To want my eyes Lasered. Hate wearing glasses

[Monty27]

I'm not young. I'm losing my looks. I would feel better if I didn't wear glasses.
Has anyone had their eyes Lasered?
I don't want gorey details just recommendations and a park ball figure.
Tia.

I really want mine done but I'm -8.00 in both eyes and an optician told me they'd have to cut too much of the lens away and it might leave me with night blindness or those diagonal streams of light (see pic) so unfortunately I've got to put up with contacts (glasses give me a headache)

I wanted to get mine done, but was told that as I have a really bad astigmatism and I’m -8 in both eyes I’d still need glasses. I was quoted 1.5k each eye, which is a lot of money considering I’d still need glasses 🤷‍♀️ This was about 7 years ago it might have changed now but I can’t justify the cost anymore

There’s a website called ‘Optical Express ruined my life’.

My DS had his done at Focus in London just over a year ago. He now has incredible, perfect vision. Their follow-up is excellent and I would recommend them to anyone. Focus is also the only 100% success-rate clinic in the UK. They do installment payment plans if need be. www.focusclinics.com/

I was told years ago that due to my prescription (-8) that it would be very expensive and may not even work so I never pursued it. Things may have moved on since then though.

I’m struggling with my contacts at the moment due to dry eyes (I think due to pregnant/breastfeeding/tiredness) so have gone out and bought new specs, plus some prescription sunnies in the hope of wearing my lenses less, but I’m struggling with the glasses, they give me a headache and even with the lenses thinned as much as possible still look really thick so I’m self conscious of them.

I would LOVE to have laser surgery.

I have worn glasses since I was 16 but I actually like my glasses though, it makes me look younger I reckon but I am a regular swimmer (hence the name!) which is why I considered eyes lasered years ago, as I hate contacts.

But I weighed up the risks and costs and it didn't seem worth it. I already live with a chronic condition so with that medication I just couldn't take the risk.

I may revisit the idea in a few years if technology advances and there is more certainty.

i had mine done about 13 years ago now. At the time i had to have one of the pricier treatments as my eyes couldn't be done with the cheaper ones, and it was about £3,000, which was interest free over a couple of years if i recall.

I'm so glad i had it done. I did need one eye re-doing after a couple of years, but that was free and covered by the initial payment. I don't really remember it hurting much first time round, altho second time round it was pretty sore, but only really for a couple of days. I would definitely recommend getting it done

I know someone who was a huge plus prescription with astigmatism that had lens replacement. Now has 20/20 vision and they fixed his astigmatism at the same time.

The picture posted further up thread is similar to how I see lights at night anyway with my astigmatism but I have a more halo effect rather than diagonal streams of light.

My DH did this about 5 years ago. He now has phenomenally (dare I say almost weirdly) long sight. Truly amazing at seeing birds, spotting tiny things on far away mountains, playing golf etc but can no longer eg read a menu/book/text without glasses. I don’t think his arm is long enough, even if he were to hold whatever it is a long way away. So it might not banish your glasses. But he has no regrets - at least none he has ever admitted.

Get good advice - as you will get more long sighted as you age.

I've done it around 10 years ago, couldn't be happier! Cost me around 2k. I had no side effects at all. I assume it is even easier and cheaper now. The only thing is that it's not recommended after about 35yo...

Cataracts are fairly common, the laser eye surgery can mean you cannot have the simple lens replacement surgery to fix that due to thinning of your cornea

Lens replacement fixes near and farsightedness. Personally i would opet straight for lens replacement

Good friend of mine just had it done. Started out at £3.8k, but he got it down to £3.1k.

So that’s a ball park figure. Seems ridiculous to me when it doesn’t last forever (20-25 years I think he said) and a pair of glasses costs about £100. But each to their own.

Go for a consultation and see if you're eligible as I wasnt. You can always wear contacts.

I considered it 10 years ago but the amount compared to glasses/contacts made it quite an expensive option. I also didn't fancy the idea of something going irreversibly wrong and I don't mind wearing glasses. I just use disposable contact lenses when swimming on hols if I need to otherwise I don't bother. I've worn glasses since 6 yrs old and have always swum 'blind' so it doesn't bother me.

I'm also not convinced by the repercussions later in life either. The technology is not old enough to do lots of research on those who have had it done plus there is the long sightedness that comes into play as we age too. So, not for me now.

Had mine done in 2009. I was very short sighted. Procedure was done at lunch time and by tea time I had perfect vision. I've never worn glasses again and a recent eye test showed my vision is still excellent so hasnt deteriorated over the years.

My parents paid for it for me, £1100 per eye, they were able to set up a monthly installment plan.

@WhyTho I have a stigmasm and I’m getting it done. They said it’s not an Issue anymore.

I had it done at 30. Now, 15 years later, I am -1.25 and wear glasses for driving.

I am very happy I did it. I second what a poster said above, have it done privately at Moorfields. I feel this is one of those things you don't want to skimp on.

Wow. Conflicting opinions here. Thanks for the info everyone. I shall err on the side of caution

What does your optician say?
Is lens replacement surgery (the procedure when you have cateracts) a better option?

There's so much incorrect information here OP.

Age related macular degeneration is not the reason why people need reading glasses. It's a health condition inside the eye more often seen in the ageing population.

Laser surgery won't stop presbyopia which is loss of focussing power which causes the need for reading glasses.

Also having laser surgery will not stop you having cataract surgery, yes it is something they have to know and consider when doing the surgery but it does not stop the operation being done.

If you're seriously considering surgery I would recommend having a couple of consultations at different providers and doing your research into who would be doing your surgery.

As I’ve said I had mine done by a top eye surgeon in Manchester

U don’t say where u are ?

What I would say is if your really thinking about it, go have a consultation first.
I’d go for a top eye surgeon though
Preferably at an eye hospital 100%
They know exactly what there doing and won’t just sell you something
There there for one reason eye surgery!

I wouldn’t go to an high st shop, no way!
I know I went to Boots 20 yrs ago
But I had a top eye surgeon there at the time

I wish I was brave enough to have laser surgery, I'm fed up of not being able to see without my glasses. Two of my friends have had laser surgery without any issues. Please let us know how you get on.

Not one single eye health professional I have known would ever have it done
That's enough to put me off

I had one eye done 9 years ago by wave front LASIK, prescription -7 ish. After looking into the risks, I decided to only get one eye done at a time. I had enough night vision problems (star bursts) that I cancelled the operation for the other eye. My vision also regressed in the treated eye within the first year of treatment despite my prescription previously being stable for years - I'm now -1.75 in that eye. They would have retreated for free but once you've had it done once you have to go for the more painful option of LASEK and I wussed out.

Despite that I have no regrets - my untreated eye is my more dominant eye so driving at night is no problem at all as my brain seems to know to ignore the halos my treated eye sees. Having one eye corrected to -1.75 means I'm not helpless without my glasses anymore. I'd definitely recommend only getting one eye done at a time as most potential problems with laser surgery are a lot less of an issue if they only impact one eye.