Health Effects of Hanging Up the RV Keys

[Jackiemac]

Memory loss is so awful.

 

[woof-n]

This is the question I've been struggling with for quite some time. I don't have any hobbies. I played piano a bit before my hearing went south. My ADHD and Swiss cheese memory make reading more of a chore than something I enjoy doing.

So for you who have hung up or are thinking of hanging up the keys, what are your thoughts?

Before I retired, I read a book titled " How to retire Happy Wild and Free". It is about everything in retirement that your accountant did not tell you. It has numerous ideas on things to do, traveling on the cheap and making new friends in retirement. It is easy reading. A little wordy once he makes his point but gives good advice.
The two main points he makes in the book is:

1, Retire as soon as you are financially able. If you retire to soon, you still have skills and you can go back to work. If you retire to late ........ well, you're too late!! (This is the one that hit home for me)

2, All of the fun things you can do and ways to make some new friends in retirement.

Just because the journey changes from what you think you want, it does not have to end. Good luck in finding the journey beyond camping.

 

[SargeW]

1, Retire as soon as you are financially able. If you retire to soon, you still have skills and you can go back to work. If you retire to late ........ well, you're too late!! (This is the one that hit home for me)

We did #1. Both the DW and I made the decision to pull the pin as soon as we could, sold everything and hit the road in the motorhome. The only thing I missed was not seeing the guys I worked with, but I got over it. I could have stayed longer and increased my retirement a bit, but one of my mantra's in retirement has been "I can always get more money if I need to, the available time is a hard limit".

The group Kansas said it best in there song "Dust in the wind". One line of the song goes "and all your money won't another minute buy".

 

[Firstime RVer]

Sounds like you need to get to an ophthalmologist for a cataract check. My night vision improved significantly after cataract surgery.

I second that recommendation!! My night vision really improved after having cataract surgery..

 

[Rene T]

I second that recommendation!! My night vision really improved after having cataract surgery..

When they removed mine, they implanted lenses so I never have to wear glasses again

 

[NY_Dutch]

1, Retire as soon as you are financially able. If you retire to soon, you still have skills and you can go back to work. If you retire to late ........ well, you're too late!! (This is the one that hit home for me)

I retired at 62 in 2005 and never looked back. When my wife, her mother, died last December, my 58 year old daughter checked with her financial advisor and found that she could comfortably retire any time she wanted to. Between being pretty much burnt out at work and her desire to spend more time taking care of me and spending time with her kids and grandkids, she's now enjoying her new found freedom. She's been hiking and camping with friends, and doing other things mid-week that she used to only be able to squeeze in on weekends and vacations. We have our digital calendars sync'ed so she knows when to make time for my doctors and other appointments, as well as dining out with me or just sitting and talking. Since she retired, she's been like a whole new person! I love it!

 

[garyb1st]

I second that recommendation!! My night vision really improved after having cataract surgery..

After 30+ years, my cataracts have matured to the point surgery is an option. For those of you who had them removed, were there any complications? A friends wife had ongoing pain in one eye requiring repeated trips to the clinic.

Aside from not being able to read the large letters on hiway exit signs as soon as I'd like, I don't have any problems seeing. So my question. Is it worth the risk?

 

[DonTom]

After 30+ years, my cataracts have matured to the point surgery is an option. For those of you who had them removed, were there any complications? A friends wife had ongoing pain in one eye requiring repeated trips to the clinic.

Aside from not being able to read the large letters on hiway exit signs as soon as I'd like, I don't have any problems seeing. So my question. Is it worth the risk?

Complications can happen, but are very rare.

I had both eyes done years ago and nothing but BIG improvements. The operation is painless, and I was fully awake during the operation, even talking to the doctor in the middle of him digging into my eye.

Minor hassles for a few days after, as you need to be extra careful to not get the operated eye wet. They normally only do one eye at a time even if both eyes have cataracts, the operations will probably be around a month apart for each eye.

