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Original poster

Laser eye surgery - experiences/thoughts/risks?

82 replies

MumofCandR · 07/04/2022 11:54

I'm considering having laser eye surgery done. I have strong myopia and have done since I was 12 I'm now mid 40s. I have worn glasses all my life and am not considering this for aesthetic reasons, but for me the absolute bonus would be the feeling of freedom, being able to see in the shower, in the sea. Glasses not steaming up when wearing a mask, etc. Have you had laser eye surgery and what has been your experience/ would you recommend? My concern would be the small risk of complications and regretting not sticking with glasses as being able to see is so precious. AIBU to consider? What do I need to think about?

OP posts:
MyView2 · 07/04/2022 12:08

I got it done 15 years ago. I was shortsighted and had astigmatism in one eye. It’s been brilliant and I’d absolutely recommend it. No concerns about seeing clearly in the theatre or being able to read a presentation from a distance. I didn’t wear my glasses all the time but hated having to carry them around just in case. My vision was improved immediately, just a bit cloudy initially and had to sleep with some strange goggles for a few nights. It was worth every penny and I would urge you to go for it.

Notjustanymum · 07/04/2022 12:27

Think about whether you want 20/20 vision AND to be able to read! I had both lenses replaced a few years ago after 40+ years of wearing glasses and contact lenses, and chose to wear reading glasses from then on. The freedom you get when doing other things like exercising, swimming is wonderful, so for me, wearing reading glasses for reading or computing is only a small inconvenience.

MatildaTheCat · 07/04/2022 12:32

@Notjustanymum

Think about whether you want 20/20 vision AND to be able to read! I had both lenses replaced a few years ago after 40+ years of wearing glasses and contact lenses, and chose to wear reading glasses from then on. The freedom you get when doing other things like exercising, swimming is wonderful, so for me, wearing reading glasses for reading or computing is only a small inconvenience.
I had mine done around 20 years ago and the surgeon gave me a slightly different level of vision in each eye so I had a long eye and a short eye (very slight) and still only occasionally use reading glasses in my mid fifties. I do wear glasses for driving which is recent although I believe I’m still ‘legal’ without.

It was brilliant for me although I had a fairly mild myopia. Lots of my friends had it done after me and all were pleased though most do use glasses to one extent or another now.

Youvegotafriendinme · 07/04/2022 12:39

I had mine done about 15 years ago and I would do it all over again if I had to. Best thing I ever had done. Eyes were cloudy and a bit sensitive for about 4 hours afterwards but after a nap I woke up able to see. Was amazing. Was PP I had to wear silly Goggles for about a week or so but that was it. Definitely worth every penny.

Ahwig · 07/04/2022 12:41

I had it done 16 years ago. Because of the shape of my corneas I had to have the type of laser surgery that takes a while to show results. So it was about 10 days before I could see completely clearly. One eye was perfect 20/20 the other eye wasn’t as good so they redid that eye again free of charge 6 months later. After that surgery I had 20/20 vision in both eyes. In the 10 healing days I couldn’t read and watching tv was too bright so I wore sunglasses, that worked fine. Despite the slight faffing I was delighted with the results and never regretted it. One funny thing though my grandson was 4 months when I had it done and every time I’d held him prior to surgery I was obviously wearing glasses . He freaked out a bit when I first held him without my glasses as he clearly wondered who was this strange lady was although “ the strange lady” still sung the same songs and lullabies so he quickly got used to them.

Calyx72 · 07/04/2022 12:47

I had mine done in the past year aged 49 after glasses since age 7. The first time I had a shower and realised I could see I cried with happiness. I am still feeling the emotion now after 6 months!

I had heavy astigmatism and a high prescription in my left eye so the surgeon put an internal contact lens in and that's my reading eye. The other was just lasik and that's my distance eye. They call it monovision and I wondered if I would be able to get used to it. 12 weeks later I couldn't tell/notice that one eye was seeing and I felt as though I had normal vision (unless I cover my long sighted eye!)

I have better than 20:20 vision now and driving/TV/distance is great, close up/reading is great. Intermediate distance eg computer screen is slightly blurry so I have prescription glasses for when I am on the computer. I have the blue shield stuff on them to prevent computer headaches and would likely have used that anyway.

I completely recommend it Smile

RockingAmadeus · 07/04/2022 12:47

The best thing I ever did was like a total miracle. I was very short sighted -9 and wore glasses as a kid, then contact lenses. Had LASIK around 21 years ago and absolutely no regrets. I still don’t need reading glasses and I’m well into my 50s.

Calyx72 · 07/04/2022 12:49

It was the mask thing that made my mind up as I work in health. It's brilliant and Grin

EBearhug · 07/04/2022 12:52

I had it done about 23 years ago, and it was well worth it. I looked into the risks quite a bit first - I've been fine, but I know others who've had bad night-haloing. Your risks will vary according to your current prescription and so on, and also who does your procedure - the more someone has done, the more likely a good outcome. So do look at reviews now just prices.

You need to have a stable prescription and it not suitable for some people with some eye conditions.

I was always told I'll need reading glasses when I get older; I'm about to turn 50, and at my last optician's appointment, they said the prescription was so small, I didn't need them. I suspect this will change with my next check-up (due in a couple of months,) and I'm starting to find I have to hold the pocket language dictionary a bit further away when I'm looking things up for my homework. This is something you should think about, as you're in your 40s, but I assume they would cover this.

CrabbyCat · 07/04/2022 13:05

How bad is your vision and how big are your pupils?

