Another personal update:

It's been almost a year since my corneal ulcer and subsequent scarring. I'm still taking steroid eyedrops. My vision has improved more than I ever dared to hope it would, and my depression and anxiety have subsided.

When I was feeling absolutely distraught, I'd read and re-read some of the positive outcomes I found online; I found them comforting. That's why I decided to keep a record of them on this blog - I "collected" the information for myself, but made it public on the off chance that it might offer others some hope.

I think I read this so many times that I all but have it memorized!

I know every scar is different and people heal differently. That said, here's what I've found:

Glare
I still experience a lot of glare around lights. I get by fine in the daytime, but try to avoid driving in the dark whenever possible.

Pain
For the first few months, I experienced a deep throbbing pain behind my eye. It didn't help that my job involves a lot of reading. Usually by mid-morning, I'd be in so much discomfort that I'd need painkillers. That gradually diminished, and now I rarely feel pain behind my eye. (The only exception is if I'm experiencing a lot of glare from lights for an extended period of time, such as car headlights during long night drives - then the pain sets in.)

Fog
After my scarring, I had a sensation that everything was foggy. It was particularly bad in bright light, but I was aware of it in pretty much all settings. That's not the case anymore. I'm not sure if the "fog" cleared or if I've become used to it - maybe a bit of both. I really only notice the fog now when I'm outside on bright, sunny days - and sunglasses help tremendously.

Blurriness
My vision is still somewhat blurry in the affected eye, but it's nowhere near as bad as it was. The eyedrops I take can cause blurred vision, so decreasing the dosage over time may have something to do with the improvement. However, I do know that my scar has faded some. 10 months ago, I couldn't read a word on the computer screen with my affected eye. 6 months ago, I could sometimes read very, very slowly but would have to guess at a lot of the words. Now my vision is frequently clear enough to read standard 12 point font at a normal speed with that eye. I do notice that my vision in that eye fluctuates a lot and can still be quite blurry at times. I think it has to do, in part, with how tired I am.

Light Sensitivity
For quite a while, when I'd wake up and turn on the light, I had to keep my affected eye shut while it sloooowly adjusted. That isn't the case anymore. I can open my eyes "normally" in the morning now. Somewhere around the 6 month mark, I found I was even able to go outside without sunglasses (although I still prefer to wear them unless it's really overcast).

So basically, my only real complaint after sustaining a "small but deep" central corneal scar is glare from lights. It's a nuisance and I'm hoping there will be a fix for it someday, but until then, I can easily live with it. I can only speak for myself, but I think that - along with a qualified, competent medical professional's guidance, of course - patience is key.

Although my updates to this blog are slowing down as life is getting busier, I'll continue to post every so often. If you've found this blog because you have a corneal scar, I wish you all the best - remember that technology is constantly improving and medical knowledge is always expanding. Also, personally, I've found that the body's own healing properties can be quite amazing. All things considered, there's hope. Please don't forget that.