Thought i'd bump rather than starting a new thread.
I had Lasek done last Friday. I had it at the Vision Eye Institute in Chatswood at a cost of $3150 (£2000) for one eye. I am only getting one eye done because I had cataracts when I was younger and vision in one eye is not only poor but more importantly my brain does not use it for anything other than field of vision. So getting that eye done would have been a waste of money. This also put me at high risk because if something went wrong with the one eye I was getting done then I wouldn't have a good eye to fall back on.
I am -2.00 in the eye I was getting surgery on. I decided to get surgery because I was sick of needing contact lenses and I hated glasses (didn’t even own a pair).
I did a lot of research into where to get surgery and also the individual surgeons. I ended up choosing a surgeon who had experience with cataracts so I could get advice on that front. He's performed the first Lasik in Sydney in 1995 and over 20000 procedures since then in addition to being the medical director of the institute where I was getting this done (NOT a small place, 15+ doctors).
It wasn't the cheapest, in fact it cost me three times what other places were offering but you have to pay for quality and getting the people you want. I'm shocked at some people shopping around for some real cheap procedures - you only have one set of eyes and I implore you to go for the absolute best even if you have to borrow money; don't take the risk no matter how small! Find a reputable surgeon, look for number of past procedures, papers published, boards sat on, overall reputation, etc.
Sorry to rant on but I've had to have three full operations on my right eye (general anesthetic) over the years and it's taught me just how precious the eyes are. When I had the first operation (7 years old) my dad found the absolute best he could and it's likely only down to that surgeon that I can even see with that eye.
In case you're interested
this guy is the best. He carried out Margaret Thatcher's eye surgery when she was PM in the early 80's and is still top dog. The surgeon who did my Lasek knew him well and confirmed his status as 'eye god' but bear in mind he has nothing to do with Laser Eye Surgery.
Anyway, sorry, I went a bit off the track there. The above is just my opinion.
I arrived and was given a Valium (which I didn’t really feel or even notice) and some anesthetic and anti inflammatory eye drops. About 20 minutes later I was lead into the theater where I was to have the flap cut (Lasik). Unfortunately the surgeon could not get a suction lock on my eye despite three attempts. He could not try further due to damage showing (burst blood vessels – I have some pics somewhere is anyone is interested).
I had the option to come back another time and try or have a different procedure (Lesek, or ASLA as they call it in Australia). This was a bit of a shock as I like to research everything and I had no chance to look into Lasek. I didn’t want to delay so I signed the new forms and was lead straight into theater.
Firstly I was given more eye drops and then I was laid down. The surgeon applied an alcohol solution to my eye to allow him to loosen and peel back the top layer. The laser then did it’s thing for about 20 seconds and, yes, you do smell the gas! Cold water was then applied to the eye for about 30 seconds and it did get quite uncomfortable as even though I had anesthetic eye drops. I could feel the cold way past the surface of the eye! He then placed a bandage contact lense on my eye,
As soon as I sat up I could see perfectly. I was lead into a dark room to sit down and was given some water. After 10 minutes I was given my medication for the next few days – because I had Lasek I didn’t need to wait around for 4 hours to have a check up – I could leave right away.
I was given anti-biotic drops, some light pain killers, some anisthetic drops in case things got really bad and some sleeping pills (Temazepan).
I had a friend take me home and for that day I could see perfectly – I went down to a place called Jervis Bay for the weekend (I didn’t drive). The day of the surgery and the day after my vision was perfect but a little sensitive. Day 3 and 4 were a lot harder as it was like I had an eye infection – I couldn’t really look up, couldn’t look at bright things and couldn’t focus. Everything was hazy and it wasn’t really nice, especially as I was with friends at some great beaches.
I hated having a contact lense in my eye for so long, 4 days is too much and it does start to bother the eyes. I didn’t get runny eyes and my eyes didn’t puff up, like some people experience.
I woke up on day 5 and my eyes were fine again (today). I went back to get my bandage contact lense removed and had a check up. All was fine. Upon removing the lense my eye sight has worsened a bit. I appear to be a bit long sighted which is normal and it will settle over the coming weeks.
I was given some lubricating drops and some anti-inflammatory drops and while I can't focus on a screen right in front of me I can now see very far
To summarise:
- Yes, the procedure is painless
- I thought i’d get a buzz from stuff like Valium and temazipan but really felt nothing
- Yes you can smell the laser; it’s the gas
- Lasek has a longer and harder recovery period than Lasik but does have some other benefits associated which you can read up about online.
- Impressed so far. I understand why everyone here and people IRL say it was the best money they spent and they don’t know why they waited so long. Go and get it done you pussy.
EDIT: Update 4 weeks later.
I had my 4 week check up. All is great, can see long and short just fine. My vision is better than 20/20. I think I got to the line that was 15/4.5 which is one or two better than 20/20.
Only issue I have is that sometimes when I wake up my eye is a bit painful, I have to wait a few seconds before opening it (dry eyes).
