Laser Eye Surgery - Opinions

gordo.sands

Have a look at this before you decide.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-TUMw1FTmY

Jip

Have you any comment to make on the crap you posted ?

Maybe you should have read through this thread to see how many people have had the surgery and don't have any of the alleged issues in that vid, not that I looked at it but just read the comments below it before realising it's just a scare video.

ArthurG

Why would this help you decide?. Most medical procedures don't make great television, but that doesn't mean they're not effective.

gordo.sands

Jip wrote: »

Have you any comment to make on the crap you posted ?

Maybe you should have read through this thread to see how many people have had the surgery and don't have any of the alleged issues in that vid, not that I looked at it but just read the comments below it before realising it's just a scare video.

Im not anti laser I surgery. But any idiot should see how something is done before they decide if they want to have it done or not. Especially if its selective. I didn't look at the comments. I looked at the video from a purely academic point of view to assess the risks of what could go wrong or not. Maybe you should actually look at the video and assess it yourself instead of making harsh judgements based on the opinions of others.

And by the way.. its not a scare video its a training video used by colleges.

Jip

But why post it without giving any sort of comment on it ? Shall I therefore post random videos into the various health and sport forums everytime some mentions they're thinking of getting some form of surgery ?

Kev.

Guys,

Getting this done on 30th Novenmber,Im looking for some positive feedback and reassurances please....

Thanks in advance

Porkpie

Got Lasek done 5 weeks ago in Laservision, Leeson St. Eyesight is much improved but it's not as good as when I wore my glasses (I'd say it's about 95% as good). I see a very slight kind of 'double vision' or shadows on some objects. The recovery was tough, especially for the first week, a lot of discomfort and pain, but improved greatly over the weeks. I still get dry eyes occasionally, especially in the morning.

I definitely feel it was worth it though. I hated wearing glasses and I am much more confident now and have more freedom without specs. Anyway, they say the healing time for Lasek is anything up to about 8 weeks, so hopefully my eyesight might continue to improve and eyes will become less dry.

I will post a full account of my experience in another few weeks. :pac:

jenny487

Hi Kev, where r u getting it done? Lasik or Lakek? What strength are your glasses now?

You will be fine! Not sure if you read my earlier post:

"For what it's worth, had my surgery, wavefront intralase lasik, in Optical Express, Newbridge, Fri 30 Oct 09. Very sucessful so far! Great team there. Would highly recommend them. Experiencing what feels like eye muscle discomfort when watching tv or working at computer, I assume that's cos I'm now using eye muscles that never worked before! Also a bit of glare/halo on nighttime lights. If this is the worst it gets, I'm doing well. would thoroughly recommend OE. I was -7.50, now I''m better than 20/20!! Mad."

Even reading this now I can cite further improvements, like my nighttime vision having improved and significantly less halos, so I assume that can only get better. My only hindrence the first week and a half was a really dry eye at computer only, and I work in an office, so bummer to that. I also think I went back too soon, 5 days post surgery. One criticism of Optical Express was that I felt they could have suggested to me sooner to get the lube I ended up getting, it's superb. Clinitas Hydrate Eye Gel. http://www.pcpdirect.co.uk/Pharmacy/Eye_Care/01445_Clinitas_Hydrate_10g_Eye_Gel.htm

You will of course have to check with your optometrist, but this stuff rocks!

I hope you didn't watch that video of Lasik? Only my own opinion, but I cannot imagine how it would help. I did watch it Wed just gone, I think and I couldn't finish looking at it. Purely jus cos it's your eyes! If I had to elect to remove my womb, you can be damn sure I wouldn't youtube it first; I would just do it! You will get all the info you need if you read your info pack. If you are nervous, I would ask for Valium. It's not the most pleasant two minutes you will ever spend under a laser, but it is so quick, and so do-able! Natural to be nervous but it's so SO worth it. Love not being speccy eyes anymore!

I hope I've helped. Good luck!

