Laser eye surgery +/- Stories

MrBlack93

Looking to get laser eye surgery within the next year, slightly scared just wondering what peoples general experiences have been

RobFowl

Got it done 2 years ago lasik one eye and lasek the other.
Vison 20/20 soon after and still the same today.
Slight problem with dry eyes since but nothing that would put me off it.

slongwill

Would recommend picking the surgeon carefully. After that it's plain sailing.

Best of luck with it!

smallgarden

Im just wondering if its worth renewing my health insurance to get discounts on laser eye surgery?

Mousewar

smallgarden wrote: »

Im just wondering if its worth renewing my health insurance to get discounts on laser eye surgery?

I don't think it would be worth it. For the record, the laser places don't charge anything to the Health insurer. They just give you a discount if you have it in the same way that shops offer a student discount. They're just trying to attract you in. I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't even contact the insurer in any way to verify your account. Theoretically you could just give them your old number and I doubt there'd be any fallout if it was out of date (but don't quote me!).

I'm a positive for surgery as well. Eye is a little dry in the mornings (9 months on) but everything else is perfect.

Ngrant

Am taking my son when he gets home at the of the month to see if we can get laser eye surgery for both eyes in the two weeks he is home. He lives and works in the uk so is he entitled to anything back??? Where is the best now 2014. In cork. Thanks

Mousewar

Ngrant wrote: »

Am taking my son when he gets home at the of the month to see if we can get laser eye surgery for both eyes in the two weeks he is home. He lives and works in the uk so is he entitled to anything back??? Where is the best now 2014. In cork. Thanks

If you're paying for him, you might be entitled to claim tax back. He probably can't if he's not paying tax here.
Not sure it's a good idea to get it done in a country other than where you live. Checkups are usually required, a day after, three days after, a week after, three weeks, six weeks after, three months after, six months after and a year after. And if he has any problems with it after he goes back to the UK, he'd either have to fly home to get it checked or pay someone in the UK to do it.
I'd recommend he gets it done in the UK.

eyescreamcone

Best results are got when the correction is small (under -4.00 ish)

I had it done 8 years ago - best money I ever spent
I was -2.00

Mossyman

I had it done on the 13th of December. I'm living in Canada and got done it here. I had the PRK procedure as I play GAA, soccer, etc. Lasik is not recommended as the flap they create never fully heals and can become dislodged if you get a knock. I have some haloing/ghosting at night but I have noticed gradual improvements in the past week or two. I also have dry eyes but I had that a lot beforehand (the air is extremely dry where I live). I'm reasonably happy with the results. I'm back in two weeks for another check-up so I hope it all goes well.

I would definitely recommend it but one major piece of advice is to have your research done with regards to the procedure and recovery times. If I hadn't looked into other people's recovery timelines I would have panicked the whole first week after getting it done. But knowing other peoples experiences absolutely helps.

Ngrant

Where in cork would people recommend or who????

Ngrant

Please guys who did yours waiting on your experiences.

Joe 1983

I am booked in with optical express for 25 of this month I went for check up with different companies but felt most comfortable with optical express

Ngrant

Thanks joe, you are a star for getting back to me. Have appointment for two for a consultation, suppose will have to decide at the time

murrayp4

Joe 1983 wrote: »

I am booked in with optical express for 25 of this month I went for check up with different companies but felt most comfortable with optical express

That's great optical express. Good to know you're booked in with optical express and feel comfortable with optical express. Registered Jan 2014. Optical express.:cool:

Joe 1983

Wondering is there any one out there with optical express

killer_penguin

Hi guys, thought I would share my own experience about this here;

I had LASIK done in August 2013. My prescription at the time was -3.25 with astigmatism of both eyes. I saved for a long time and had plenty of time to research what I was getting into (including opinions from a lot of threads on boards.ie :P)

I remember when I was 17 and had to visit an local optician 12 times to master the dark art of placing something called a contact lens on my eyeball, that woman was an absolute saint for putting up with me for that haha

Eventually I got used to that. The daily rigamarole of waking up, pawing the bedside locker looking for the glasses for the rest of the day. Contact lenses then for sport and nightlife - The fear of god being put in ya if you woke up the next days with the shrivelled up lenses in your eyes knowing your eyes will be so bloodshot for the rest of the day your family will think you were on a meth binge the night before.

9 years went by with no change in my prescription. I dabbled in both cheap contact lenses and expensive, even gave the 30 day lenses a shot but I was only fooling myself thinking I could maintain those for anything more then a day or two.

