the surgeries at all of the laser eye centers, isn't Board Certified by the Board of Ophthalmology. There ate 2100 other board certified individuals, but not him. On top of that, his name is listed in a malpractice lawsuit I found. While he wasn't at found, and no repercussions were filed against him, the other doctor on this lawsuit had a $48,000 lawsuit to pay for damaging someone's eyes, and lost his license for various other reasons.
So, needless to say, I will most likely be having another appointment somewhere else with a different doctor. Too much felt weird, felt like they were just trying to get as many surgeries set up as possible without much concern for the patient. Under most circumstances, I prolly wouldn't gripe. But we are talking about my eyes here, and I'm not risking these puppies.
Anywho, 2 days off smokes so far, not feeling to bad, just a little anxious and jittery. Not doing anything for Halloween this year at all, which is strange for me. But I figure I can sacrifice it this year for a more promising one next year, at home in LA, smoke free, on my way to a brighter future. Not spending a ton of money will help me do that.
Wish me luck!
And what about the Christmas present, you say?
For Christmas, my parents have offered to pay for me to get Lasik laser eye surgery, thus ridding me of the necessity to wear glasses. This would be an amazing gift, I could see out of the corner of my eye, in the shower, read the clock in the middle of the night without moving close, squinting and wiggling my head around.
Alas, a hitch. . .
I went for the free eye exam at the laser eye center in Encino. I expected the office to have a nice expensive look, super professional environment, etc. It looked just like a regular old doctor's office, with a LOT of chairs. We were the first ones there, got in, and got the first few parts of the exam done. Then he takes me to another waiting room with other people in it to continue parts of my exam and discuss the procedure with me. In a waiting room with 3-5 other people in it. . . I may be spoiled, but I'm used to getting this kind of information and these kinds of tests done in private.
After that, and a few dilating drops in my eyes later, I get a second eye exam, one that checks my vision. If you have glasses, you might understand that this is a little odd. Your vision becomes unfocused when the dilating drops are put in your eyes, so getting a vision test AFTER your eyes have been dilated makes very little sense.
So I go home after all of this, and being told that If I get the surgery in the next two weeks it will be 500 dollars cheaper, and my Dad looks at the papers.
Sure enough, there is something wrong.
The doctor, Dr. Abraham V. Shammas, who performs all of the surgeries at all of the laser eye centers, isn't Board Certified by the Board of Ophthalmology. There ate 2100 other board certified individuals, but not him. On top of that, his name is listed in a malpractice lawsuit I found. While he wasn't at found, and no repercussions were filed against him, the other doctor on this lawsuit had a $48,000 lawsuit to pay for damaging someone's eyes, and lost his license for various other reasons.
So, needless to say, I will most likely be having another appointment somewhere else with a different doctor. Too much felt weird, felt like they were just trying to get as many surgeries set up as possible without much concern for the patient. Under most circumstances, I prolly wouldn't gripe. But we are talking about my eyes here, and I'm not risking these puppies.
Anywho, 2 days off smokes so far, not feeling to bad, just a little anxious and jittery. Not doing anything for Halloween this year at all, which is strange for me. But I figure I can sacrifice it this year for a more promising one next year, at home in LA, smoke free, on my way to a brighter future. Not spending a ton of money will help me do that.
Wish me luck!