InstantForum.NET v4.1.4Laser Eye Surgery Forumhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Forum_Moderators@optimax.co.ukFri, 10 Feb 2012 07:17:20 GMT20http://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxWell it's been 18 months since he surgery and it's changed my life.Sorry I haven't updating for so long but times have been busy.Nothing wrong with my eyes anymore, they're great and everything is so much easier now. How is everyone else getting on? :cool:Fri, 27 Jan 2012 11:13:33 GMTterryjacksonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxUPDATE:Had my check up yesterday - definite improvement in the right eye so that's a big bonus as I didn't think anything had changed. Still a way to go to catch up with the left but it was so nice to see that the letters were less blurry! Got another check up in 6 weeks!Hope you're all doing well!Thu, 19 Aug 2010 08:47:23 GMTflufffingtonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHello!Sorry, I haven't been on for ages. Terry I'm glad your feeling a bit better about everything. I'm still in the same position as I was I think, right eye is still blurry but it still feels like it hasn't healed anywhere near as much as the other one. I have my next check up a week today so will update when I'm back from that!!Wed, 11 Aug 2010 09:12:12 GMTflufffingtonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHi How is everyone getting on? Can we have some progress reports please?Rachel :)Mon, 26 Jul 2010 19:25:33 GMTRachelfrecklehttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxhad another check up yesterday at 5pm.had a different lady this time and didnt say much. aparrently my eye site is about the same as it was at my my lasy check up 6 days ago, however, i felt the second to bottom line was clearer this time around. it would have been better if my eyes wernt blurry because of the lacri-lube.bought some more refresh drops this time so hopefully will be able to see clearer soon, i hope so anyway! bit rediculous having to pay for refresh drops after charging £3000 for treatment but nevermind.hopefully things will get better in time as still finding vivision blurry sometimes, i can still see, mainly just text i have trouble with at a distance.i dont have to go back for another 4 weeks now so by the time i go back, vivison should (hopefully) be a lot better!!How is everone else?TerryFri, 23 Jul 2010 09:25:24 GMTterryjacksonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxthanks for that response flufffington!Sounds like your in the same situation as me. i was worried as my vision is blurry still, but because the swelling is still going down, thats the reason apparently. im glad im not on my own.ive been a bit worried thinking that this is it now, but you response reasured me and im glad it will get better. i have another check up today at 5pm so will see how the inflammation has gone and whether my site has improved (i dont think it has yet). but will see!has your swelling gone down now? if so, did you site improve?thanks againTerryThu, 22 Jul 2010 10:23:28 GMTterryjacksonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHi guys, Glad you are all doing well. I had my second check up yesterday. My left eye now has 20/20 vision. My right eye is still healing, and still swollen which she said is why it's still blurry. She said that it should catch up with the other one soon and I should see a definite improvement by the time my next check up comes round in 4 weeks.I'm happy with the check up, she's eased my mind a bit as she didn't seem fussed at all that it wasn't perfect. She said she's happy for me to drive (which I have been anyway). I can see a glare at night but it's definitely improved and I don't have any problems driving. Fingers crossed the right will heal sooner rather than later!Thu, 22 Jul 2010 09:12:03 GMTflufffingtonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHiI've still got a few appointments left, nowhere near discharged yet.Hope your vision improves.Naz.Tue, 20 Jul 2010 21:33:22 GMTnaziabihttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxappointment went ok i think. just a general check up mainly to see if the inflamitary has gone down, she didnt say much. i have another appoinment on thursday this week.i dont feel my vision has improved yet as things from a distance are still blurry. i can still only read the 3rd to bottom line, and sometimes the second to bottom line is clearer than other times, quite odd but there is no way i can read the bottom line yet.in the morning my eyes are still dry, but thats normal and is definately better than a week ago.im sure my vision will improve, and i hope it does too. have you had all of your aftercare appointments now? how is your vision?hope all is well.TerryMon, 19 Jul 2010 08:29:53 GMTterryjacksonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHi TerryI'm glad its helped, I think we have very similar cases, albeit we had different types of surgery! I was 5.5 in the right eye and -5.75 in the left.I'm constantly reading number plates too, of every car that I can see! Sometimes they can be blurry but at other times they're sharp. I find if I haven't put my drops in for a few hours my vision is more sharp.My surgery was on the 18th of June. My night time vision is not too bad, I do have halos, I did notice that coming home one day while my sister was driving. That worried me at first about driving in the night, but its been fine. It isn't bad like I've read about on here, but I did notice it. As for glare, again I know its there but it doesn't cause a problem. When I went for my check before last he said I