When I Lost My Eye – Tony Henfrey

When I Lost My Eye – Tony Henfrey

Tony Henfrey

Tony Henfrey

After meeting so many people who have experienced eye loss I have found that while there are aspects to peoples stories that are similar, everyone has a different story and deal with eye loss in their own personal way.

When an eye is removed as a result of ocular melanoma, the symptoms can be minimal and the diagnosis can be devastating. Often the best treatment for melanoma in the eye is to have the eye removed while the tumour is still encapsulated.

Once you make the decision to have the eye removed it is understandable that you would want it done A,S,A,P. Unfortunately, as a result of congested theatre lists, the surgery can be delayed and the patient has the further fear of a melanoma waiting to metastasise.

These are just some of the fears Tony Henfrey confronted when he lost his left eye in February 2008. You can read his full story from his web site here

33 Comments

  1. Avatar for kumar kumar on March 6, 2010 at 9:57 pm

    even i m lost my one eye ,,in the accident pls share ur comments im really sad

    • Avatar for Anonymous Anonymous on May 28, 2012 at 7:28 pm

      Hi everybody

      I was 14 years old when the car driven by my dad to drop me off to school crashed into a lorry.
      I was trapped in the wreackage of the car for almost 2 hours and stayed in hospital for one month, most facial bones had broken, my left eye had simply been crushed and in essence just exploded and i also lost a number of teeth.

      I am now 32 years old, I have lived with lots of scars on my face and also an artificial eye that doesn’t move with the movemnets of my good eye.

      I am trying to apply for compensation but am told it may be too late as it has almost been 18 years since the accident and one must apply for personal injury claims within 3 years.

      The matter is to be decided by a kind judge in Hampshire, I believe his judgement will be fair and as per God’s will. If he decides not to allow me time to apply for damages caused that have changed my life dramatically I will accept that and do the the best i can with my life for me and my family, but I will always always always cry and complain to God as to why this happened to me and what I did wrong for this to happen…If the judge grants me time to apply for damages then I will spread peace and love in this world and be my best towards others…

      bless all of you that have had similar losses, life is so tough but be sure God made you and he loves you and he is your friend and guardian..Fear none but your Lord 🙂

      • Avatar for shadow shadow on June 15, 2014 at 2:27 pm

        just discovered this this,i my self was in a bad car accident in 2006 ,my right side of my face was crushed and right eye was popped like a grape had facial reconstruction surgery and had suregery to fix my eye ,suprisingly i had vision in my right eye after having 7 eye surgerys from 2006-2008,then in 09 things took a turn for the worse i ended up getting an infection in my right eye that left me with no other option other than removal,i was lucky enough to still keep my eye ,dispite not having any vision or optical nevers attatched,im 23 now and this accident happened when i was 16 ,i was taken outa highschool in 09 due to my recovery from my last eye removal surgery have sence gone to college and strived for a better future,i do have a prosthetic but i personally choose not to wear it ,i get asked alot of questions about what happened and alot of stares but i dont wear it so that ppl can ask and i can inform them on how important vision is to people ,this is just a summary of my journey and hope you enjoy

      • Avatar for thuso paulos thuso paulos on November 21, 2020 at 4:31 pm

        hello in 2007 i was working at another farm where i lost my right eye by driving and tractor bezy cleaning the road. what must i do to claim ?

    • Avatar for Chas Chas on June 16, 2012 at 9:56 am

      Hello,

      I have been reading all of your post and I am trying to get a grip with an accident I had 20 years ago. I was suckered punched with a baseball bat and lost the my vision in my left eye when I was only 20 years of age. Since then it’s been my cross to bear. I still have my original bad eye, but it’s not looking to good. I have hid the way I feel for all this time, and it is really getting to me. I have a wonderful wife and 3 beautiful children. There has not been a day since it happens that I do not think about it. Each times look in the mirror or meet someone new that’s all I can think of are they going to ask. Most people do not. I am writing this because just 10 minutes ago my sons 5 year friend staight out asked me in front of son and his father ” what happened to your eye, it looks like you are blind out of it” this really depressed me. When this happened to me I had several surgeries and was adamanet to my doctor, that I do not want a glass eye. Now I am reconsidering it. The main reason I did not get a glass eye at this point is that I am hoping if I keep my eye then maybe through gene therapy that they will be able to regenerate my retina cells and I will be able to see again.

