My Experience With Laser Eye Surgery

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Hello! Just wanted to post about my experience with laser eye surgery incase anyone out there is considering getting it, etc. I have worn glasses since I was 11 and contact lenses since I was 18. However, in recent years I have been getting very dry eyes with my contact lenses and I had been saving money for some time so decided to take the plunge!

I decided to go with Ultralase through researching them thoroughly and finding out about the different types of treatments that were available. I should note my prescription was about -7 in each eye which is very bad and my glasses were like bottle caps!

Consultation
Arrived at my consultation and immediately the staff were very friendly and informative about what would be going on throughout the consultation. First up was routine checks on your eyes which you'd get going for a regular check-up at your optician. They also check everything about your eyes from the shape to the general health of your eyes to determine if you are eligible for the treatment and which treatment would be best suited.

After the pre-tests had been done I took a seat back in the waiting room (free tea and coffee) and was soon called in to go through more checks, reading letters, which circle seems clearer, etc. Then came time for the drops! They use the drops to again determine the health of your eyes and to make your pupils get larger, this can make your vision very blurry and sensitive to light so please note you shouldn't drive for a couple of hours after the consultation.

The consultation went well considering I had a very high prescription and I was deemed eligible for the treatment! The treatment I was recommended was Lasik Ultra Plus. Now there are two types of treatment you can go through...

  • Lasik - Through the use of an IntraLase Laser they cut a flap in your cornea, move it aside, then laser in to correct your vision. Once this has been done the flap is placed back into place like clingfilm and heals within 24 hours or so. This treatment is considered the best option as it is the least uncomfortable and generally suits patients with quite thick corneas.
  • Lasek - Drops soften a layer of the cornea, a thin layer of the cornea is removed and the laser corrects the vision. After this a contact lense is applied for a week to allow the cornea to heal. This is the most uncomfortable treatment I hear.

So everything was explained about what would happen on the treatment day, got everything booked and had the surgery 2 weeks later.

Day of Surgery
Ahh the day of the surgery, soon I would be glasses/contact lense free. Funnily enough I slept like a baby the night before but the nerves really kicked in on the train down to the Ultralase branch. Now one thing to note is you should take someone with you as you will not be able to drive or see all that clearly after the surgery. I took a friend with me who decided to ask me "What was that blind superhero called?" whilst I was in a state of panic before the surgery. I quickly responded "Daredevil." and shot an evil glare.

My nerves were soon put at ease as the staff were very friendly and supportive, there to answer questions and any concerns I had. I met with my surgeron who was extremely professional and I couldn't fault him at all. We had a one-on-one discussion about how the treatment would go and he obviously went through all the risks with the procedure. He stated the following:

  • I would most likely not get 20/20 vision due to my high prescription and I was considered just below the maximum they would operate on
  • There will be a chance of me having to have retreatment incase it doesn't fully work, again due to my high prescription
  • I would most likely get very dry eyes that I would have to treat with artificial tears for months after

So after signing a declaration that I had been made aware of the risks and was happy to go ahead I was taken into a room with a nurse who went through prescription drops I would have to take for a little over a week post-op. She then administered some anaesthetic drops in my eyes to numb them and so I wouldn't really have the urge to blink during the procedure. Also had iodine spread around my eyes. All that was left was to get zapped...

Surgery
Nurses helped me onto the operating table and I was placed under the machine. The table pivots between two machines and they always start with the right eye. The surgeon used a tool to clamp my eye open by prying my eyelids apart (it sounds gross but could barely feel them doing it, you just feel like your eye is open really wide, which it is I suppose!). On the first machine a suction ring is placed onto your eye, now I temporarily lost my vision but this is normal with it being a suction ring and comes back as soon as the suction ring is taken off. Then a laser cuts a flap in the cornea, the suction ring is removed and I am moved to the machine that will be doing the vision correction. The surgeon moves my flap to the side and at this point my vision went very weird, like I was under water. I was asked to focus on the red blob of light followed by the laser initiating. Now when the laser is doing it's thing you are only under it for about 30 seconds but you can smell burning. It smells a little like burnt hair but this is completely pain free.

The lasering finishes, the surgeon folds my corneal flap back onto place and it is on to the left eye! I knew what to expect on this one so I was more aware of what was happening, I winced a bit when the suction ring was applied and my eye moved a bit when the flap was being cut. It is extremely important you keep still especially when the flap is being cut. The surgeon checked he had a clear cut of my flap and gave the go ahead to continue. So he performed the procedure on my left eye, put the flap back and his nurses applied my first set of eye drops.

At this point my eyes were shut as they cleaned off the iodine from around my eyes and asked me to shuffle down the bed. I didn't dare open my eyes but when I did... I could see. It was very hazy and cloudy but my vision was clear for the first time in years.

