Lights, Camera - Action

New View from Onstage    

Lights, action - and clear vision.

This year's variety show was a little different for Elaine Temple. For years, the Surprise resident and her husband, Dennis Temple, would join in on her community's annual show - singing songs and performing patriotic music and dancing that celebrated every region of the nation.

But there was one thing that always held Elaine back from enjoying the experience totally. It was something that dominated her life. It was the first thing she did in the morning, and the last thing she did in the evening: Take her eyeglasses on and off.

Near sighted since high school, it was a daily routine she had grown used to. The reflection of the lights on her glasses, though, made her always leave them off as she got on that community stage. She and her husband, both absent their usual frames for the sake of the show, would lead each other: "the blind, leading the blind," she now laughs.

This year was different. After undergoing laser cataract surgery and receiving a new lens at the Arizona Eye Institute & Cosmetic Eye Center, for the first time in decades, Elaine sees perfectly, without even the need for reading glasses except for the smallest of type. It's an adjustment to her daily routine - but one that has brightened her life.

"I used to put my glasses on first thing in the morning, and they were the last thing that went off at night," she said. "Now, it's really neat. I enjoy not having to do that. And I can read the newspaper. I can read books. I don't even have to use reading glasses."

Since having her surgery, Elaine has returned to Dr. Emilio M. Justo, the practice's founder and medical director, for a second surgery - this time to lift an eyelid that had become heavy and drooped. Her improved vision had her reading so much more, that she had begun to realize how tired and fatigued the eyelid made her as it also limited her vision.

Since undergoing a Muellerectomy, which like her cataract surgery was covered by her insurance, her vision is now perfect -  and she is eager for the next show.

"To be able to see and not have to wear your glasses all of the time, it is unbelievable," she said. "My surgeries were very successful, and I had excellent care. Arizona Eye Institute is a very caring, great bunch of people. It was a very pleasant experience, and the outcome was awesome."