      • Avatar for Kulvir Kulvir on January 25, 2014 at 11:37 am

        There’s an electronic eye you can look into. I have no light from the back..I got hit from behind when I was 21 with a motorcycle chain..i got hit so hard across both eyes i started laughing and screaming how cool it is that my eyes are bleeding and spraying blood. Never found out who did it or why. I’m 34 now and have been seeing a therapist for 4 months now and just got approved for 24 more visits through victim services. You need therapy to get through this. Losing an eye isn’t like losing a cousin or friend..its like losing your mom or dad but u gotta live with it. My doctor explained this to me years ago. I can totally relate to you and your story makes me so upset I had to write you. My eye is ugly and the pressure was 8 for years then couple yrs ago a white bump grew on it and I kept getting alot of discharge. I got antibiotics and steroid mixed drops. Then one day the bump fell off. Now my eye looks lazy and the pressure is probably 1 so it needs to be removed. I can’t breathe when I think of this. I cut my work hrs in half last week and called in sick all week. I ordered a few patches online from patch pals. I have a glass eye shell but never wear it cuz it angers me. I either wanna punch the next person who asks me what happened. Or alot of times I make up a story of a crazy car accident. People are ignorant and we gotta learn to ignore but at some point u break and wanna backhand them. I’m looking for someone with a full glass eye so I can get more insight about it. My email address is kulvirkiran@hotmail.com so anyone who wants to message me please do .

  2. Avatar for kumar kumar on March 6, 2010 at 10:02 pm

    hii my name is kumar i have lost my left eye in car accident .. really i m sad due to this

    after my accident my left eye is totally removed , now i havesingle vision only ,, eventhough i studied bachleors degree and i put my effort and studied ..whenevr i think abt this , i get sad ,, hw i m going to survive rest of life ,,, bcoz by one eye its very ough for me to handle everything ….pls share ur comments with me ,, reply me anybody
    my mail adress is skraja2009@yahoo.com

  3. Avatar for Marles Marles on December 2, 2010 at 7:31 am

    Dear Kumar,

    I had an accident when I was 2 1/2 years old. My eye was not removed but it became diseased and very ugly with a scar and cataract. When I was 46 years old, I had it removed. My prosthesis is beautiful. I AM BEAUTIFUL. I am sure you are too. No one ever knows about my eye unless I tell them. You have your life ahead of you. You will have to adjust to not having depth perception and that will take a little getting used to, but Kumar think how much luckier we are than people who have no vision. I hope you can get over your grief and appreciate that we are really lucky. My friend just got hurt in an accident and will never walk again.

  4. Avatar for Wajid Wajid on January 27, 2011 at 1:35 am

    I lost my when i was playing a game in my childhood now i am 20 and studied in b.a i just want to know can i use an artificial eye? Is that shape similar to my remaing eye. hope for your commonts
    rajawajid45@yahoo.com

    • Avatar for Sienna Town Sienna Town on October 23, 2014 at 2:48 am

      Wajid, It really sad to hear that you lost your eye. Yes, you can use artificial eyes and that very similar with your another eye. From my experience, I suggest you to get service and care from any artificial clinic that have good reputation. You can visit http://www.artificialeyeandprosthesesclinic.com.au . They are providing their service over 30 years. Hope you will get better service. Best of luck