had a little bit of haze but I hadn't noticed it and I think its cleared. I do believe it is totally normal and sometimes takes up to six months to settle down, so it should be fine for you.I agree its better than having the vision that we had, I was totally dependant on my glasses and couldn't see anything without them. I'm still getting used to not having to wear them!How did your appointment go?Naz.Fri, 16 Jul 2010 17:32:02 GMTnaziabihttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxthat was a exellent reply Naz and has helped me a lot. it sounds as though we are in the same position. as for my frien, your right, his perscription was 2 somthing, where as mine is 5.5.every day on the way to work, i try to see if my sight has improved by looking at number plates especially. at the moment they can be a bit blurry still from a distance. something i am certain will improve though.im just going to give it a month, i know my eyes are improving so only time will tell.when ast work, i do try taking breaks away from the screen and instead of the air con being on, i just open the roof lights instead. they dont get too dry in the say, just in the morning when i wake up. again, this will improve im sure.when was your surgery? i think so far anything is better than the vision i had and its well worth the money.and 1 more thing, glares and halos typically at night are common at the moment, was this an issue with yourself at all?thanks again for your helpful response, i hope your having a good dayTerryFri, 16 Jul 2010 12:27:02 GMTterryjacksonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHi TerryI'm glad the staff have managed to reassure you that everything is normal. I like you, was quite worried before I went for my checkup because I didn't know where I was at, was it normal, had the surgery not worked properly, you're inclined to think the worst! After all, its not like we have previous experience of it. I had the same issue with someone else being able to see right away. One of my colleagues had Lasik and he could see right away, but then his prescription was much lower.I think it took at least 3-4 weeks for my eyes to be able to read text properly. I could see the computer screen and things like that, it was mostly number plates, I could tell it was my left eye doing all the work, my right eye was really quite blurry. At my first checkup when he told me I now had a slight astigmatism in my right eye I knew that was why. I just noticed one day as I was walking that number plates weren't so blurry anymore, and I could see road signs from a distance whereas before I couldn't.My eyes are still settling and they can still be quite dry, but then they were a little dry before, its no worse. They don't feel dry, but I get a lot of redness. I use Viscotears and Refresh in the day and have been given Lacrilube to use before bed. I don't have a problem opening my eyes in the morning thankfully.Its difficult when you work in an air conditioned office and have to stare at a computer screen all day. I try my best to take breaks from the screen, I want to look after my eyes this time round.I hope you see lots of improvement over the coming days as I am certain you will, you are still in the very early stages. Let us know how your checkup goes.All the bestNaz Fri, 16 Jul 2010 11:53:58 GMTnaziabihttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxI totally agree with you Naz. I think most people expect to be able to see perfectly as soon as they leave the surgery. i knew i wouldnt be able to see perfectly striaght away, but when my friend had it done and quickly got 20/20 vision within 2 days, i was a little dissapointed/worried, that after nearly a week, mine only improved ever so slightly. obviously people can vary in the time they take to recover, and after being reassured many times by the ever so helpful staff, i am not so worried anymore as i know it can take up to a month for the sight to improve.i have another check up today at 5pm so will see how my eyes are doing. they still get really dry when i wake up and even looking at my alarm clock and reading the time is a struggle, but a few refresh drops and a few minutes later, its fine. again, i'm told this will only improve as its perfectly normal for eyes to get dry after surgery, after all, it still has only been 6 days since having it done so i guess it can only get better.How long did it take you for your eyes to get to the stage their at now at for the dryness to stop?Thanks again for your replies, they help myself and im sure a lot of people reading the post.I hope everyones doing well.TerryFri, 16 Jul 2010 09:05:21 GMTterryjacksonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHi TerryI like you was having a lot of trouble with text for the first few weeks after surgery, but this has recently improved.I think once the inflammation goes down and the eyes have healed more you will see a drastic difference.I was quite disheartened at first but now think we expect too much from our eyes straight after surgery. It takes quite a long time for them to settle properly.I am now -0.25 in both eyes with no astigmatism. At my last checkup about 2 weeks ago I was -0.25 in my right eye with 0.25 astigmatism and 0 in my left eye. I am assured they will settle down over the next few weeks and I have stopped worrying about it, that helps the healing process. I'm glad I don't have astigmatism anymore, as I have never had it before.Hope things get better for you soon.Naz.Thu, 15 Jul 2010 17:38:24 GMTnaziabihttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxI had my second check up on Tuesday, my vision has