Optical Express, Optilase or elsewhere?

microfinance wrote: »

Well I must say I have been very happy with my experience. The only drawbacks are you cant play any contact sports for a month afterwords and you cant exercise for a week. You cant wear contacts for a week before the surgery and you cant wear eye make up for a week after. (Im a girl by the way. so wearing eye make now whenever i want is brilliant!) I got mine done with Optical Express, had the consultation in Mahon Point, Cork and the actual surgery , in Newbridge, Co. Kildare. I am nearly 1 month post surgery now and its brilliant, back football training at the moment and delighted with the results!I still suffer from dry eyes at the moment but that is to be expected for another few months. I was -3 so it has made a huge difference to my life not needing to wear glasses and contacts. Also been able to go out on a night out and enjoy waking up the next morning without sore sticky eyes! Also if you want i can give u a voucher that gives you 150 off the cost of treatment with optical express, just PM me or reply on this thread. also be happy to answer any questions you have!

WOW! Can I ask how old you are? I'm getting my surgery done the day after tomorrow! I'm very excited. I'm going up to Belfast to get it done because it's way cheaper! I'm going to miss my make up for the week but it will all be worth it! I'm very excited!!EEEEKKKK! I'm going for the LASIK intralase!

Well, It's day one! I've got better than 20 20 vision in one eye already, the other has to catch up. My optometrist is very pleased with my recovery! I can read bus numbers and stuff far away but sending a text is proving a bit hard at the moment, that will pass.

The one thing I hate is the brusing on my eyes. It's horrible. I got intra lase LASIK and the suction cups kept falling off! 4 times. I cried the whole way through the surgery, but when I came out I was so proud that I managed to do it.

Any one that wants to get it done. DO IT! It's amazing! You only realize how amazing it is the day after! Go North to get it cheaper! OPTICAL EXPRESS are the BEST!

microfinance wrote: »

Well I must say I have been very happy with my experience. The only drawbacks are you cant play any contact sports for a month afterwords and you cant exercise for a week. You cant wear contacts for a week before the surgery and you cant wear eye make up for a week after. (Im a girl by the way. so wearing eye make now whenever i want is brilliant!) I got mine done with Optical Express, had the consultation in Mahon Point, Cork and the actual surgery , in Newbridge, Co. Kildare. I am nearly 1 month post surgery now and its brilliant, back football training at the moment and delighted with the results!I still suffer from dry eyes at the moment but that is to be expected for another few months. I was -3 so it has made a huge difference to my life not needing to wear glasses and contacts. Also been able to go out on a night out and enjoy waking up the next morning without sore sticky eyes! Also if you want i can give u a voucher that gives you 150 off the cost of treatment with optical express, just PM me or reply on this thread. also be happy to answer any questions you have!

Do you still have this voucher available by any chance?

Hey - sorry to hear that!

What procedure did you get done? You may not want to say but if you can, what clinic is this in reference too?

Any more details?
Something seriously suspicious about these posts where someone starts an account, says something vague about the surgery going wrong, then is never heard of again despite questions being asked of them.

I have been meaning to give my view online on laser the past while.
I read a lot of forums before doing it and reading through it there are a lot of posts from people within some of the laser companies recommending their company so be wary.
It is not a nice procedure, very uncomfortable and eyes are feeling pretty sore that day. You definitely need someone to bring you home. Seeing stuff after laser though is amazing.

I had it done about 5 months ago, eyes were -3 and -4. I had it done with optical express. I have a combined better than 20 20 vison. One eye is stronger than other now. I am happy with the procedure. I was back in work on the Monday, had the procedure on Saturday, and worked a few shorter days that week as eyes tired.

Glare can still be bad enough and halos at night. There are a lot of risks involved and it can go wrong. You will need reading glasses quicker if you get it done.
Blackrock price is similar to others or even cheapest if you have a strong prescription (They have a fixed price per eye).

My view is do not do during winter. Driving at night is difficult post surgery due to glare/ halos. If you do in winter you will be constantly driving in dark. Spring is ideal/ Autumn is probably good too. Long evenings and not to sunny is best.
You need a good pair of Polaroid sun glasses after. I am still a little dazzled when I go outside on sunny day.
In terms of tax back, late in year is best as you will get the 20% back quicker.
Most health insurance plans do not cover anything. However a lot of laser providers do give a discount based on who you have insurance with. This discount is purely given by laser provider though.
In terms of price, push them push them push them. They are increasing prices by about 100 a year. Do not sign up on first day, they are likely to drop price more to entice you. I was with one insurer, said I was renewing soon so would change to insurer with higher discount and was told not to bother as they would give me full discount (25% I think). I got Lasik, intralase with wavefront. My starting price was 4100, with insurance discount about 3100, ended at 2800 after cals to me and asking for lower price. My refer a friend got 100 Euro too. Optilase and Optical express do refer a friend programs (probably others too.) Make use of them, if you not know anyone who got it done find someone who did/
In terms of aftercare I have had it after a day a week, a month, 3 and 6 months. Think it is yearly as well. I have had unlimited drops included (10 or more bottles now probably). I was told to come back if I wanted more last time. I am still using drops a few times a week due to dryness. I was a little unsure about my eyes given a sizeable difference in strength. I went to specsavers for a second totally unbiased opinion and to reassure myself as much as anything. This for 15 Euro was worth a lot to me. They told me one was far better than ‘perfect’ (a lot better than 20:20) and other was almost 20:20. This I feel is well worth going to your own optician if you have any doubts. Your laser provider is very biased.

Big discounts available after cancellations if surgery isn’t full on a date coming soon. If you are flexible try this. Tell them you are getting a price from their competitors.
As for which company is best, I really don’t know. They will obviously all tell you they have the mot hi-tech equipment. Obviously it is best if you meet your surgeon before the day you have surgery. This doesn’t happen with Optical Express (and also with some others I think).
Reading forums the one eye versus two eyes a time is a big grey area. I really don’t know. I had both done together. I would hate to have to go back a second day but if it goes wrong and both eyes are done you are in a worse situation.
It is meant to be cheaper up north if that would suit.
Overall I was happy with service provided. That’s my random thoughts of laser. Any questions just ask. My main things are be careful the time of year you do it look for lower price. Read up on it, you sign a scary disclaimer form of the 101 things that might go wrong.
Good luck

Hi All,

Really good thread here. I am going for a consultation with Optical Express. If anyone had a referral code it would be much appreciated