I was -6.5 ish with very big pupils - which increase the chance of night vision problems. After worrying about the risks and discussing with the surgeon, we agreed I'd have one eye done at a time. I had significant night vision issues with the one eye (halos and star bursts), so cancelled the surgery for the other. The eye I did have done the vision worsened again, apparently that's not unusual with larger corrections. They would have retreated for free but I didn't want the risk of it making the night vision issues even worse.

Having said that, I'm happy with where I've ended up. I still need glasses, but with the corrected eye now at about -1.5 I can see enough I get that feeling of freedom you mention as I don't get the feeling of helplessness without glasses in a swimming pool etc. The night blindness issues did improve a bit after about a year, and with them only being in one eye my brain autocorrects them out and I have no trouble driving at night.

If you are worried about issues, doing one eye at a time significantly reduced the risk.

Keepthepeace82 · 07/04/2022 13:08

I had mine done a few weeks ago and I'm really pleased I had it done. I had to get PRK because I have thin corneas (of all the parts of me that could be thin, its my bloody corneas). Slightly uncomfortable on days 1 and 2 but they give you painkillers anyway. Because I had PRK my eyesight can take anywhere from 6 weeks to 3 months to stabilise. I had mine done at Moorfields and my surgeon said that as long as I took the medication as prescribed and followed instructions, there were very very few things that couldn't be rectified or wouldn't resolve by itself eventually. He did warn me that by age 45 I'm likely to need reading glasses as the eyes age (completely normal occurence).

bubble2000 · 07/04/2022 13:34

Please please don't have this surgery

lasikcomplications.com

Hobbesmanc · 07/04/2022 13:40

It changed my life - some pain and discomfort - but I was back in work after a few days

Last few years I've had to invest in cheap readers - I struggle with small print as I age

ForeverSingle881 · 07/04/2022 13:50

Best thing I ever did. Life changing. Do not hesitate but find a good clinic. Highly recommend the London Vision Clinic, very pricey but I paid it off over time at 0% interest.

Stretchandsnap · 07/04/2022 14:33

Had it a year ago, had a high prescription and astigmatism and was getting age related presbyopia- so I had one eye fully corrected and the other partially corrected and now I have better than 20/20 vision and it has been an absolute life changer - I’d do it again in a heart beat

Original poster
MumofCandR · 07/04/2022 18:05

Thank you all for your insights and experiences they really help.
CrabbyCat - interesting points, I think I do have large pupils and prescription is -5.0 so the nihgt vision problems might be an issue for me. Bubble2000 thank you for the links - do you have direct experience of issues? Complications are what concerns me but it seems the majority of people have good experience? Of course you never know if you're going to be the unlucky one. Lots of things to consider.

OP posts:
DiDonk · 07/04/2022 18:17

I have big pupils and was -9 and -7 with bad astigmatism and am now perfect except for reading. I had LASIK done by two robots.

I do find night driving more difficult but still very possible and really only wish I'd had it sooner.

Confrontayshunme · 07/04/2022 18:21

I worked for a Consultant who is the former head of the Royal College, and he wouldn't have it done. He advised others and performed them but decided he didn't feel it was worth the risks when glasses and contacts have very little adverse affects. That made the decision for me.

musicalfrog · 07/04/2022 18:25

The biggest risk is from infection afterwards and that ball is mostly in your court, keeping up with the antibiotoc drops while it's all healing.

I would really recommend it, best money I have ever spent.

GilesRupert · 07/04/2022 18:36

I had it a few years ago and it's fab. Ignore Bubble2000 and do your own research. There can be side effects. Blindness isn't one of them unless you have an undiagnosed or undisclosed disorder of the eye, or you don't look after your eyes properly post surgery and get a severe infection. Suicide isn't a side effect.

Flowersandjellybeans · 07/04/2022 18:36

I had a crazy prescription, worse than yours I think it was -6 and -6.5 with astigmatism which made it about twice as expensive (at the time most people seemed to be £2k and mine was £4k). You do have to have a stable prescription but hard contacts can help with that. I was 10 years ago and mine are still 20/20. Shortly after they were actually 20/10 which is one better apparently Shock.

It was the best money I’ve ever spent, I would do it again in a heartbeat. If you do it do it ASAP as it doesn’t fix macular degeneration AKA you and your eyes getting old so you want to maximise the amount of time you are totally free of needing anything… although after years of being incredibly shortsighted the prospect of glasses sometimes isn’t so bad.

Anyway get a consultation, they’re normally free and they can tell you if you’ll have any issues. There are two different kinds, one has a much longer recovery time and my friend had that as she had a thin retina and ended up having to have it done again (or fixed) but they will talk to you honestly about the risks.

Blossomtoes · 07/04/2022 18:40

@Notjustanymum

Think about whether you want 20/20 vision AND to be able to read! I had both lenses replaced a few years ago after 40+ years of wearing glasses and contact lenses, and chose to wear reading glasses from then on. The freedom you get when doing other things like exercising, swimming is wonderful, so for me, wearing reading glasses for reading or computing is only a small inconvenience.
I went the other way! Sick and tired of fishing my glasses out to look at prices in shops. I have excellent near sight and good medium sight and wear glasses for driving, cinema, etc.

It’s the best money I’ve ever spent.

Bdhntbis · 07/04/2022 18:41

I had it 18 months ago and it’s the best thing I ever did. Little bit of discomfort in the week after but the effect for me has been massive.

Parky04 · 07/04/2022 18:44

I had it done 20 years ago. Best money I have ever spent. Vision still excellent, although I do need reading glasses (they said that would be the case anyway).