Laser eye surgery

[kadykal95]

Oh god I would love perfect vision, no glasses or contacts but i would never have this done. I'm an absolute wimp and would have major anxiety. I'll stick with the contact lenses

 

[Greencatfysh]

For dry eyes by the way (caused by lenses which is what I had) try a daily linseed oil capsule. I had to take these to get ready for surgery and it made a massive difference.

 

[OnlyHereForTheLolz]

Best decision I ever made! I had it done back in 2012 and did loads of research. There is only two places I would recommend you having it done. The London Vision Clinic in Harley Street (I chose them) or Moorfields Eye Hospital. It cost me just over £5,000 at the time but was the best money I ever spent. I was near sighted and couldn’t wear contacts anymore due to eye issues.
I still have 20/20 vision. They do warn that over 40’s might see their eye’s starting to deteriorate again as this is natural at that age. But I have some friends who had it done after 40 and their eyes are still good.
I wish I had it done years earlier. I did suffer with dry eye before the surgery which got slightly worse after but would still have it done a 1000 times over.
The specialists were really nice and answered all my questions.
Best of all was I could literally see straight afterwards. Felt like a miracle
If you have any specific questions feel free to ask

 

[Sw4]

I toyed with it for a while, I’m -3.75 and wear contact lenses all the time I’m awake. I actually find my eyes are dry without them. My prescription hasn’t been steady enough for me to even consider it but I do worry about it going wrong. I know someone who has had it done, but now needs reading glasses as their eyes have deteriorated.

My mum works for an optician, heard some horror stories!

That’s because laser surgery is to correct your existing prescription, it doesn’t prevent the need for glasses in the future eg reading glasses as you get older.

What is the procedure like? My parents offer to treat me too it every year but I am PETRIFIED my eyes will move and they'll blind me or something? I am strange with my eyes, hate people doing my eye make up. How long do the procedures last etc?

It’s not the most pleasant but it is very quick- local anaesthetic eye drops are put in your eye, then they clamp your eyes open (sounds worse then it is, it just feels like pressure) then they move the laser machine over and I think it was just a bit more pressure again. Worst thing is actually the smell, it smells like burning so for a few seconds I panicked thinking my eyes had been burned out but it’s normal. The whole procedure takes less than 5 mins.

 

[Happyvalley]

I had it almost four years ago, best thing I ever did! Not too painful, quick procedure, worst part was no makeup or moisturisers for two weeks! I kept getting infections in my eyes from contacts and just generally hated wearing glasses so it was the best £2,000 I’ve every spent. Occasionally get dry irritated eyes but nothing bad at all and totally worth it.

 

[PavlovsDog]

Hey! I’ve had laser eye surgery a good few years ago now, I’d really recommend it and don’t miss glasses/contact lenses! I picked to have have lasik, I’d describe it as scratchy afterwards for a few hours but otherwise was fine. Unfortunately I needed a second round as my prescription wasn’t 100% corrected and they did lasek, this was much more uncomfortable - they put a contact lens ‘bandage’ on for a few days and I was very ready for this to come off! Hope this helps

 

[PavlovsDog]

I just looked online for the closest place and at the time they offered a free consultation, which was helpful in making a decision and deciding on the best type of surgery. I was really nervous but it’s so quick!

 

[sk_dd]

What is the procedure like? My parents offer to treat me too it every year but I am PETRIFIED my eyes will move and they'll blind me or something? I am strange with my eyes, hate people doing my eye make up. How long do the procedures last etc?

Agree with @Sw4 - it's not pleasant but isn't painful, just an uncomfortable experience because you can't really prepare for what is going to happen. Took 15mins all up for mine.

They actually recorded my surgery and gave it to me on a USB... it makes for a squeamish watch.

I felt quite uncomfortable on the drive home but took the sleeping pill they gave me and was knocked out for the night, woke up and could see perfectly.

 

[Greencatfysh]

Best thing I ever did! Spend as much as you can on a good surgeon as it’s not worth risking getting something cheap. I was -8.50 and -8 and didn’t think it was possible for me. It was over in one afternoon and 24 hours later I was seeing normally and crystal clear. I had such dry eyes from wearing contacts so much which are totally fine now. I cannot recommend it enough!

 

[Greencatfysh]

So ZERO chance of blinking? Could I not be given some sort of tranquilliser to knock me out? I don’t trust any of my mates to come to hold my hand cause if one person made a joke I might pop an aneurysm.

