I always wondered what it would be like to have laser eye surgery, and how life changing it would be. When I went for laser eye surgery, SMILE changed my life.

Glasses

It was in my early teens that I had started wearing glasses. I hated it, even sometimes hiding them so I didn’t have to wear them, telling mum that I’d lost them. But then when my eye sight got much worse (probably because I wasn’t wearing them as much as I should). Then the optician had told me I had to wear them all the time. Luckily by then, glasses had moved on from being just a black plastic NHS frame.

Contact Lenses

My best friend at school started wearing contact lenses when we were teenagers and I was in awe of the fact that she didn’t have to wear glasses. These little clear plastic miracle workers she’d put in her eyes for a few hours were giving her better vision without the inconvenience of the glasses. Back then (in the late 80’s) they were hard gas permeable contact lenses and they were very expensive and I couldn’t afford to go down that route.

I have worn many types of contact lenses since then you name it I’d tried them, finally settling on Toric lenses because I had an astigmatism in both eyes and they were shaped like rugby balls. This is normal as a result of my health condition, I still look at my eyes and hate the shape of them but I will never be able to change that.

I already knew about laser eye surgery and I would have never been able to afford it, so I settled on paying monthly for contact lenses. It hadn’t scarred me though, the thought of it. Maybe it was because of the potentially major lifestyle change it would be for me. Wearing contact lenses had became second nature to me and I had moved on to an internet based company who supplied my contact lenses and solution at a much cheaper price.

Laser Eye Surgery

People that I’d spoken to who’d had laser eye surgery had told me how life changing it was, but I never actually contemplated how life changing it would be. But yes, if I’d not been through what I had with William then this would’ve been the most life changing decision I’d ever made and been through.

After I’d had it done I had so many people asked me questions…

Why did you do it?

So many reasons I cannot list them all, but the main was the fact that my vision was -9.50 in both my eyes and I was fed up of not being able to see at all without glasses or contact lenses.

Was it painful?

It’s not painful, you can feel stuff going on but it doesn’t hurt. The only thing that did hurt, was when the optometrist pulled the micropore tape off my closed eyes but he did do it gently!

Did you have 20/20 vision when it’s done?

Personally I didn’t, but you can have. The Optometrist gave me options because of my age, one of them being to make one eye better sight than the other so I won’t have to get reading glasses too soon. Eventually I will need reading glasses, but because my eyes are adjusted differently they’ll last longer which means it will be longer till I will need reading glasses.

How long was it till you could see properly?

It was less than an hour, but everyone is different. In some cases it’s not till the next day but my recovery was very quick. My vision was still a bit foggy for an hour or so, but I could see.

Would you do it again, and would you go back to the same company?

Absolutely yes! They were further out for me to travel than other surgeries, but actually worth it. I would definitely recommend them if you’re thinking of having it done.

Is it expensive?

I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t. But I sat down and weighed it out and it worked out similar costs after about twelve years. That included buying glasses every two years and contact lenses solutions and all my check ups. I was lucky enough to inherit some money which I used towards it, but there are many payment plans in place (including 0%) if you’re unable to pay out right for the surgery.

Life Changing

Going swimming with William and being able to see properly, of course I had prescription goggles but I can’t imagine how stupid I must’ve looked walking around the swimming pool and changing rooms wearing them!

Wearing sunglasses on my head when I’m indoors so that when I go outside they’re easier to put on. The little things make a difference, how many times I’ve had to swap over my glasses from my handbag.

Laying in bed or on the sofa, well when I can obviously because it’s doesn’t happen much nowadays!

The main thing I’ve loved is the exercise I can now do without my glasses slipping off my nose. I was wearing contact lenses for too long. They would be in all day and then I’d go for a run which wasn’t practical and dried my eyes out.I went to Optegra to get my laser eye surgery, in Whitely, Hampshire.