After the Surgery
I was taken into a nice relaxing dark room with a recliner chair, some relaxing music and sat there for about 10 minutes to let my eyes settle. I could already read posters that were 7 feet away where as before I couldn't see anything 3 inches away! They brought my friend down to escort me home and by this point my eyes were stinging!! They were streaming like crazy but one final check up with the surgeon that the flaps were sitting nicely I was free to go. I put my sunglasses on (you'll need them, you'll be very sensitive to light) and made my way to the train station, making out street signs and things so far in the distance I was even shocking my friend who had trouble reading them and he doesn't even need glasses. All I wanted to do was sleep, and sleep I did when I got home. When I woke up that evening my vision had improved yet again and I could see everything so vividly.

Aftercare
The next working day I went back for a check up just to make sure everything was in order and to do a quick eye-test. The optician said I had 20/20 vision so I was extremely happy! I had beaten the odds about the risks the surgeon made me aware of prior to the treatment and wouldn't need retreatment. My eyes weren't dry either!


So here I am. 9 days on from my surgery and I have perfect vision. No longer need glasses and/or contact lenses. The focusing on computer screens/books has taken some getting used to but that is completely normal as the cornea is slightly reshaped in Lasik surgery. So there you have my experience with laser eye surgery should any of you ever need it or are currently considering it.

I sound like someone from an advert but having this done is changing my life, giving me that freedom and it was money well spent.

Total cost = £3590 (But worth every penny!)
 
Well done. I am pleased for you. I am short sighted and was told by a person in the opticians that if I had it done I would need glasses for reading: which I don't need at the moment (untreated) :(
 
Since this thread is incredibly one-sided, I feel I ought to say something to balance it.

I've done my own research on Laser eye surgery, of which there are more than one procedure.

To cut a long story short, most people report short term success. However, after the first year or two people start having complications.

Their sight can get worse.
They can end up with very dry eyes and being dependent on eye drops for the rest of their lives.
They can have impared night vision with "halos" and glare, even when they had no problems of this nature before.

But these symptoms can take months or years to manifest.

I'm sorry this is probably not what you want to hear but it's necessary to say. Everybody is very impressed immediately after the surgery. What you will never get told about is the people who end up regretting the surgery several years later.

For this reason I personally will not have it done.
 
Since this thread is incredibly one-sided, I feel I ought to say something to balance it.

I've done my own research on Laser eye surgery, of which there are more than one procedure.

To cut a long story short, most people report short term success. However, after the first year or two people start having complications.

Their sight can get worse.
They can end up with very dry eyes and being dependent on eye drops for the rest of their lives.
They can have impared night vision with "halos" and glare, even when they had no problems of this nature before.

But these symptoms can take months or years to manifest.

I'm sorry this is probably not what you want to hear but it's necessary to say. Everybody is very impressed immediately after the surgery. What you will never get told about is the people who end up regretting the surgery several years later.

For this reason I personally will not have it done.

The thread isn't intended to be 'one-sided'. It is what it says it is. My Experience with laser eye surgery.

I've researched heavily into what could happen in the future but as my post stated contacts were becoming irritable and my eyesight was very poor. Plus I get lifetime guarantee so should I ever need retreatment it's there if I need it :) Besides no surgery is risk free or complication free later in life but I do appreciate in your input. I do emplore people to do their own research and make there own choice about the surgery!
 
My eyes feel weird just from reading this. Wouldn't like the surgeon to cut and fiddle with my flaps. :eek: :D

Don't you need to provide like 2 years worth of eye prescription history to show that your vision has not changed dramatically? I want to get laser eye surgery but my eye sight just keeps getting worse :/
 
Your awake? Oh HELL no!

I'm glad it worked for you. 2 guys at work had it done years ago and have never (wait for it!) ... looked back.

But awake? I'm retching just thinking about it!
 
A friend of mine had their eyes done (like the OP was borderline prescription) and almost 6 years later still has perfect vision...she gets a few halos at night with headlights (but then wearing glasses is not exactly reflection free) but she is very happy....
 
To add a bit of balance, yes halos can flare up however when doing my research and speaking to the doctors it was clear that the worse the prescription the more they have to burn away and thus the higher chance of complications.

For example my prescription was roughly -3, absolutely no complications. My friend is -6 and she has halo issues. My other friend is -8 and he's been refused laser eye surgery on the basis that they don't have enough material to work with.
 
I've always looked at having it done even though my sight isn't that bad in the scheme of things (-1.75 and -1.5).

Looking at the procedures I'd love to have it done, there just seems to be a lot of horror stories out everywhere I look, so it's good to see some positive this time!

I'd be interested to see how you get on over time and hear about any positives / negatives along the way :)
 
I had Wavefront done in August 2011, prescription was -3, with astigmatism in the left eye & some scarring within this eye too. Due to the scarring they wouldn't do the laser flap, it had to be mechanical (saved me £600 anyway). Over a year later I still have better than 20/20 vision, the last 14 months has been fantastic.

In work I can clearly recognise people right over at the other side of a large open plan office. Not only can I recognise them but I can see the expressions on their faces & where they are looking, I couldn't even do that with glasses. I can see wallcharts from my desk without having to go up to them & don't have to sit near the front in meetings & presentations to see flipcharts etc. When training people I can see their screen clearly from a good few feet back without having to bend down near them, possibly looking pervy. In short my job is MUCH easier thanks to the surgery.

