Posts by Paul Geelen
Prosthetic eyes. Australian health insurance item numbers.
We’ve just come back from another interesting meeting of the Ocularist Association of Australia. At the meeting we discussed the development of a universal item number for artificial eyes. With the current system in Australia artificial eyes are covered by most health insurance companies as an ancillary benefit. This is similar to dental and optical…
Read MoreLive Your Dream
Imagine you are seven years years old. You are lying in a hospital with both eyes bandaged. You will lose one eye. You might lose your sight entirely. Your mother is very distressed. A visitor comes to see you. She is a little girl who has lost an eye. You never get to see her…
Read MoreAlchemy and the art of turning Silver Ingots into Artificial Eyes
In the last couple of years, Jenny Geelen has visited East Timor to craft Artificial Eyes for the East Timorese People. It has been a wonderful experience for her and she has received positive feedback. Jenny wishes to continue with her annual trips with the idea of training someone in East Timor to make the…
Read MoreEye Will Survive – Debbie Atkinson’s story
Our last blog – Losteye.com – What Can I Say? was written by guest blogger Debbie Atkinson. I feel so pleased to have come across Debbie Atkinson’s story. As well as writing about her experiences with Losteye.com Debbie has also given permission to link to her website and her own eye loss story, Eye Will Survive. Debbie…
Read MoreLosteye.com – What Can I Say
We welcome guest blogger Debbie Atkinson. “Losteye…..what can I say?? I remember researching the procedure of evisceration when I had been told that was the plan. I was desperate for some insight and to speak with someone who had been through the same. I just by chance stumbled across Losteye.com after typing in lost eye…
Read MoreWhen one eye is better than two
When clients visit me for the first time I will generally show them the “Adjusting and Adapting to eye loss mind map.” When I talk about monocular vision and sport I will often tell the story of James Bonner who played snooker at an international level and on one occasion competed in the Australian Open championship…
Read MoreArtificial Eye Clinic, Moorfields Eye Hospital Dubai
This is my seventh visit to Moorfields Eye Hospital Dubai to make artificial eyes. Moorfields has an incredibly supportive environment which makes my job uncomplicated and a pleasure. Clients are welcomed to the hospital by friendly and efficient front desk staff who take them through to a comfortable waiting room where they are offered refreshments…
Read MorePhantom Eye Syndrome
An interesting and not often talked about aspect of having an eye enucleated is Phantom Eye Syndrome. It has been described as a fireworks show with flashes of bright light. The theory is that when the optic nerve is cut the brain receives irregular impulses and interprets them as flashes of light. The effect varies…
Read MoreTanya Vlach – #21 grow a new eye
I’ve just finished reading Tanya Vlach’s eye loss story and it is amazing. Tanya is a gifted and generous writer. Her words take you into the world of someone coming to terms with an event that changes the self emotionally and physically. This honest account is a gift to every person who has experienced eye…
Read MoreSanjay’s artificial eye story
We have recently started a section on this website for people’s artificial eye stories. The purpose of this new section is to attract people from around the world to share their experiences of eye loss. Our first story has been submitted by Sanjay from Dubai. Sanjay has given a lot of thought to this and has highlighted…
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