I work in a cataract surgery center.
Complications are rare, and if there are, can usually be corrected with laser or retina surgery.
Where i work, the pre-op takes about an hour: it mostly involves dilating the pupil of the eye which takes time. various drops are put into the eye, and the area of the eye is numbed.
The actual procedure takes between 10-30 minutes (depending on the surgeon and how dense the cataract is). post-op is about 15minutes, just giving you something to drink & making sure you are stable before you go.
Once you’re home, again, it depends on your surgeon. some cover your eye with a patch, some don’t cover it at all. some have you do nothing until you see the doc the next day, some have you begin putting drops in your eye before you see the doc the next day. either way, you will be putting drops in your eyes for a few weeks post-op (antibiotic drops to prevent infection, & other drops to help with healing).
The most common things people complain about the first few days after the surgery are unclear vision, itchiness in the eye, a feeling of grittiness in the eye (as if there is an eyelash or sand in the eye), discomfort in the general area, and a headache. 99% (not an exact percentage) of ppl have these resolve in a few days. Many people don’t have any of these symptoms at all, and have perfect vision as soon as they leave. Every eye is different, so even if you may have one experience with one eye, you may have a completely different experience with the other.
Most people are nervous when they come in, and when the procedure is over (avg surgeon takes 10-15 min), they are usually sooo surprised at how short it took and how good they are feeling. Many will say something to the effect of, oh i have to tell my friends how easy this whole thing was! I was so nervous for nothing! So, yes, of course you are worried because it is your eye they will be working on, but the relief people feel after having the surgery and being able to see properly again is amazing.
(i don’t know where you live, but the facility i work in is in the tri-state area and has a great reputation. there are about 20-30 surgeons that work out of the facility. if you want more info, pls contact me thru the mods).
Hatzlacha!