If you have glasses and have ever considered laser eye surgery then please read this article to help put your mind at ease. (Sorry it's a bit long)
When I was 4 years old and my mum took my to the Optometrist I was so excited and I was wishing as hard as I could that my Doctor would say I needed glasses and I was right. Since then I have had glasses through to my teenage years. I was able to get contact lenses when I was 17 which was life changing but unfortunately when I was 18 I had two really bad bouts of conjunctivitis which destroyed one of the tear ducts in my eyes which meant my eyes couldn’t lubricate themselves enough to have contact lenses. I was devastated. I had been told in my teenage years that when I was 21 years old I would be suitable for Laser eye surgery and the thought of never having to wear glasses ever again was too good to be true.
Due to the cost mainly it wasn’t until I was 24 years old that I was in a position to go for my first consultation with Perfect Vision Laser Eye Specialists. For me picking a company I wanted to go to was a no brainer, I had heard such amazing reports from Perfect Vision so I booked in.
When I arrived for my first consultation I was taken through a series of eye test with machines I had never seen before basically looking at different lights. These tested and measured many different aspects of my eye such as the width of my cornea. These all ensure that your eyes are a suitable candidate for laser eye surgery.
Then I met with my Ophthalmic Surgeon Dr Con Moshegov. Upon meeting Dr Moshegov I felt like I was immediately put at ease as he is so incredibly warm and friendly. He explained the procedure to me and after doing a few more tests said that yes I was a candidate for laser eye surgery. I had to watch a video in the lounge about the risks and possibly complications involved but I knew this was a step in the direction I wanted so badly. I was keen to book in.
On the day of my procedure (I organised a Friday as then I would have the whole weekend to recover) I got my dad to take me in as you need to have someone to be with you they recommend and I wore some comfy warm clothes and brought some big sunglasses. When I arrived to the surgery I was greeted by a lovely nurse who took me through to the gave me some valium tablets as this keeps you nice and calm through the procedure and also some panadol to lessen the irritation your eyes may feel. Once these had started to kick in and I was feeling rather happy I was taken into a dark room where they administered some eye drops which numb your eyes and also dilate your pupils. Then I sat with my eyes closed in the room whilst the eye drops kicked in then the procedure was ready to begin.
The lovely nurses took me into the surgery where Dr Moshegov was all prepped and seated in a chair and next to him was a long plastic bed which I was told to lay on. I was then rugged up with blankets and then was staring up at my Doctor.
The fantastic thing about Dr Moshegov is he explains EVERY step before and as he does it so I was completely aware of what was going to happen. The only uncomfortable thing I felt was when he puts what feels like a suction cap around your eye one at a time which last for about a minute and it feels like intense pressure not pain. The eye that isn’t being worked on is covered. All you see as the laser is on your eye basically is different kinds of dots of light from a red dot to what seems like fireworks, then everything goes black but you know this is going to happen and know that it won’t last for long. It’s not intimidating or scary and each eye is over so fast that it’s hard to believe it’s done.
A lot of apprehension I think comes from the fact that what if you move your eye? Well the computer controls the laser and it will detect if you move and stop the laser then the Doctor will help you to refocus your eye so that the laser can begin again. All the initial eye test that were done mean that the computer has a really good map of your eye.
After each eye is done he gives your eye a good rinse with saline and then you are able to get up and you’re done. When you stand up for the first time its like looking through Vaseline goggles everything is super blurry yet you know that through that haze you can see clearly. They put patches over your eyes and I put my sunnies on then they make sure you are aware of when to put all your different medicated drops in and then are ready to go home. The other thing I did notice straight away when I was walking out the clinic was that I could tell I could see in the distance but I couldn't see up close. Dr Moshegov explained that my eyes have never needed to use those muscles before and so had to learn how to see up close. Your eyes are an amazing organ as they learn how to see close up in a matter of hours.
Once I got home I went straight to sleep as I was still dozy from the Valium and when I awoke 2 hours later I could actually see really well. I even watched TV for a while with my family then when I was ready for bed I took the sleeping tablets that they gave me to ensure I had a good nights sleep and put on my protective eye patches so I don’t rub my eyes and off I went to sleep.
I think the only thing I found uncomfortable about the procedure is that when I went to go to sleep there was a lot of grittiness in my eyes which felt like sand. I was told this was perfectly normal but once the sleeping tablets kicked in you just sleep through it.
When I awoke the next day I went to reach for my glasses like I have had to all my life when I realised I could actually see. I sat up in bed and just stared at everything. I wanted to read everything at a distance because I could.
The day after the procedure you are required to have a check up with the surgeon to make sure everything is ok and to see how your eyes are healing and then you have another check up 3 months later.
The only things I noticed post op was my eyes were quite sensitive to the glare and I had halos around lights initially but I was told this was all normal and would pass which it did.I could still function perfectly fine. I just had to wear sunglasses, ALOT.
It’s really important to use all the drops like they tell you which is easy enough and honestly hardly a hassle.
I was thoroughly happy with my results with Perfect Vision and would recommend them to anyone. They were incredibly professional and totally put my mind at ease.
I now have 20:20 vision in what was my bad eye and better than 20:20 vision in my better eye.
If you have thought about getting it done but where scared, there is no need to be. Please give laser eye surgery a try, it will honestly change your life.
miss chew
xx
.gif)