I then decided after lots of reading up and speaking to many people who had it done at various places that I was gonna go for the free consultation, why not?

I went in not sure what to expect. A raft of scans on vairous machines, the normal eye sight tests you would expect, looking into machines that were like boring mini episodes of the Tron movie and reading charts to see what may actual prescription was compared to what I had been previously told. Turns out I was -2.75 in both eyes according to their measurements. I left the consultation wearing a €4 pair of dodgy sunglasses and 1 eye like a character drawn in animé (giant pupils from the drops they used).

According to them I was an ideal candidate with a low risk rate for complications and I had decent tear quality according to the tests. I had my questions lined up though, what about 'sands of the Sahara', dry eye, complications that I have read of reputable and non reputable sources. Each query was answered and the didn't avoid the question in any way which was very reassuring.

I decided to take the plunge. I went for LASIK surgery with wavefront due to quick recovery time mainly. I booked the week off work also even though truth be told I could have went back after 3 days or so (I work on computer screens all day). I booked the appointment and got my sister to be the driver for the day. Dodgy sunglasses from previous visit in hand I arrived 15 min early.

I have put the next bit in different font colour so you need to highlight it to see more (may not be for the squeamish)

There were a few people getting the surgery done that day, arriving at staggered times. Some were like me, sitting there in silence dramatically wondering if this is the last time we will see ever again. Then you see people coming out of the surgery, they are happy and relieved. Any question you ask them is responded with a relaxed answer. Tears are streaming down some of their faces but this is from the drops used during procedure itself to keep the eyes lubricated during and after the op.

Before I went in I went through all the tests done previously to see if there were any changes to my prescription, level of astigmatism, tear quality etc. More drops and people explaining what will happen next. Hair net, shoe covers and hands washed you wait to be called in by surgeon to review whats going to happen and how. Last chance to change from LASIK to LASEK was offered to me at this point. I put the house on LASIK.

The next room was last prep station before you wait for your turn in the operating room. Nurse offered valium to calm myself. I recalled the 12 visits to the optician for contacts lenses and extremely relaxed people in the lobby post op and nodded in agreement.

The door to the operating room was what struck me the most. Covered in warning stickers about lasers in use and radiation symbols. Didn't really infer a lot of confidence in me but hey, this valium stuff is after kicking in a bit.

Into the room, lay back and asked to confirm what surgery I am going for and if I have any questions before they start. No questions, lets get started. Surgery begins with preparation of eye for the procedure. Numbing drops etc applied. You think your blinking but your not. The assistant is dropping lubrication drops on your eye very regular but you don't really react like you normally would. Eye lids taped open, they apply the attachment that presses the eye down and connects to the machine they use. All you feel is a bit of pressure. That piece is connected to machine to ensure accuracy and then the first laser starts.

The first laser sounds like a Bic pen tapping of a tin can really fast, lasts a few seconds at most. Thats what cuts the lens from 11 to 1 o'clock. More drops, surgeon moves flap back. At this point everything goes out of focus. More drops before next laser is prepped. A few moments later, different sound and only a few seconds longer. Surgeon moves flap back, more drops. Attachment removed from machine then your eye. That pressure on your eye releases as they remove the piece, tape removed from eyelids and eyelid closed while the same process done on the other eye.

Literally only felt like 7-8 minutes and it was done. I was asked to sit up and asked did I feel woozy. I was more concerned with the fact I could see clearly although like it was through a window with condensation on the inside. I said I was grand, more concerned that I had paid all that money and it only took that long to do.

I was escorted to the recovery room where lights were dimmed as they were quite sensitive after surgery. Surgeon comes in and says how everything went. Very reassuring and was able to explain why my sight was like I described above (due to amount of light refracting entering the eye due to inflammation caused by procedure).

After care explained in great detail after this. Forms and bottles of lubricating, anti bacterial and steroid drops for the recovery stage. 8 lubricating drops a day for 1 week, 4 anti bacterial and 3 steroid drops for recovery. This tapered down the next week and so on.

I will say I am a bit of a wimp when it comes to being a patient. The first 3 hours after surgery I would recommend getting your drops quota started but getting a few hours sleep if you can. I couldn't - I was wired. Ended up sitting upright in my bed with blinds and curtains drawn with the goggles they give you to not rub your eyes on resting.