I'm a keen fisherman & as my eyes weren't that great before I used to do lots of ledger work, using either electronic bite alarms or looking at a quivertip on the end of the rod. Since getting my eyes lasered I spent this year float fishing, I can clearly see the float from a stupidly long distance. People come up to me at the bankside for a chat, they ask me where I'm fishing, I try to point this out to them but they usually can't see the float!

Doing some DIY the other day, hanging a door & using an electric planer to take a few mm off the sides. When eyeing along the length of the door I could switch focus from the closest end to the far end as quickly as it takes to blink, & see both ends in incredible detail. It's little things like this which make me appreciate the surgery every day, for one reason or another.

I'm 36 now & was 34 when I had it done, they said I'll need reading glasses in my 40s anyway. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. The technology is advancing so rapidly I'm pretty sure some sort of "top up" lasering will be available in a few years anyway.

Well done for taking the plunge Kappa303!
 
My wife had it done and never looked back ;)

Seriously, well worth it as she has now saved the money spent buying contacts and solutions after 3 or so years.

I loaned her the money on our special interest rates, well worth it :)
 
Since this thread is incredibly one-sided, I feel I ought to say something to balance it.

I've done my own research on Laser eye surgery, of which there are more than one procedure.

To cut a long story short, most people report short term success. However, after the first year or two people start having complications.

Their sight can get worse.
They can end up with very dry eyes and being dependent on eye drops for the rest of their lives.
They can have impared night vision with "halos" and glare, even when they had no problems of this nature before.

But these symptoms can take months or years to manifest.

I'm sorry this is probably not what you want to hear but it's necessary to say. Everybody is very impressed immediately after the surgery. What you will never get told about is the people who end up regretting the surgery several years later.

For this reason I personally will not have it done.


Who are these 'people' ? Everyone I know has had long term success, and no one I know has had any serious problems. Not once when these threads come up does anyone come on saying theirs didn't work. If you search for problems with *insert anything* on google then yes you will find people with problems.

Sometimes it may not work but that's in the minority not the majority. Also yes your eyesight will eventually deteriorate, that's due to age and has nothing to do with the surgery, mine for example is now borderline for glasses though I'm still fine for driving etc, its been over 10 years since I had laser surgery and I'm 36 now so age (very) slowly sneaking up on me :(

Also on the money side this operation saved me 1000's of pounds over the 10 years due to not needing to buy glasses, not to mention not having to wear them.
 
I had it about 4 years ago and have never looked back. Best thing I've ever done, and I still have better than 20/20 vision to this date - and my night vision is perfect (if anything slightly better) as well as my astigmatism having been removed completely.

It's such a relief and I can wear sunglasses now which don't have to be prescription or have to wear contacts. Glasses don't steam up when walking into a warm house from the cold. I don't have to worry about glasses getting knocked off in crowds, can do sports without having to worry about glasses falling off. After over a dozen years wearing glasses, the last 4 years I have completely forgotten what it's like to wear them.

The cost wasn't much really, and I'd spend that much in eye tests, contacts, glasses etc...
 
I had it about 4 years ago and have never looked back. Best thing I've ever done, and I still have better than 20/20 vision to this date - and my night vision is perfect (if anything slightly better) as well as my astigmatism having been removed completely.

It's such a relief and I can wear sunglasses now which don't have to be prescription or have to wear contacts. Glasses don't steam up when walking into a warm house from the cold. I don't have to worry about glasses getting knocked off in crowds, can do sports without having to worry about glasses falling off. After over a dozen years wearing glasses, the last 4 years I have completely forgotten what it's like to wear them.

The cost wasn't much really, and I'd spend that much in eye tests, contacts, glasses etc...

I was wondering how astigmatism affects the results!

I have it which means my contact lenses are more expensive. I'd have it done if I wasn't so scared!
 
I was wondering how astigmatism affects the results!

I have it which means my contact lenses are more expensive. I'd have it done if I wasn't so scared!
No need to be scared! :)

I had it done 6 months ago,best thing I could've done for myself.My astigmatism was pretty bad,and I was also sceptical about how the surgery would turn out.My worries were unfounded,I'm happy to report.

Got great vision during the day,at night there is some Halo around light sources,but they are reducing very quickly.

All I can say is don't worry and just do it,you'll never look back. :)
 
I had it about 4 years ago and have never looked back. Best thing I've ever done, and I still have better than 20/20 vision to this date - and my night vision is perfect (if anything slightly better) as well as my astigmatism having been removed completely.

It's such a relief and I can wear sunglasses now which don't have to be prescription or have to wear contacts. Glasses don't steam up when walking into a warm house from the cold. I don't have to worry about glasses getting knocked off in crowds, can do sports without having to worry about glasses falling off. After over a dozen years wearing glasses, the last 4 years I have completely forgotten what it's like to wear them.

The cost wasn't much really, and I'd spend that much in eye tests, contacts, glasses etc...

Did you have Lasik? Not had any trouble / concern with sports after the "flap"?
 
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