Posy

I'm a diary keeper so I decided to post my long winded account of my laser surgery last Friday in the Blackrock clinic in case anyone finds it helpful.

Wed 11th November-

Starting to think I’m mental for considering this. I can see (nearly) perfectly well with glasses and there are blind people out there who would give anything for that. Will I be sitting here in a week seriously regretting this? I have a strange feeling in my stomach like I’ve been eating cement. Decide to forget about laser surgery for the rest of the day. Eat indecent amounts of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. This really does help, I’d recommend it.

Thu 12th November-

Final preparations. I download two audio books and put them on my iPod. Go to bed not too early, wanting to sleep, not toss and turn; having forbidden anyone in my family to discuss tomorrow around me. I’m not overly nervous- it’s the aftercare that freaks me out more than anything; what if I get a lash in my eye? It’d be a disaster. Before I sleep I wonder if I sneeze while my eye is being (feeling queasy) held open would it pop out? I must remember to ask the surgeon in the morning.

Fri 13th November-

Up early. NO eye make-up obviously today- or for two weeks after the laser. :eek: Breakfast, bus, arrive in the clinic around 9.30am. Check in, get a hospital band on my left arm meaning my watch gets moved to my right wrist. Hmmm. Get tea and a bun in the café before going to the laser waiting room at 10.30am.

There’s a patient already there, although I’m actually first on the laser list for the morning. He’s had the magic valium tablet. I watch him to see if he appears stoned. He appears frozen with terror more than anything else. The nurse gives me the consent forms to sign. I sign them but don’t read them- I’d rather know as little as possible about what could go wrong to be honest.
The nurse then comes with my valium tablet and a cup of water at 10.45am. I sit there reading my ’after laser care’ sheet and wait to feel ‘out-of-it‘. I don’t. Drat. I look at my hospital band about 40 times. Bloody watch, being on the wrong arm, how dare it. There's another woman waiting now, having just got her happy pill. The atmosphere is like the waiting room before you take your driving test. It's like the waiting room to hell. This feckin’ valium is useless I rage, thinking too much.

My name is called at 11am and I go through to the pre-op room. My hair is bundled under a hospital cap and I relinquish my glasses. The feeling of helplessness without them is something I will not miss. At 11.10am I go into the laser room and lie down on the bed. I’m given a little squeezy stress ball to have a go at. I dig my long nails into it. Lovely.

They cover my right eye with a patch as they begin with my left. I’m told to keep both eyes open, however. They put something on it to hold it open but it feels like there’s nothing on it and like I’m still blinking. The wonders of anaesthetic drops, nice.
I look at a blinking light for about half a minute to create the (ugh) flap. Then I’m moved over on the bed to do the laser. It doesn’t take long. The surgeon keeps saying “just keep your eye on the light, nearly there, lovely..” I do keep my eye on the light but I don’t think I could move it even if I wanted to. At some stage there is a scorching smell. The surgeon does something to my eye that feels like he’s rubbing a fine paintbrush across my eyeball. It feels nice. Then my left eye is covered and the right is done. It hurts a bit when the (ugh) clamp is applied but more anaesthetic drops are applied and it all feels fine again.

At 11.23am my right eye is covered and taped up (with a hard plastic eye patch type thing, like the left) and it’s all over! It was a lot easier than I thought it would be and I hardly saw anything, which was my biggest fear. Everything was foggy and hazy during the procedure which suited me fine. I sit up, feeling woozy and am given a moment to ‘come to’ before being lead to the waiting room to a chair in the corner to lie down. My eyes are a bit sore but not bad. I can see out of them.. quite well actually but I have to shut them now for 20 minutes. The taxi journey home is the worst experience of the day to be honest. My eyes are shut and they feel like I just poured shampoo into them. Tears stream down my cheeks. My face is literally soaked.