ALL I WANTED TO DO WAS RUB MY EYES! lol

later that evening the urge to smush up all the good work done by surgery decreased and I was able to get a nights sleep, albeit with the bug eye goggles they give you for sleeping with.


Follow up consultation 2 days later and also the week after. All went well. The cloudiness cleared up pretty much by next day and sensitivity to bright light also deceased as week went on.

Stuck to the drops regime like it was my new found religion. The antibacterial drops left a metallic taste on the back of you tongue (google it for explanation why). The other drops were fine. Eyesight now as good if not better then with contacts (not surprising as I was using pretty much the wrong prescription for many years).

2 month follow up, all good. Questions about my diet and supplements. Could do more to add more fish and clean oils to my diet to help with natural lubrication of the eyes and skin. Apart from that, all is good. Reading above the 20/20 level on the chart


All in all, so far, best thing I have done so far. Waking up in the morning and opening the blinds - being able to read the car number plates up and down the street is something I still enjoy. Also a good way to measure if there is any change with the level of eyesight I now have. Downsides? Occasional dry eye in morning but after 30 min that sorts itself out. Still keep the drop handy for the office in heavy AC environments but kind of did that with the glasses as well so no biggy. Probably wouldn't have that if I looked after my diet proper as suggested but we are all human I guess

rok

For the Laser eye surgery I'd recommend Optilase, I'm very happy with my experience.
I wore glasses and lenses for years and was always too nervous to get Laser eye surgery done until my younger sister had LASIK with Optilase a few months before me - once I saw it work out well for her I went for it.

I was also having real discomfort wearing contact lenses at the time.
My eyes were getting very sensitive to wearing contact lenses, at the end I could only wear them for a couple of hours at a time.
This was both painful and annoying, especially on a holiday to California where I had to cart my lenses and glasses with me everywhere knowing I'd only manage a few hours wear out of the lenses.
When I returned from that holiday I got a recommendation for a very progressive Optician, he did a thorough health check on my eyes and suggested Laser surgery to me.
I was surprised by this as the Opticians I had seen previously were against Laser surgery - afraid of losing business I suppose!

My sister was also looking into Laser surgery and suggested I go for the free consultation with Optilase and Ultralase. It cost me nothing and I got more thorough health checks on my eye, which was good . They both told me I was suitable for Laser surgery.
I went with Optilase as my sister had a good experience with them, and I also read a post on here that mentioned Ultralase were in financial difficulty, so I wanted to go to a place that would still be around if I had any issues.

For me the procedure was quick and painfree. Sounds like a real "plug for Laser surgery" but I can't believe how easy it all was. My eye was completely numb from the drops of anesthetic so I felt nothing. That's not to say I wasn't nervous and I did take the valium tablet on offer to calm the nerves but I'm delighted I went for it.

Dr Wayne Crewe Brown is the surgeon in Optilase that I had.
You can Google his name and you'll find websites with recommendations etc
He is also on LinkedIn so you can read his resume.

Over 1 year on I really appreciate not having to mess around with lenses or glasses.
I had my 1 year follow up check a few months ago, and they discharged me with "2 lines better than 20-20 vision" so I'm delighted.


* Shameless plug* If anyone wants a referral for €100 off Optilase send me a PM and I'll give you my Name and my details to use for the referral.

dr.kenneth noisewater

Got it done with Optilase 2 years ago and its the best money I ever spent! perfect 20/20 vision

copeyhagen

little sister got laser, but got the one where they dissolve the cornea? instead of peeling it back? had to get her eyes done twice. in approx 2-3 years.

brother got his done up north (he lives up there) - he has had one eye done 3times i think and one eye done twice.

older sister got hers done, she needs glasses in the evening.

all 3 still say its the best thing they ever got.. bollox, my little sisters recovery time was awful, the other 2 werent as bad.

ill gladly spend my 10e a month on contact lenses till theres a pill that does the job

oh, and eyesight wasnt bad for any, mine is -3.25 and -3.0 and mines worst than theres was.

marie1606

Pushy Pushy Pushy Optical Express ..dont gve you all the inforamation .. go to at least one other either O keefe in Mater or Optilaise Both I found better than OE would probably go with the Mater .. I did all three .. was hounded by OExpress .. I dont know about their surgeon but their selling staff should be ashamed .. Clinic in Dublin .. its your eye sight so be careful and get all the information

marie1606

Stay away from Optical Exp ... or if you do go try others as well OE dont give you all the information

marie1606

I presume this is a dig at OE as they are a bunch od second hand car sales people

Mousewar

You alright there marie? - you seem a bit excited.

marie1606

Umm ok I think ... just in bad humour with OE for their high pressure selling ... but that was just my experience .. I'll calm down not .. have got it off my chest !