improved slightly according to the optician, and the inflamitary has gone down in my right, but the left is slowely going away, all good new.I wake up with really dry eyes so have to reach for the refresh drops before i do anything, just so i can open my eyes.Things are a little blurry in the mornings, especially when reading text, but it improves over the day.I get halos and glares at night time with the lights, but apprently thats all normal and will get better ovr time.as for my vision, i am hoping it improves as things are still not clear when looking at them, such as text from far away. i can read the second to bottom line of the chart, but the optician said my eyes are definately improving, just slowely, and may do for upto a month, so will see, only time can tell i guess!!i have another check up tomorrow, they want to see me more often than they usually would, just to keep an eye on the inflamitary, and have to use the FML drops every 2 hours rather than the 4 times a day as originally recommended.Il still keep everyone updated on the progress. hopefully things will get better, not just for myself, but everyone else too.All the bestThu, 15 Jul 2010 13:39:42 GMTterryjacksonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHi FlufffingtonI am glad you are feeling abit better about things. One eye will always improve quicker than the other as one eye is more dominant ( i was told my right eye is the dominant one and i notice that it was quicker).My surgery was 13 days ago, so i am abit in front of you, even thought my vision was good at my 1st aftercare appointment there was a difference, i had my 2nd appointment yesterday and the left eye had caught up, so try not to worry. Regarding having to have more surgery, it is a very very small percentage that have to have more, so it is extremely unlikely that it will happen to you. Try not to worry i am sure that as the days go on your sight will improve and that you feel like i do, that it is one of the best thing i have ever done!! Keep us updated to how are you getting on, you aren't alone we have all worried about the same things! :blink:RachelWed, 14 Jul 2010 15:57:22 GMTRachelfrecklehttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxThanks so much for the positiveness. I'm feeling that it is slowly improving so fingers crossed! Thanks :o)Wed, 14 Jul 2010 12:41:09 GMTflufffingtonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHiMy right eye was also nowhere near as good as my left eye. It was much better than it had been before surgery, but I found reading text very difficult with this eye.It really is just about patience, I can see there has been improvement over time, and I think sometimes it happens in such small increments you don't really notice the change.Don't be disheartened, it should just be a matter of time before the right eye catches up NazWed, 14 Jul 2010 10:22:03 GMTnaziabihttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHi FlufffingtonPlease don't feel disheartened, it is still very early days, i'm sure that your other eye will 'catch up' shortly.Best regardsRachelTue, 13 Jul 2010 21:07:23 GMTRachelfrecklehttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHi Terry I am sorry to hear that you have had a problem with your eye and wish you a speedy recovery, it sounds as though optimax are looking after you :).i had my 2nd aftercare appointment today and have been told i now have 20:20 vision! so i am very pleased. :D.I am hoping that you will have the same news shortly.Best regardsRachelTue, 13 Jul 2010 21:05:52 GMTRachelfrecklehttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHi Terry,Glad yours has gone well. I had mine done on Saturday as well. My left eye is almost perfect but my right still has a lot of catching up to do :( I'm hoping it will over time but I'm really worried in case I need to go back for more surgery! In any case, I can still see a hell of a lot better than I could...it's just slightly blurry in the right!Tue, 13 Jul 2010 10:10:15 GMTflufffingtonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxi shall, apparently i have got a bit of inflamitary on my left eye lid so need to go back on tuesday which is sooner than usual apparently, and use the pink eye drops every 2 hours, rather than the 4 times a days as previously instructed.thanks for your response rachel, i shall keep yourself and anyone following my post, updated.RegardsTerrySun, 11 Jul 2010 21:17:30 GMTterryjacksonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxThanks Terry. Keep us posted please.RachelSun, 11 Jul 2010 21:14:22 GMTRachelfrecklehttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxi sure hope so too! i had my consultation in leicester actually as thats where i live, had the treatment in london though as was easier for me!im glad yours went well. it can only get better :)all the bestSun, 11 Jul 2010 20:53:33 GMTterryjacksonhttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxHi TerryI am really glad that you managed to have your surgery earlier than you thought. I had Lasek at leicester on 1st July and can't beleive how much more i can see! i keep reading stuff out, (even when i'm in the car by myself). I hope that your sight continues to improve.All the best RachelSun, 11 Jul 2010 20:45:29 GMTRachelfrecklehttp://faq.optimax.co.uk/InstantForum/Topic1497-4-1.aspxWell it was the day i had been waiting for, then again, the day i had been dreading. i couldnt tell if i was more excited or nervous about what i was about to do. Going back, for years and years, laser eye surgery was something i always thought id do one day, never thought i would actually be in a