I had laser eye surgery AMA

[notamumyet2010]

As above, ask away if you want to :-)

I am extremely squeamish so please don't go into any detail. I know I need it but I can't bear the thought of the procedure. Would you say it's been worth it?

Do you regret it? My Dp is currently saving for laser eye surgery, I’m worried it won’t work, or will worsen his eyesight.

Also, how was your recovery?

I had laser eye surgery about 15 years ago and it was definitely worth it. I think it was lasik treatment that I had and the recovery was really quick, about 24-48 hours and I was seeing normally without any bluriness. Google is actually really informative when it comes to eye surgery to correct vision.

I totally don’t regret it, in fact I would put it up there with one of the top five choices I’ve made in life.
Recovery was fine, very very sore eyes for about 12 hours, they were red and watering like mad, but I knew it had worked straight away. The next day I had a follow up appointment and they cleared me for driving. You have to put a lot of drops in for about 2 weeks after which is a pain but very important (apparently).
I honestly think it’s the type of thing that sounds worse than it is. It’s over so quick you barely have time to think about it.

I will say I know I am one of the lucky ones, and that’s what the staff told me. I’m sure other people may not have such positive stories and it certainly isn’t something they can promise works and I think that worries people but I totally recommend anyone to do it if they feel the desire to.

I'm booked for surgery in a couple of weeks, did you have any issues with night driving?

I had it done 20 yrs ago and it was the best thing I ever spent money on. I imagine the technology used is even better now.

I was very short sighted and it enabled me to see perfectly for the first time since I was a child.

However, I'm almost 60yrs now and need to wear varifocals for reading and middle distance although my long distance vision is still excellent. When driving, the varifocals definitely make night driving easier although it was never a problem until fairly recently.

@purplemumster No no issues at all whilst driving. Good luck! I hope your experience is as positive as mine. Prepare yourself for stingy eyes for about 12 hours and try and make sure you can go straight to bed as it’s better than trying to cope with the runny eyes and trying to see.

How did you research which place you were going to? That it was a decent establishment?

I went to 2 which both offered free initial consultations and then I just went for the one that I felt most comfortable with.

Have you seen that scene in Final Destination and were you not thinking about it the whole time?

Yes and yes!
Im not gonna lie it’s not fun or particularly nice but it’s super quick and so worth it. For the 15 minute procedure and the few hours of stingy eyes to have perfect eyesight for years afterwards. It’s a non brainer-or at least it was for me.

What was your vision like before surgery? I’m very very short sighted and would love to get my eyes done but am in 2 minds.
Also, what was it like when you could see the needle or instrument coming towards your eye?!

Do you know what your prescription was before surgery?

Pretty bad vision. Needed glasses 24/7 and without them everything was a blur. Think I was -3 and -4
You don’t see things coming at you at all. It’s a machine and all you are asked to do is look at the blinking red dot. It’s all very clever-but smelly!

I’ve sort of missed the window now (late 30s) but have always thought it would be great to do - my eyesight is even worse than yours was. Do you think it’s worth doing even if I’m older, as later in life I’m told I’ll need reading glasses anyway?

Yes I personally do as it makes such a big difference in your life.

I got mine done about 4 years ago , I was 40 then. My only regret is I didn’t do it years ago. It wasn’t painful and it was very very fast. Afterwords my eyes weren’t particularly sore but I couldn’t open them, I went straight to bed and around 6 hours later I could already see the difference, the next day I was as good as new.
I worried about what I would see or feel during the procedure but you aren’t aware of anything very much at all. You look at the light, hear the clicks and then in seconds it’s over !!! It’s amazing x