      Thank you…

  5. Avatar for Neil Martin Neil Martin on February 26, 2011 at 2:27 am

    Hi,
    My name is Neil.I am in the N.Y. state guard.Having one eye can be difficult.I lost mine when I was 2. We had a maytag repairman fixing the washer and I picked up the screwdiver from his toolbox , ran down the hall and tripped on the rug.I don’t think I need to explain further….I didn’t get my first artificial eye until I was 5. I am 44 now,married with 2 kids.Everything happens for a purpose, rather to give us determination to press ahead or just make us stronger.Most people think its a lazy eye until you tell them—but I have to tell you-I have had doc’s shine a light in my eye to run out and get another doc! There are alot of doc’s that haven’t seen them and just think your eye is nonresponsive. You can really have fun with it sometimes ! Think of it this way—Everyone has something different about them-we’re all unique in our way and some people find others with things in common to help with Q & A’s.If you want to chat you can e-mail me at : neil941x@frontier.com

  6. Avatar for Gabriel Gabriel on July 8, 2011 at 9:18 pm

    I understand somewhat how you all feel. Although i did not lose my eye i was born with an under developed eye. I went through my childhood being teased by other students on how i only had one eye, for me i didn’t have to adapt to changing from seeing with two eyes to just with one eye,i never had that experience. So my life is just adjusted to seeing with one eye but i get around great i even drive like this, my vision in my right eye is above average with a 13/20 or 20/13 not sure how u measure it. Now im a teenager,16, and i also get doctors who give me something to cover my eye when they’re testing my vision, i just laugh and play along then they realize that i cant see either way and apologize so much. it’s funny at times. But having a prosthetic now a days people cant even tell unless i tell them about it and they cant even tell which eye it is that is fake. Feel free to comment. at Arellanog1@live.com

  7. Avatar for ra1. ra1. on September 3, 2012 at 12:46 am

    hay,
    i m 16 years old.
    I lost my left eye when i was 3 years old.
    Childhood i never think about it and my life was normal like others.
    But when we grow up we understand why we are different from others.
    When peoples ask me what hapnd to ur eye.
    Then i have no reply.
    I m crying lonely so much.
    Everytim i only think about my eye.
    Sometimes i m so sad that i think a way to get free from all of this is sucide.
    I lost my everything.
    Every day,evry tim i feel so much alone.
    Why ???
    Plese reply .

    • Avatar for Judy Judy on June 5, 2013 at 7:52 pm

      My mother is writing this for me. WHen I was ten I was attacked by a dog. I lost both eyes.
      I cannot see, and I have scars on my face. Bt I have my ears. I feel blessed that I have life. I love music and will be a music teacher. I sometimes was so sad, but I would give anything just to have one eye. Please feel lucky because you are the person who I envy..God bless you. My name is Judy

      • Avatar for Paul Geelen Paul Geelen on June 21, 2013 at 2:54 pm

        Hi Judy,
        Thank you for your valuable contribution. This site focuses on monocular vision and we could do more to highlight the stories of people who have lost their sight.
        The fear of losing the remaining eye is often talked about by my patients who have lost one eye.
        It is a wonderful that you plan to share your love of music with others. I play the guitar badly for ten minutes every morning. It is a great way to focus my energy before I start my day. I often close my eyes when I am listening to music to block out distractions.
        I wish you all the best with your career and thank you again for sharing your story.
        Best wishes, Paul

      • Avatar for Thandeka Thandeka on December 5, 2013 at 4:02 pm

        Hey Judy

        Thank you for sharing your story, am truly appreciative to Jehovah God that I have a left eye to apppreciate nature. May god bless you abundantly, I just lost my eye on 29 of November. Am in a hospital now to see a palstic surgeon my facial bones might be broken. Keep well.

      • Avatar for Cat Morgan Cat Morgan on May 18, 2020 at 5:08 am

        Dear Judy….I think of you as a very BRAVE and COURAGEOUS girl and am sending prayers and love your way. I think it is wonderful that you love music. I love it as well, but lost my ability to play. At age 31, I was kicked in the face and head by a horse. It was shot at by a bad neighbor. I lost my lower jaw and my right eye and my pretty face. I cannot see too well with my left eye, but it WAS saved. I had some brain damage and had to re-learn basic arithmetic. I’m very thankful that I have one eye as I did come close to losing it. And despite my now ugly face, I DO feel lucky I have one eye!! I got very interested in player pianos about a year after the accident and learned how to re-build them. So I started doing rebuilding jobs from my home. I’m now 72 with arthritis, but take meds so my hands will keep on working. My God bless you, Judy and keep you strong!