position when i was actually going to do it.Since i was young, or for as long as i can remember, I have always worn glasses, up until i was 21, i decided to go for contact lenses as i no longer felt comfortable or confident wearing glasses. i could never find a pair that suited me, the lenses looked stupid because they were so thick, and because of this, it made my eyes look tiny, i hated it!My eyesite is (left eye 5.5, right eye 5) so as you can imagine, life without contacts or glasses is pretty much impossible.after wearing contacts for a few years, all of a sudden, i developed an eye infection. becuase of this, it caused me to have 2 tiny scars on my right eye, and since then, contacts were difficult and i no longer got along with them as well as i used to. i would have to take them out earler, they'd get dry, and make me feel really tired.Fast forward to a couple of months ago. My friend had a consultation with Optimax, and luckily for him there was a cancellation that week for treatment. before i knew it, he'd had it done and couldnt be more happy, claiming it was the best money he had ever spent!This persuaded me and after a while, and after speaking to a helpful online advisor, i plucked up the courage to go ahead and book myself in for a consultation.The consulatation was straight forward and pretty much an eye test, i was told there and then how much it would be, and all the options available to me for the treatment.I decided to go all out, with the Lasik, Intralase and Wavefront. After all, you only get 1 set of eyes, and its going to change my life.I booked myself in for the 24th july as i can only make it on a saturday, i was hoping to get it earlier but saturdays were very busy as expected.After looking online, i noticed that optimax did a Standby appointment service, where you can pick a date, and if someone cancels an appoinment, you will be called and you appoinment changed. i spoke to an online advisor, asking if he could put my name down incase a saturday pops up any earlier. Luckily for me, someone had cancelled the evening before and managed to get a booking for the following satuday. i was more than pleased!The 10th had a arrived, i woke up excited and nervous and soon arrived at the Finchley road clini at 8.45am. it wasnt long before i was taken to a room to have a check on my eyes. It was the usual "look at the airballoon, you'll see some red flashes. look into the blue dot etc..." the usual..afetr filling out some forms and paying the rest of the deposite, i sat down and waitied anxiously until i was called into the laser room. This was the point i got nervous, i sat on a chair and got told to put on a very fetching hair net indeed! The nurse then put some props in my eyes and cleaned them, after 5 minutes, i got called to the treatment bed and layed there.Before i knew it something was placed over my left eye, i wasnt expecting the pressure i got but it didnt hurt, it was just unexpected. this created the flap, and once that eye was done, he oved to the nxt."Right thats the worst part over with" i heard. Thank goodness i thought, if that part was the worse then this is a piece of cake! i then saw a different machine placed above my head, this obviously being the laser. The surgeon plcaed something on my eye to prevent me from blinking,people refer to this as a "the clamp" which is exagerated, its tiny and you dont feel it attatched which was a relief.one eye at a time, i was told to look into the red haze. after about 20 seconds an eye, it was done. the laser part was so so easy, yes you can smell something like everyone says, but its nothing bad. the laser itself was kind of like listening to someone welding, just a sort of "click click" sound (hard to explain).But anyway, straight after, i was told i could sit up and sit in a room by myself for a couple of minutes. a lady then checked my eyes quickly, i was given my bag of medication and told i could go home and rest my eyes.As for getting home, this was the worst part, i had to get the tube with my friend and the sun was so bright i had to close my eyes for most of the way, but after walking into a walll and some bushes later, i made it home lol. i would reccommend anyone, if you can, get someone to pick you up by car as the tube on a busy saturday morning with the sun beaming, isnt the best option in my experience.i went to bed straight away and my eyes were streaming, the feeling was kind of like peeling a few onions, but not being able to rub your eyes afterwards. i then took the "pain" eye drops, applied the eye guards, and slept for a few hours. i woke up and things were a lot better, by eyes had stopped streaming and the feeling had gone.i couldnt believe i could actually see, it was the best feeling in the worls, not having to wake up and the first thing you do is reach for your glasses was brilliant. my vision was a little blurry when looking at text, but this is normal and will improve over time i am told.Today was my aftercare appointment, i turned up and was in and out within 2 minutes litterally. the lady looked into my eyes with a torch (look left, look right, look up etc etc...) and then the "air balloon" image again, and that was it. I was told eveything was ok and my eyes wwere healing fine, i could read the second to bottom line on the chart, but was assured my eyes will improve considerably over the next few daays.So thats where im at now! i have my next check up appointment on tuesday so will see how it goes from there and post an update. so far so good, i am really happy so far and so glad i went for it and had it done.Sun, 11 Jul 2010 18:03:32 GMTterryjackson