Absolutely zero chance. I had a stress ball to squeeze and honestly getting my ears pierced took longer and was painful I had a Valium before and after too which was rather enjoyable

 

[toodles88]

I had LASEK done exactly a year ago as I get bad hay fever and can be prone to rubbing my eyes unconsciously so LASIK would not have been appropriate! It had a longer recovery time but overall the irritating part was from about hour 4 - 48 after surgery. My eyes were very sensitive to light and it felt like I had an eyelash in my eye the whole time unless I was using the anaesthetic. After hour 48 though I had no more discomfort and in the year after I’ve occasionally woken up with dry eyes. It was so worth getting it done though, I was fed up with glasses and it is so much better not having them.

I got mine done at Ultralase and thought they were really good, they cost £1795 per eye.

 

[salmaaax]

I've had glasses/lenses for what feels like my whole life and my prescription is pretty bad (-7.25) so I was wondering if anyone with relatively bad eyesight like mine has ever had the surgery and how it went for them??

 

[Greencatfysh]

How do you stop your eye from moving though during the procedure? I understand you can’t blink (kind of gives me anxiety thinking about it) but I feel like my eyeball would move?

The clamp that they use keeps your eye still and your eyelids open. It sounds gross I know but you can’t feel it as the eye drops have numbed your eyeball. You can’t see or feel what’s going on, you just have to lie there and think about something else and then it’s over don’t worry as they wouldn’t do it if there was a risk of you looking the wrong way! My surgeon did c. 7-8 surgeries a day so you have to think how procedural it is for them.

 

[Anything you like]

Had mine last year, for the lasik or lasek it depends what your eyes need they tell you when you have the eye consultation, absolutely love it I can wake up and see straight away, hated wearing glasses, Wore lenses everyday for 15 years, best thing ever worth every penny

 

[Greencatfysh]

I've had glasses/lenses for what feels like my whole life and my prescription is pretty bad (-7.25) so I was wondering if anyone with relatively bad eyesight like mine has ever had the surgery and how it went for them??

Me! I was -8.5 in left eye. See my posts above all smooth!

 

[Sw4]

So I've had lasik in one eye and lasek in the other. The reason I had to have Lasek in one eye is because I'd had a really scary experience with a corneal ulcer the previous year and it had left my cornea in that eye with some scarring. So because the procedures are different (can't remeber exactly how scientifically) it meant Lasik wasn't suitable for that eye.

It was a few years ago now but the recovery times for both are different. Lasik recovery was a breeze, barely felt much discomfort at all. Lasek on the other hand.... So basically the first night after the treatment I felt all smug as it felt sore but not unbearable. However the next day and following night, I won't lie it was pretty agonising. I think it took a few days to fully recover.

However the pain is worth it. I definitely overwore contact lenses and being without them is amazing, just waking up in the morning and being able to see the time on the clock or whatever, just feels so good! Less red eyes and scratchiness at the end of the day too.

Cons are that my eyes were really, really dry for almost 2 years post surgery. Granted they had already been dry before the surgery and also I'm in a job that involves looking at screens the whole day so that doesn't help, but it was worse after the surgery. Randomly during the day my eyes used to start watering! All seems OK now. Other thing is that night driving is slightly more difficult... I'm a bit more sensitive to light especially the glare from car headlights and even sometimes the reflection off the road... Its hard to explain but it doesn't impair my driving, I just have to concentrate slightly harder. All in all though, definitely worth it.

 

[LittleMy]

I had Lasik done in 2009 when I was 19. Before then I had to wear glasses permanently as was very short-sighted. My vision has been great, haven’t looked back and haven’t needed glasses since. Money well spent imo.

 

[Hinchhater1442]

I really want this done too!!!! I google it almost every week but have no idea in the difference of all the types or even where is best to go!!?

 

[sk_dd]

I had LASIK done last year and it has been worth every penny! Highly recommend, especially if there's an option for a payment plan.

@Sw4 - I'm in a similar position and I got a pair of Quay blue light glasses (I know, I know - seems counterproductive when I paid so much for laser, but I only wear them sporadically throughout the day) and they have helped quite a bit with my dry eyes during the day.

 

[Tessiebear]

I’d love to have this done. I had a consultation at optical express a couple of years ago but the price put me off. It was double what I’d been expecting as my prescription is quite high (-5.75 and -5.25)

I’m in a better position financially now so may well look into it again and get some more quotes but it’s on The List along with several other ‘someday’ purchases