One thing they should tell you but often do not, is sight problems can come again in about a month after it is done. But it is NBD as then a two minute laser surgery fixes that for good.

I used to wear glasses for driving and it was required, my driver's license was stamped with "must wear corrective lenses". After the eye operations I passed every DMV eye test without glasses and my driver's license no longer has the stamp. And at night, I can drive much faster than before, after the operation, I often realized I was speeding when I felt like I was driving slower than usual during the night. A very big difference.

I still use glasses for reading fine print, but that is all. I can easily read this small computer screen without my glasses, but I always have them with me, but only rarely get used.

-Don- Big Creek Camp. NV

 

[garyb1st]

I was fully awake during the operation

Right. Ain't no way that's going to happen. If that's required, I'm going to have to pass.

my driver's license was stamped with "must wear corrective lenses

Avoided the dreaded DMV renewal visit in 2019 because of Covid. Currently no restrictions. My reading vision has gone south over the years but distance is still pretty good. I'm not concerned about restrictions. I've worn glasses for 30+ years. I always take them off when doing the DMV vision test. Next time, if I fail, I'll just put them on and retake the test.

 

[SargeW]

I had cataract surgery about 5 years ago. Super simple and painless. I think I had twilight sleep. I have mono lenses they put in instead of the multi focal lenses. I couldn't get the multi focal (I didn't really want them) because I had Radial Keratotomy (scalpel surgery) to correct an astigmatism about 30 years ago. The multi focal lenses would have created "halo's" in my night vision. The single focal were free covered by Medicare. The multi focal were about $500 an eye upcharge.

 

[TheBar]

After 30+ years, my cataracts have matured to the point surgery is an option. For those of you who had them removed, were there any complications? A friends wife had ongoing pain in one eye requiring repeated trips to the clinic.

Aside from not being able to read the large letters on hiway exit signs as soon as I'd like, I don't have any problems seeing. So my question. Is it worth the risk?

My wife had cataract surgery 9 years ago with zero problems. She was near sighted so her doctor implanted farsighted lenses in both eyes. So now she needs 2.5x reading glasses to read up close but her distance vision is perfect.

She is completely happy with it but she now needs dark sunglasses outside and likes inside light darker than I prefer.

Some surgeons do LASIK surgery at the same time. Her doctor did not recommend it since in his experience it is less permanent and may have to be redone.

I have cataracts but like many other people my main problem is more dry macular degeneration. Which affects my family members over the age of 60. You should be tested for it because it is pretty common if you're over 50. So cataract surgery may only be a temporary solution.

My doctor has had me taking over the counter AREDS2 medication for a dozen years to treat macular degeneration. Which helps brighten up my world. I now need sunglasses where I didn't before. Sunlight makes it progress faster so I really need to wear lighter sunglasses even when the sky is overcast.

If it progresses to wet macular degeneration it is a more serious problem. Which can be treated but cataract surgery may be done at the same time. So I'm waiting to see which one progresses fastest.

 

[UTTransplant]

Gary, you are way over reacting to the cataract surgery and potential complications. The surgeon who did mine had done over 10,000 of them. This is not unusual in an ophthalmologist that specializes in them and has been in practice 20 years. And I actually did need the laser treatment a year afterwards. Totally painless, took less than a minute per eye. It isn’t a surgical laser. It is one specifically tuned for the type of scar tissue that sometimes happens after cataract surgery. It is not a common complication, but you can ask your ophthalmologist what percentage of his/her patients need it. cataract surgery is truly life changing! No more night vision problems after about a week.

 

[SargeW]

The only weirdness I experienced was that I waited about 4 weeks between surgeries. About half way through the wait I was at a RV park on a short trip. The left eye was healing nicely with no issues. Then while sitting outside one afternoon my usual allergies were acting up, and my right eye was itching. I know I shouldn't rub them because that just usually makes them itch more, but I was being lazy. So I closed my right eye and gave it a gentle rub for a few seconds while my left eye was open. There was a brown car parked in the next door RV site, and we were facing it. With my right eye closed and only the left open, the brown car suddenly turned dark green!