Mousewar

Go with the Mater - Prof. O'Keeffe is excellent.
I also got just the one eye done. It can be discombobulating at first but it worked out great.

Joe 1983

I got laser done in man very pleased with outcome I got it done with optical express and if any one interested in getting done I can refer you to them and they reward me so if your interested just reply

but1er

so the family have said its the perfect time for laser eye surgery

i am terrified, im like a little girl ( i am a 22 year old male btw) the idea of pain/unknown scares the life outta me.

the mater or optilase seems to be the perfect one


scary scary times ahead

5p9arw38djv2b4

Partner got his done, perfect, just dry eyes occasionally - now 4 years on. But that was a low prescription for glasses (-1). Old housemate (prescription -6 and -7) was totally destroyed. They can't re-do the surgery and he has constant blurry sight and the sit never stabilised 3 years on). Sister has poor sight (around -5) and she also never recovered, has to wear glasses now (3 years in) but had massive issues with itching and pain and poor vision before the glasses. She was very sorry she did it.

I have very bad vision so based on the 2 experiences I know of I wouldnt take the risk, however my partner is delighted with his results and is delighted he did it.

Magenta

LadyLabyrinth wrote: »

Partner got his done, perfect, just dry eyes occasionally - now 4 years on. But that was a low prescription for glasses (-1). Old housemate (prescription -6 and -7) was totally destroyed. They can't re-do the surgery and he has constant blurry sight and the sit never stabilised 3 years on). Sister has poor sight (around -5) and she also never recovered, has to wear glasses now (3 years in) but had massive issues with itching and pain and poor vision before the glasses. She was very sorry she did it.

I have very bad vision so based on the 2 experiences I know of I wouldnt take the risk, however my partner is delighted with his results and is delighted he did it.

Where did your housemate and sister get their surgeries done?

Magenta

Mousewar wrote: »

Go with the Mater - Prof. O'Keeffe is excellent.
I also got just the one eye done. It can be discombobulating at first but it worked out great.

do they ask that you have someone to collect you after or are you free to leave by yourself?

Mousewar

Magenta wrote: »

do they ask that you have someone to collect you after or are you free to leave by yourself?

You'd probably be grand. Vision was more than adequate to get home. But honestly, you'd be better off with someone if you can.

lemmno

LadyLabyrinth wrote: »

Partner got his done, perfect, just dry eyes occasionally - now 4 years on. But that was a low prescription for glasses (-1). Old housemate (prescription -6 and -7) was totally destroyed. They can't re-do the surgery and he has constant blurry sight and the sit never stabilised 3 years on). Sister has poor sight (around -5) and she also never recovered, has to wear glasses now (3 years in) but had massive issues with itching and pain and poor vision before the glasses. She was very sorry she did it.

I have very bad vision so based on the 2 experiences I know of I wouldnt take the risk, however my partner is delighted with his results and is delighted he did it.

Any chance you can PM me and let me know where your housemate and sister got it done?

Rodrigo

Got it done last year and can't be more pleased with it, actually I got monovision and its worked out very well for me. Kept putting it on the long finger for ages, should have did it much sooner, everyone my age is wearing reading glasses and I can see read perfectly unaided. Dr Corkin in the Wellington was my surgeon and would highly recommend the Wellington. If you pass their criteria, only then they will do the operation. From reading these threads it appears a lot of the issues afterwards relate to Laser surgery clinics who perform surgery on people who are borderline or below the criteria needed. Go with a reputable clinic and spend that bit extra, there's only about 3 or 4 in the country who are worthy of your business, avoid the ones who fly in a guy for the day from abroad to do the operation. BTW I was on my own, my partner couldn't come with me to Dublin, clinic said no problem, I was staying in the adjoining hotel anyway, got the job done, headed off about an hour later on my own to the hotel bedroom and no worries bar a minor bit of streaming on one eye. Could have went down to the restaurant for dinner that evening no bother if I wanted but didn't. I could see very well that night but stuck to the eyeshields drops etc as advised. About 2 or 3 weeks later my eyes had settled very well. Go and get it done you won't regret it.

naasrd

Opps, supposed to be a PM. Now you know why I'm here!

rok

no worries naasrd - PM sent with referral details, best of luck.