I get home and sleep like the dead until 5pm. Then it’s a regiment of drops every two hours (antibiotic and anti-inflammatory, which are milky looking) and I sleep in between drops. By 10pm I’m hungry and have an omelette. Then it’s more drops and sleep. I pass out again. (I don’t have to wake up every two hours during the night to do the drops which is a relief.)

Sat 15th November-

Get up 6.30am. Peel the plastic protectors off my eyes- my face is dented and really sticky from them. I put my drops in. They don’t sting, it’s more a ‘good God, my eyes have drops in them at six in the morning- what the hell?’ sensation. My left eye feels fine but my right is gravely and uncomfortable.

I head off for my check up, all sunglassed up. When I get to the clinic at 8.30am I’m the only person in the bright waiting room in sunglasses. Feckin’ show offs. I see the guy that was beside me yesterday looking numb with fear. He still looks like a bit of a sour puss now so I just assume it’s his everyday general demeanour.
I get called to the check up room and remove the sunglasses. The brightness isn’t uncomfortable. I can read the chart on the wall (I can READ A CHART. Even the LAST LINE!) and the surgeon says my eyes seem fine. He tells me I has the strongest prescription yesterday “by a MILE.” I feel smug. ‘Yeah, you other lot mightn’t have sunglasses today but my eyes were minus nine. NINE I tells ya!’ :P

I’m to start using artificial tears as well as the two other drops today. Drops galore! My next check up is in Mid December. I go have a fried breakfast in a café (when I blow on my tea to cool it my glasses don't fog up because I'm NOT wearing any, hehe) then return home.. and sleep most of the day, getting up at about 7pm to watch TV for a couple of hours through my sunglasses. I’m being extra cautious and not sorry about it.
I then put my drops in and tape those plastic yolks to my eyes before I sleep. They’re to stop people rubbing their eyes in their sleep. (You CANNOT rub your eyes for a few weeks while they are healing.) The plastic eye-patch things make me look like a bug and I have to wear them for a week. I think I’ll wear them longer to be on the safe side. I have a tendency to sleep with my head mashed into the pillow which can only be a bad thing. Pillow germs! Shudder. :pac:

Sun 15th November-

I’m starting to explore what I can and can’t see now. The better eyesight hasn’t sank in yet and probably won’t for a while. I’m surprisingly blasé. It’s like looking through smudged glasses (nothing new for me- the state of my glasses) and lights, like my clock-radio or the standby light on the TV are smeared looking, an effect I used to get when I wore my contact lenses. I can read the writing on teletext and the ‘breaking news’ stories coming across the screen on Sky News. Huh.

Mon 16th November-

After two sleepy days I feel groggy and grubby. I’m glad I have the week off because the thought of going to work today makes me shiver. Bright lights? Computers? NO WAY. I have my first post-op shower. I wear my swimming goggles and pray I locked the door because I must look a right idiot. No water in the eyes though- aha!

Speaking of eyes. Vision: Okay, a bit smudgy but pretty good. I can still read small print which is good. I can see the time on the clock from the other side of the room, go me! Feeling: Leftie: Fine. Rightie: Still a bit strange and uncomfortable when I blink, like I have a lens in that’s not quite right. Appearance: Leftie: Blotchy red things in it. Rightie: Looks okay but when I look up it’s VERY red under the lid. Uurgh. If you looked at my eyes though you wouldn’t know anything had happened to them unless you got close.

Tue 17th November-

Eyes still the same as yesterday. My face is dented from sleeping in those goggly plastic yolks. The drops keep making me feel as if there’s something in my eyes. I’m down to 28 “AAARGH, there’s a lash in my eye! There IS. I can FEEL IT!” moments a day. It’s my main fear, despite being told by the surgeon if I do get something in my eye just lash a load of artificial tears in and I probably won’t die.

Wed-Thu 18th-19th November-

I’ve been watching more television and been checking my emails and browsing the net. So long as there’s much eye resting (thank YOU, trashy audio-books!) I’m grand.

