Eye Surgery Update

I mentioned back in the fall that I am going to have eye surgery, actually two of them, one for each eye:). Because of that, I’ve first had to switch to the soft contacts, and you might remember my horrible Thanksgiving story. Well, now that I returned from Cyprus, I was ready to switch to glasses. I have to wear them for two weeks before measurements will be taken, and then for one more week until the first surgery.

The problem is that I can’t wear glasses, because my prescription is so high. The whole world looks twisted, and I have constant headaches and nausea. 

But there was more to the story. I when to my eye doctor to get the final glass prescription on December 20. I could not do it earlier, because my vision was changing after I switched to soft contacts. It was stable for three weeks by then, and the doctor took the final measurements for glasses. 

I have three separate prescriptions. One is for my distant vision (those used to be contacts), the readers, and the glasses for driving and watching movies, presentations, etc. My glasses combine all of them in one. I told the doctor that most likely, I will need two separate glasses because, in my driving glasses, I can’t see the close-up objects. But then it turned out that each pair, even with the cheapest frame, will cost over $500, and I only need these glasses for three weeks. 

Since the glasses should have been ready by January 6, I decideded thet I will try them on and see whether I need a separate pair without prisms, or I can manage.

December 6 came, and my glasses didn’t show up. I called the doctor two days later. They told me that the glasses didn’t pass the quality test in the lab and were returned to be fixed. Long story short, it happened three times. I was scared because I was leaving on January 17, and upon my arrival, I had to start wearing glasses immediately. 

I was calling the doctor’s office every day; they were calling the lab every day, the lab was apologetic, but still didn’t produce my glasses. 

Finally, I had to ask my neighbor Renate to pick up my glasses when they come, which she did. When I returned Sunday night, I could start wearing my glasses, but I had no time to adjust. It felt horrible, as I described above. And it turned out that the only thing I can do comfortably in these glasses is driving :). Moving around the house, doing things, climbing stairs – all of the above is a struggle. And now I have no time to order the second pair – by the time it arrives, I won’t need it. 

Two days are done, twenty one more to go.

Motivational Post

I heard a lot about people “showing off on Instagram,” posting the “perfect bodies which do not really exist,” and so on. Also, and this is not what people are saying, but what I observe – in their “End of the year” posts people often say that they dropped X pounds, finally started to exercise and practice yoga regularly, and so on.

I am posting my picture, not for the show, but motivation. And I consciously did not photoshop the imperfections (except I’ve chosen the photos with the most intelligent expression on my face :)).


I will turn fifty-seven in less than three weeks. My weight is stable for ten years, so nothing new here:). I practice yoga for about 12 years and work with personal trainers for approximately the same time. Nothing new.


Almost two years after my back surgery, I am continuously getting better. I do not think I will ever feel “like new,” but I can walk and stand longer than many other people even without surgery:). Although I can’t lift heavy weights anymore, I’ve almost rebuilt my muscle mass to the pre-surgical period.

I was not an athletic person neither in school nor in college. I started to take good care of my body pretty late in life. And what I want to say – it is never too late. You should not “feel old” just because of your age. It is not natural :).

Health Updates

Most of my friends are aware that out of my multiple vision-related issues, the most annoying is my double vision. I went for years without any treatment until about five years ago, I got special prism-only glasses to address to issue. I can’t wear these glasses all the time, but I use them for driving and while in the movies or other shows. It helps a lot.

Recently, however, it became worse, and at my annual checkup, I’ve
complained to my eye doctor. She gave me a referral to the specialist, who is primarily dealing with that particular problem. That other doctor examined me and told me that she can work with my double vision, but first, I need to have my cataracts operated. That was news for me; I didn’t know I have cataracts, but that explained a lot about how I felt recently.

Continue reading “Health Updates” →

Healthy Living For Baby Boomers

I often talk to people who are about my age or older, or a little bit younger, trying to motivate them to be more engaged in physical activities and overall, to have a healthier lifestyle. I am an excellent motivator :), so most of the time there are some positive outcomes.

Some time ago (about six months, to be exact) I came across the article in the Chicago Tribune, which I liked a lot. I decided to paste it’s full text here because people do not like to click on the links, and there are way fewer chances somebody will read it, if it is not copy-pasted.

The reason I often post my pictures with all the muscules exposed is not that I like to show-off, but because people believe more in what I am saying when they can see results not on TV, but on the real person. Most importantly, I try to draw people away from the preception, that their health should decline with age, that this is normal.

It takes moxie to flip an unhealthy lifestyle to a healthy one particularly for folks 60 and older.

Here is the article:

Most baby boomers approach retirement age unwilling to follow basic healthy lifestyle goals established by the American Heart Association, said Dr. Dana King, professor and chairman of the department of family medicine at West Virginia University, referencing his university’s 2017 study comparing the healthy lifestyle rates of retired late-middle-aged adults with rates among those still working.

Continue reading “Healthy Living For Baby Boomers” →