    • Avatar for Gayle kelly Gayle kelly on December 28, 2020 at 9:45 am

      Wow. Don’t be sad, I know what you’re feeling, it is something big, or if you think of other things, and direct mind other places its very small. We have to look out. Looking inside can hurt too much. Try to start thinking outside yourself. It takes a little practice at first. When people ask you about your eye, if you don’t feel like it say “what eye?” See i lost mine at two. Yes I’m much more aware now and its been a bit of a shock at times.

    • Avatar for Jose Medrano Jose Medrano on December 29, 2020 at 3:03 pm

      I’m so sorry you had to go through that stay strong and I wish you the best, I almost lost an eye acouple of times but since I go through this often I just feel to accept if it does ever happen.
      Take care and blessings to you’re family……

  8. Avatar for HJ HJ on September 28, 2012 at 1:19 pm

    HI. I had Retinal Detachment in the Right Eye 2 years ago and due to complications during my surgery I have completely lost vision in the right eye. The eye now appears shrunken and pinkish in colour. I am trying out scleral shell without eviseration. Anybody who can share their experience of using scleral shell??

    • Avatar for Paul Geelen Paul Geelen on November 21, 2012 at 9:42 am

      Hi there,

      A scleral shell is a good solution for many people in your situation, however it is not for everyone. Some people find it uncomfortable to wear. You’d need to have a clear shell made up to see if you could wear it comfortably, if this works for you, go ahead and have the cosmetic shell made up. As an ocularist, I will always try to fit a scleral shell to avoid unnecessary surgery.
      I hope all goes well for you.

      Regards,
      Paul

  9. Avatar for Heykel Heykel on March 17, 2013 at 9:40 pm

    Hi, I’m 16 I have lost vision to my left eye due to an incident at school being stupid a mate. The incident occurred not to long ago and i am finding it hard not being able to see out of my eye. My neck hurts from having to turn my head so far to be able to see what is to my left so i do not bump in to things or people. My greatest fear now is something terrible happening to my right eye and loosing complete vision but i guess what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.

  10. Avatar for Claragh Claragh on August 20, 2013 at 11:11 pm

    Hello I’m claragh, when I was a baby I lost the sight to my right eye and I have been told that I am soon going to loose my eye completely and I am really scared!! I’m only 14 if anyone can give me advice on how long it takes after the procedure to heal would be amazing!!!

  11. Avatar for eric oyen eric oyen on August 25, 2013 at 4:30 am

    hello guys. I lost both eyes to an gressive eye infection back in early 2010. I had little choice when the doctor said the eyes have to come out. The infection caused such damage that I was in extreme pain at all times. Since I was already blind (do to a previous accident back in 1989), I had no worries about the sight loss. The only thing I was afraid of was how I would look afterward. I had to describe the color of the eyes I wanted to a local ocularist. What I have now fits nicely and looks good (so good in fact that people often mistake my eyes as real). so yeah, appearance was the thing I was afraid to change. Now I like the ability to change eyes (I have 3 sets, each a differing color).

  12. Avatar for Julius Julius on August 28, 2013 at 4:13 am

    Hi my name is Julius and I would like to pinpoint an incident that happened to me when I was 5 years old. I was stabbed in my my right eye by a kid my same age. When I was in the hospital I had a corneal transplant and my crystalin len was removed. Ever since then I have no vision in my right eye unless I cover my left eye and my vision is blurry. I developed a lazy eye and I have lived with this problem ever since. I am 32 years old now and I have been made fun of by people that notice this defect. Nowaday I believe that if only I could have a crystalin len implanted into my right eye. I would be able to see again and at the same time it would cure my lazy eye, due to the fact that my brain does not see through my right eye unless its patched. I was wondering if I can get some info on which procedures I would have to take to regain my normal vision. Any insight on this is very much appreciated.

