Laser Eye Surgery

My friend's -3.00s cost £3k.

Thanks Footlong. I was hoping you'd be around with a scientific explanation. The contacts themselves are just part of my daily routine - really not an issue. It's more the bottle top glasses which I'm going to have to wear more and more with the baby. If I'm going to have to have contacts anyway, it barely seems worth having it done.

It might be worth checking out still. Say you have it done, but within a year, you're back at -1.00 or -2.00. That's perfectly adequate eyesight to make your way around at night without specs/contacts. At that level, you'd only need specs for driving/distance.

Be very careful with these guys though. I believe the phrase "hard sell" doesn't cover it. Make sure you see stats for regression rates, frequency of different complications and so on.

I remember us comparing eye sight before Knees! I went for a consultation at two places and they found my corneas were too thin to have it done. My prescription is worse than yours though at just a shade under -10.

I think a changing prescription is a problem I think they like you have had a stable prescription for two years before they do it.

In terms of cost I was looking at about £4k at Ultralase and £3k at Optical Express.

As an aside I would not recommend Optical Express, they were reeeeeally pushy and despite what Ultralase had told me they were keen for me to press on and get it done. This worries me now and I'm glad I had a second opinion.

I wanted to get it done so I was glasses and contact lens free, I didn't see the point in having it done just to wear glasses with a lesser prescription, and neither could guarantee I this would be the case. I realise they can't guarantee anything anyway but this put me off.

I had it done in 2005 and one of best things ive ever done. Changed my life. Used to have to wear uncomfortable hard gas permeable lenses because mys sight was so bad. It's my eyes so didnt mess about. Went to the best I could find. David o'brart. worth a Google.

Thanks for your replies everyone. I think I'll go for a consulation in the Autumn (nice excuse for a day out if nothing else!) but bear in mind that they are there to sell and make sure I ask all the right questions.

Footlong - it's been so long since I've been -1.00 or -2.00 that I can't remember what the vision is like! It's getting up in the night with the baby that's bothering me the most, so as long as I'd be able to do that, I'll solve my problem.

My eyesight was -1.75 in each so not too bad but contacts were really drying my eyes out & were very uncomfortable. I was £20 a month on contacts, plus glasses & perscription sunglasses so I decided it was going to be cost effective.

I visited 3 clinics in total (not much choice in NI) and decided on optimax. I found them absolutely fantastic. Very thorough & nothing was too much trouble for them - I sent almost daily emails to my advisor for about a month before hand!

I paid a 10& deposit 2 wks before hand. On the day you sign the scary form, the consultant checks your eyes to confirm suitability again, does any further checks etc. Your advisor then talks you through the process, the drops and what to expect in the surgery and next few days / weeks. You need someone there for this as for the first day or 2 you will need help with the drops.

You cant wash your hair for a day or 2 and cant give your face a proper wash with soap etc for 2 wks at least. No lotions or potions near your eyes in this time either.

Surgery itself is a strange experience. You must stay still the whole time - my advisor stayed with me and rubbed my hands.Numbing drops are put into your eyes. Your eyes are clamped & you need to look straight at a light for 20 seconds. This is uncomfortable but not massively so. You then get moved to the second laser (swivel chair) which has a funny hot burny smell and omits gasses.

Because of the gases I had trouble seeing the colour to focus on & 'looked' for it which the surgeon quickly reminded me I wasnt to move my eyes at all. It quickly appeared visible. Again you stare straight at a coloured light. for 20 seconds. The nurses count you down so you know how long etc. The surgeon then administers more drops et viola. As soon as I sat up I could read a poster on the wall so instant success for me.

Your eyes are then checked again before you leave. After about 20mins the numbing sensation wears off. My eyes streamed and felt really gritty - like I'd rubbed onions in them. As soon as I got home I went straight to bed & slept. You cannot touch or rub your eyes (your not mean to rub your eyes for at least a month) so I lay on my back. You also get googles to tape onto your eyes in bed for the next wk (sexy!) My hubby kept putting the drops in for me as well as the numbing drops. I used the numbing drops a further 3 times that day just to ease them enough so I could get back to sleep. You take 2 different drops 4 times a day, leaving 10 mins inbetween. You also use fake tear drops as often as possible - I did every 30 mins.

You cannot do anything that day - eyesight for me was very blurry and all I did was get out of bed for toilet breaks. No tv, phone etc. You have to rest your eyes as much as possible.

I went back for my check up the next day & had 20/20 in my right eye and 18/20 in my left. My left eye was inflamed - my fault because I had 'moved' it during the 2nd laser. So I was given strong drops for it 6 times a day.

I went back on easter tue for another check up and left eye was up to 19/20 and inflamation was settling. I wasnt in any great pain, just a bit of discomfort. I went shopping aferwards!

For a few days your eyes feel heavy and you would just feel you've been worked on if that makes sense? It is surgery at the end of the day.

I went back last week and am 20/20 in both eyes. I have a lubricating gel I take morning & night for the next month and I use plenty of tear drops throughout the day (at a computer).

I go back next month for another check up.

I totally rate it, despite the bit of bother I had - which wasnt much at all. I definately recommend it. I quit my gym membership to make up the extra for the payments and just go running 2/3 times a week and do a pay as you go kettlebell class. Its wonderful just to go and not have to bother with contacts or glasses.

I havent worn eye make up or anything yet, I've a wedding in a few weeks so I'll wait till then, just to be safe!

Any question feel free to PM me.

Really useful info SaSaSi - thanks! Don't know how I'd cope going without makeup but needs must I suppose!

I would love it but currently the railway don't allow it

Why not? Just being nosey!

If you decide not to have the laser surgery then ask your optician about extended wear contact lenses. You can sleep in these lenses so it may be easier for when you have to get up in the night.

These can be great but if I remember correctly they don't really recommend them for people with high prescriptions, something to do with the levels of oxygen they let in. Worth enquiring though.

Please be very careful with these. I had them years ago, thought they were great, then started to get a lot of pain and redness in my eyes. I went to the optician and was told to go straight to A&E who then summoned an ambulance to take me to an eye specialist at the eye hospital at Stoke Mandeville. Apparently I had a very severe infection caused by a lack of oxygen to my eyes due to them always being covered by the lenses. He told me never to use them again and that I was very lucky that I had gone to the opticians when I had as I could have become partially sighted or worse (other than my standard short sightedness of course).

I know everyone is different but I was checked over by a very reputable optician before being offered the extended wear lenses and was told my eyes were perfectly healthy and I could wear them with no issues however the specialist said I should never have been given them in the first place based on whatever medical evidence he found.

No prob. I know I felt a right minger - I just used tinted moisturiser & avoided my eyes & a cream blusher so no powdery particles got in my eyes. No fake tan was the worst - I put it on last wkend for the first since - it felt sooo gd!

they say a couple of days off work but I was fortunate enough my work closed for Easter so I had a week to rest & do nowt. For the first wk you have I wear sunglasses when outside to protect your eyes. Some people also experience light sensitivity but I was fortunate enough that I didn't.

things like housework - I couldn't use sprays or anything incase they got in my eyes so bought wipes for housework.

Mine was back in 05, but I found the weirdest thing was having my eye clamped open, and having to look directly into his scalpel as it slit back the outer layer of my eyeball. Very odd. Of course you can't feel anything, but you so want to shut your eyes or look away but you can't!

I saw really well afterwards, but through a contact lenses bandage which I wore for 3 nights with lots of drops to numb pain/dryness. My eyes basically healed the next day (I was young at 22ish) which was amazing. I did drink loads of OJ on doctor's orders