Fri 20th November-

ONE WEEK! I’ve now finished the antibiotic and anti-inflammatory eye drops but must keep putting the artificial tears in every two hours (while awake) for the next week. Eyes feeling good, the right still has gravely dry moments but is better than it was. They are both still blotched but pinker rather than the red of before. I keep my trustee drops at hand and am liberal with them- sure they can’t do any harm!

It’s sunny so I parade about in my sunglasses feeling like a tourist. My sight is very clear but not crystal clear.. yet. It’s hard to see numbers on buses but I can read car registrations from a fair distance. It takes between 1-3 months for the vision to settle. I only had one paranoid ‘There’s SOMETHING in my eye, THERE IS!’ moment today, a new record. I’m so proud. The whole experience wasn’t even a quarter as bad as I had imagined. Thanks to everyone on boards, especially Jenny487 for giving me the push to get laser surgery. I’m delighted I did it. :cool:

murrayp4

Excellent post Posy. Keep us updated!!

murrayp4

p.s. I can't believe you got your eyes done on Friday the 13th

SparkleShoes!

i got it done in march and it was the best thing i ever did!!
my eye sight was absolutely brutal glasses since i was 12 and lenses as soon as i could! and now i have 2020 vision!
had a check up the other day and i was told my vision is better than 2020 with both my eyes combined! cant believe it since before i couldnt even see the wall :rolleyes:
i would definatly reccomend it to everyone, it has changed my life!! wheni wake up i can see the corners of my room, and the spider in the corner! its amazing!

jenny487

ha ha ha ha posy, what a good read!!! well done girlie, you must be so proud!! see ya jenny

Posy

It's great! I still can't believe I did it (especially on Friday 13th, ha!)
I'm looking forward to my work Christmas do where 'how long have these lenses been here?' 'Over a month?' 'Better open a new batch just in case.' 'Oops, spilled solution!' 'Damn, where's it gone?' 'Drat, feels like it's in backwards' etc etc... will not be part of the getting ready process.

Jenny, do you wear eye make-up and if so, how long before you went back to it or did you have an troubles? I slept without my eye shield things last night and was so happy to wake up and discover I hadn't gouged my eye out in my sleep or something, hooray!

jenny487

i really don't wear much anyway, but only put on mascara and eye shadow a week after?

snoopy12

Had it done a couple of weeks ago and have to say so far so good! no eye makeup for a couple of weeks - but considering i couldnt use contacts thats a small payoff!
ETA: Posey think we had it in the same place and same day! glad to hear its going ok for you!

Kev.

Great read Posy thanks a million.

I really love hearing about peoples actual feelings and experiences

Cheers

nickersop

I had it done a year ago in Optical Express on Wellington Road, and I still remember it like it was yesterday, waking up the next day and looking out the window and being able to read all the Reg numbers on all the cars outside!!It was the easiest thing i've ever done!It was like a little miracle!Staff were very professional in the clinic and Mr Nafa Bader my surgeon was fantastic!Talked me through everything and made sure I was happy. The nurse held my hand as I was very nervous and when I was finished they all gave me clap as they could see I was awfully relieved when it was done. I have recommended everyone I know to go in and have it done as it has improved my quaility of life - truely life changing! DONT THINK ABOUT IT JUST DO IT!!:D X

JackReacher1980

I only have positive things to say about my eye surgery. Had it done in Blackrock Clinic about 6+ years ago. Having worn glasses since the age of 89, and starting to find contact lenses irritating, I bit the bullet. I am an incredibly nervous person, but it was the best thing I ever did. Slight dry eyes for a few months after, but nothing I couldnt cope with.
Unfortunately, vision started to deteriorate, so I went back 2 years later, had it done for free, excellent results again. I have a slight astigmatism in one eye, but would still never ever regret this procedure.

Kenny_D

Looks like Optical Express are the most recommended on this thread. Will give them a ring today I think and book a consultation

Jip

JackReacher1980 wrote: »

Had it done in Blackrock Clinic about 6+ years ago. Having worn glasses since the age of 89,.......