  13. Avatar for Liam Liam on January 21, 2014 at 4:58 am

    Hi, I lost my right eye to cancer May 2011, as a result of the operation I suffered trigeminal nerve damage. I’m in constant pain and I’m told that there is no solution 🙁
    I’m on a vast array of medication including OxyContin/oxynorm. On top of all that I just can’t get use to only having 1 eye. I’ve lost my job, my confidence, I’m not the same person. Please if you know someone facing eye cancer urge them to seek radiotherapy or anything but removal. Life does not seem to hold much for me now. Please don’t make the same mistake as me

  14. Avatar for mr.wills mr.wills on April 21, 2014 at 9:43 am

    hi, at my dad’s late teens he was working as a carpenter and one day a splinter from a piece of wood he was sawing shot into his eye and lost it because he wasnt wearing protection.. my question is this.. how does losing an eye affect your mind? I know that you have to re-train yourself to move around but do you get angry? can this affect your mental health?

  15. Avatar for Sona Sona on August 15, 2014 at 6:42 am

    Hello,

    When i was 10 years old, my eye got injured while i was playing outside, during a snowy day. I got my lens removed. My eye had a scar and it got pretty ugly. I have lived with it for 17 years now. I am 27 year old adult who is facing a tough decision of removing my eye. My eye recently became very panful, the pain won’t go away even if i use eye drops, or painkillers. I am hyper sensitive to light even in my healthy eye. my life is limited. I can’t go out in daytime, my eye burns and is really red. I have been told that my only option is to remove the eye. But, God knows how hard of a decision it is for me. I know i am suffering from it, i know it can’t be helped, but still it is my eye, and i am going to just get rid of it. I know there are people out there who feel much worse that i do. I will have to get an artificial eye anyway but its hard for to make up my mind. i don’t want to live in pain, but i still don’t want to have an artificial eye. i just need to hear opinions and experiences because I really feel horrible and no one can understand my pain besides the people like me.

  16. Avatar for paul paul on September 13, 2014 at 3:50 am

    Hey, I was involved in a real bad car accident in 1984. My left eye and around it was really badly damaged.
    Surgery not to long after removed my eye. I have had a prosthetic eye since. I have been on many dates with
    women. All have become grossed out…etc…by this. I am sad not to have a relationship. I have heard all of the
    sayings…if she does not like you for yourself she is not worth it…etc…just cant seem to find a relationship that is romantic….any single women out there who are not grossed out???

  17. Avatar for tomcat tomcat on December 5, 2014 at 8:13 pm

    i was 14 when a stupid, stupid 17 year old shot me thru my left eye with a .22 cal Benj. after two surgeries, i have an implant with prosthesis. i hate looking in the mirror ever since this happened. i dont like for people to ask me about it much, and if they do it the wrong way, i lash out badly. as for women, i have been lucky that all women I’ve dated were very accepting. i sometimes wear a patch and even more seem to be attracted. one stated that it gives the allure of a bad boy. them when i tell them it was a UN accidental gunshot, they are even more intrigued. i am now 37 and an inspector.

  18. Avatar for Princess Cute Princess Cute on December 12, 2014 at 7:30 am

    Hi, universe here,,, dear frndz dont feel sad as i also hve lost my right eye when i waz jst of 13 yrs it happens mistakely by my great lovly mom … but im still breathing with slightly moveable prosthetic eye!!! I realy dont knw y God do this 2 me but He is the great wisher to all of us…. now-a-days i wearing prosthetic its not like my real eye but im feeling comfortable then before n also have a handsm charming boyfrnd he lovez me more than his eyes,, still im vry thnkful to my God… n may God bless u all,,,. u cn cntct me on wats app my numbr is 03118375392 plz inform me if ther is any good new technique 4 having real looking eye …..t.c

