Eye surgery will allow NYC mom to see newborn daughter clearly for 1st time
EAST VILLAGE, Manhattan (WABC) -- A Bronx mother will get her first good looks at her newborn daughter after doctors performed a special surgery on her cataracts Wednesday.
"I just woke up one day, had a headache and started seeing black spots," Shakira Hernandez said.
Hernandez was seven months pregnant and preeclampsia was making her already poor vision even worse.
The 25-year-old had cataracts, a side effect of the type 1 diabetes she's had since she was eight.
This week, she had surgery on her left eye at New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai.
On Thursday, the patch came off.
It will be an emotional moment when Hernandez is finally able to see her 3-month-old baby girl in a whole new way.
"I can't wait to hold her because I'm going to see her clearly for the first time," Hernandez said.
Mount Sinai ophthalmologist Dr. Gennady Landa is hopeful this surgery restores the vision in her left eye for good.
"I know she is going to be happy, the improvement was beyond my expected results," Landa said.
Once Hernandez goes home, she'll get to behold her daughter Samaiya, in a new whole new light.
"I was told it would be hard, and she's perfect," Hernandez said.
Hernandez's right eye is in even worse shape. She will have surgery on that eye in several weeks.
But for now, she is looking forward to watching her daughter and enjoying all that she can now see.
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