It appears that your brain will take the information that it gets from both eyes and then blends it into what is fed to the brain. So I opened and closed one at a time while looking around, and many colors were different than what I had thought. The new lens was so clear that it was seeing different than the one that still had the cataract.

And yes, I do need sunglasses much more often than I used to. A humorous side note, the DW says I now look like I have "Terminator" eyes now. If the light hits them the right way they reflect it back making them kind of glow. I can't usually see, but she sees it all the time.

 

[DonTom]

Ain't no way that's going to happen. If that's required, I'm going to have to pass.

Why? I seemed to be perfectly normal (for me, that is ) during the eye operations, no pain at all, yet at least felt like I was wide awake. I found it to be interesting--the technology that make that possible more than 20 years ago.

I cannot say if the procedure has changed in the last 20 years, but if it has, I doubt it was necessary to make any changes.

And I actually did need the laser treatment a year afterwards.

Me too, in way less than a year, and to both eyes. My fastest office visit ever. In and out within ten minutes or so, with the laser operation perhaps a few seconds per eye.

I agree that Gary is over-reacting to a very simple common procedure, which only very rarely causes any problems other than the laser procedure done months later-- any many do not need it, but you and I did.

-Don- Big Creek Camp, NV

 

[DonTom]

My reading vision has gone south over the years but distance is still pretty good. I'm not concerned about restrictions. I've worn glasses for 30+ years. I always take them off when doing the DMV vision test. Next time, if I fail, I'll just put them on and retake the test.

My eyesight now is MUCH better without glasses than it ever was before when I used glasses. Same will probably happen to you after the eye operation.

Do not chicken-out! You will be so glad that you didn't!

-Don- Big Creek Camp, NV

 

[LarsMac]

Right. Ain't no way that's going to happen. If that's required, I'm going to have to pass.

Avoided the dreaded DMV renewal visit in 2019 because of Covid. Currently no restrictions. My reading vision has gone south over the years but distance is still pretty good. I'm not concerned about restrictions. I've worn glasses for 30+ years. I always take them off when doing the DMV vision test. Next time, if I fail, I'll just put them on and retake the test.

Margo went through it the year we bought the RV. She was nervous about being awake but after the first eye, she said it was pretty quick and was no big deal. They use a mild sedative, and you need someone to transport you. they won't let you leave without someone taking you home. The whole process, from in the door to leaving, is less than an hour.
I nearly failed my DL vision test in '25 and the Eye doc said the cataracts probably were responsible, so I plan to get the deed done before my next renewal in '30.

 

[garyb1st]

You should be tested for it because it is pretty common if you're over 50.

I see an ophthalmologist every six months since I have an eye condition that can cause glaucoma. Hopefully the doc will catch any other issue before it becomes serious.

 

[garyb1st]

Gary, you are way over reacting to the cataract surgery and potential complications

I have a tendency to do that when it comes to my health. Also, I've always though the docs would suggest surgery based on the examination. As I mentioned the issue is only reading highway signs during the day and that's Maria's job.

 

[Kirk]

I'm not concerned about restrictions.

If cataracts are the only reason that you are thinking of stopping RV travel, then I'll join those who advise getting the surgery done. But, if you have other doubts, then don't let a bunch of people you don't know talk you out of the decision. I gave up the RV for several reasons, but I would rather give up the RV too soon, than to take a chance of something happening to show that I didn't stop soon enough. What are you willing to risk? For me, I didn't want to risk causing a major accident. I might be fine if I kept on, but the fact that I had some doubts was enough for me to quit.

 

[NY_Dutch]

Right. Ain't no way that's going to happen. If that's required, I'm going to have to pass.

As others have said, it's a simple painless procedure. The only complaint I had was that they didn't give me enough of those little peanut butter crackers during the short wait afterwards to make sure there were no issues. It took a little getting used to wearing my glasses with one lense removed while waiting to get the other eye done.