  19. Avatar for ali macrae ali macrae on December 22, 2014 at 2:51 pm

    hello everyone, my name is ali, I’m your basic 16 year old teenage girl, i have a desire for fashion and a extreme makeup addiction, i love doing my hair and going out to party’s just like all my friends do. however in my case I’m not your ‘normal teenager’ i have a prosthetic eye and well for a girly girl who is always worrying on her looks and what people think its rather quite hard, i only know 2 other people who also have a prosthetic eye and well there 40 years older than me haha. I’ve never met anyone my own age who has gone through what i have, i guess it makes me more unique and makes me stand more out of the crowd but I’ve never been given advice on how to deal with it from someone who’s been through the same as what i have, theres little sites online where you can share your stories and give people advice on it who’s actually near enough the same age. I’ve always hoped some one would put a tutorial on youtube on how to embrace your prosthetic and how to love it as well as make up tricks on how to either make your eye socked look the same as your real eye. sometimes my prosthetic will make my eye look droopy or will give me creases under the waterline on where it drags it down and I’ve been playing around with make on how to enhance my prosthetic to make my eyes look similar, and since i can’t seem to find any tutorials online, I’m going to do it myself to give teenagers or anyone advice or tips and tricks. i know they might not work for everyone but at least it will be out there. i want to help people so they don’t feel lonely like how i was, to share our stories and to tell them its okay to be different, nobody is perfect and i myself am living proof, but you’ve got to make the best out of what you have and I’m going to do that. my story is that when i was born i had glaucoma and a fibroid membrane over the pupil of my eye, this meant that the front of my eye never developed, over the years and many many operations, and after a very nasty infection which took away my ability to see shadows, i had an eye removal, due to me being a kid back then it was the safest way to get completely rid of the infections and ulcers and to make sure non never transferred and began to develop on my good eye because as a young child i would wipe one eye then the other making it more easy for infections to travel. so when i was 11 just before going to high school i had it removed, 3-4 months i was off school, however i always new after the big operation of the removal it wasn’t always going to be my last, as reaching my senior years in high school and not having a operation in 3 years i was hit with a lot of bad news. on the 4th of dec 2013 i was in hospital having an operation where they removed muscle at the side of my head to put in my eye to stop a hole tearing due to my first prosthetic eye being to small and myself outgrowing it and it not being polished, this was the eye i had done when i was 11, you are suppose to have your eye polished every 6 months I’m sure. however the man who made my fantastic prothetic retired after he did my eye and ever since then the NHS never put me onto a new list due to that the old prosthetic was rough and tearing the tissue/ muscle on the orbit implant. after i had the operation i had to leave the eye out but being a teenager i asked for it to be put back in after it healed thinking everything was going to be fine then 3 months later i had another operation however that was due to my teeth. at the end of the summer holidays in 2014 i was back in hospital having the same operation i had in december. in less than 9 months i had more operations any of my friends had i visited the hospital every week which is 2 hr away, lets just say i missed a lot of school and somehow i did amazingly in my exams getting a A and a B. As i said I’m 16 now and couple of weeks ago i travelled down to Edinburgh to get this new prosthetic and to be fairly honest I’m not impressed with it looks completely wrong and looks so fake compared to my first ever one which was done so well, this one however looks fake and looks like no effort nor time was put into it and quite frankly it upsets me to see it. My ambition for 2015 though is to get the prosthetic eye i have dreamed of since i was a wee girl to look normal and to feel 100% confident with it as well as the eye lift that will stop the tired look of the socket haha. this is my instagram: http://instagram.com/alimacrae5/ i would love to hear and see pictures of everyone else’s prosthetics and to get in contact with others. your sincerely ali x

  20. Avatar for Gayle kelly Gayle kelly on December 28, 2020 at 9:49 am

    Wow. Don’t be sad, I know what you’re feeling, it is something big, or if you think of other things, and direct mind other places its very small. We have to look out. Looking inside can hurt too much. Try to start thinking outside yourself. It takes a little practice at first. When people ask you about your eye, if you don’t feel like it say “what eye?” See i lost mine at two. Yes I’m much more aware now and its been a bit of a shock at times.

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