Eh, how old are you now, by my calculations you're at least 98 !

Kenny_D

Booked in for a consultation on Saturday with Optical Express. Hope it goes well!

Posy

snoopy12 wrote: »

Had it done a couple of weeks ago and have to say so far so good! no eye makeup for a couple of weeks - but considering i couldnt use contacts thats a small payoff!
ETA: Posey think we had it in the same place and same day! glad to hear its going ok for you!

Hooray! How are you getting on? Apart from dry/gritty eyes at the end of a work day staring at a PC mine feel grand. My night vision is still blurry- lights are all a bit smudgey looking and my eyes are still have red blotches but it's fading down to a pink now.
I've started back on eyeliner this week but I'm leaving the mascara till the three week mark!)

callmedavey

Posy wrote: »

I'm a diary keeper so I decided to post my long winded account of my laser surgery last Friday in the Blackrock clinic in case anyone finds it helpful.


Sounds like a good way to go.
How much do they charge in Blackrock & is there any vhi cover or tax back ?

Posy

€100 for the initial consultation and €4,400 for the surgery, including all follow ups for the next year. You can get tax back and VHI but I'm not sure about that since I don't have VHI.

Kev.

Well Guys I got it done on Monday,

Everything seems to be a success so far,20/20 vision and to be honest its getting better every day,the op itself wasnt too bad ,the girls there are amazing,For ten minutes of my life its worth it

I keep going to pick up my glasses and then remembering.....

Ive got it done by optical express,after tax and reliefs it cost me 1700 euro

probably the best money Ive ever spent,cant wait for the little things that glasses hinder like swimming with the kids,football,wearing sunglasses....

There is a 300 euro referal scheme that they are starting in January,if anybody is thinking about getting it done in January send me a PM and your more than welcome to the 300 quid off for your op,I think you need to mention it at your consultation though so be warned..

Just to mention the worst part of the whole experience is putting drops in every day,I have NO red blotches and they are not really dry,I got Lazik

Dirty Dave

Got Lasik done in the wellington eye clinic just under 2 weeks ago and I'd recommend it to anybody. I had no pain or discomfort and it was all over in about 4 minutes for both eyes.

I'd say I have about 95% of the vision I had with my glasses and the other 5% will come in the next few weeks.

Bit glary at night, but again that will improve - well worth it.

ahernep

Well, spent the last two days reading every post here, seems like Optical Express is well recommended, have a consultation with Ultralase (used to be Eye Laser Ireland I think), has anyone any experience with them?, on Tuesday. May well go for consultation with Optical Express and maybe others (especially the free ones) to see who I'm most comfortable with, not taking shortcuts on this decision, may even go for a paid consultation (only Wellington and Blackrock clinics I think) if I feel the need!

Cheers...

mrgaa1

i have astigmatism - would the surgery sort that out? Anyone had it done ?

Posy

ahernep wrote: »

May well go for consultation with Optical Express and maybe others (especially the free ones) to see who I'm most comfortable with, not taking shortcuts on this decision...

Definitly the right way to go. Trusting your surgeon is a huge help.
Had my first check up today. I told him my right eye is a bit gravelly feeling sometime but he said it's normal and just keep using the artificial tears. I still have bad night vision but it's slowly getting better. My surgeon was like "Aah, the -9.5, couldn't forget about you in a hurry!"
My eyes still have very faded pink blotches on them but it's barely noticeable. And they only feel a bit uncomfortable at the end of a long day. They are quickly feeling pretty normal.

Mrgaa1, yes you can get laser surgery for astigmatism. I think having thick corneas is the most important thing to be a candidate for laser.. sure go for a consult somewhere; you don't know until you go!

I saw on 'This Morning' during the week that eating chocolate before laser eye surgery is good because it relaxes you and raises your blood sugar so there's a tip for any people getting it done in the future!