LASIK from the beginning to the end, or how my surgery went:)
Hi, guys!:)
So, today I can write this long expected post. First of all I want to say a biggest THANK YOU in the world to everyone who supported me all the way! Guys, you're the best!
At the moment I already stay at home after second eyes surgery, learning how to use my new vision. Everything went absolutely fine, and doctors managed to restore my vision back to 100%. But I want to start from the very beginning.
BEFORE
I went to the doctor on Tuesday, to know if I'm already allowed to make the operation. I got his permission, and got my operation scheduled on Monday.
There's a couple of ways to do this kind of surgery. LASEK and LASIK are different types of operation, and also there are several types of them in each naming. Mine was SUPER LASIK thin flap. It also was a possibility to use the FEMTO technique. The difference is in the way how the flap is cut away, and femto is twice more expensive. I decided to refuse it cause my surgery already was way too expensive, and stopped on standard way of flap creating.
These four days of waiting were the longest in my life! It wasn't fear, but just desperate desire to make everything as fast as possible. I really hate waiting:) On Sunday evening I was so exited that I couldn't eat and sleep.
DAY "X"
On Monday morning I woke up at 6:30 a.m. and couldn't sleep anymore. I made a light breakfast for me and my hubby, just tea and croissants. For the next hour I was just looking at fishes in my tank, trying to calm down. Doc said that I have to eat well before, during and after the operation, so I tried to follow his advice, but it was so hard, I simply can't eat when I'm that nervous. So I just made a few sandwiches to carry with me, in a hope that I'll be able to eat after everything will be done.
So, we left home for clinic. Road took an hour, full of experiences. We arrived a bit earlier then should, and it took me ages to cross the threshold.
Then preparation began. They checked my vision level once more, then a bit of waiting again, and then I was escorted to the waiting room. With me four more patients were waiting. They dressed us to spacial robes, caps and masks, and then during an hour they were putting different dots to our eyes. About some of them I'm not sure, but the rest were pain killers, and after 40 minutes I felt my eyes no longer.
We knew that someone will be taken to the operating room when the nurse came and rubbed his/hers eyelids with alcohol. This meant that in a minute or two this person will leave the waiting room and the miracle will happen. And so my turn came.
THE SURGERY
Nurse leaded me to the operation room and wow... I thought I don't fear. I lied!
When I saw the laser I realized that it alone is way bigger then all my bedroom. It's so damn huge that it scares with only it's size! For a moment I felt that I was kidnapped by aliens and now they will make experiments on me.My legs went weak, and I hardly was able to move. The nurse leaded me to the couch.
No, three times bigger...
To mention here - I don't fear pain much. Really, usually I stay quite calm during all medical interventions, have no troubles with seeing blood, ect. But this time I REALLY feared.
You lie, they cover your face with sterile gauze in such way that only one eye leaves. Then they fix your eyelashes with adhesive tape so you can't close your eye any longer. And then everything begins...
The main horror is that you actually SEE everything. Saying this I mean that you SEE how they cut the flap from your eye and move it away. You have to keep your eye focused on a green dot while they do everything, but anyway you see all the process. In one moment they cover your eye with a transparent lens, and the light goes away. Of course the doc is talking to you all the time, but it nearly doesn't make it less scary.
When the laser begins working you feel the smell of burn. But in fact it's the most calm moment in all the surgery, you don't feel any pain, anything. Just this smell. But it's something I can deal with. More unpleasant is that afterwards you see again how they put your eye flap back and smooth it.
Oh, I forgot to tell about the eye dilator! That's what was really creepy! It's a device they put in your eye to disable blinking. And this one really hurts. In the end of surgery they super careful take it away.
AFTER
The nurse led me back to the waiting hall. At first I was shocked, because my vision wasn't perfect, I saw everything like in the smoke. When the nurse leaded me to the hall she gave me one pill of painkiller, and said to take it if I'll feel pain.
Well, I did feel pain. In 15 minutes or so. Terrible headache and pain in the eyes. And fear of light. Luckily I took sunglasses with me. My husband had to lead me like a blind one to the chair, and I still had to wait for the doctor to look at me. I managed fine, and everything went well. So I was allowed to go home.
At home I had to put dots in my eyes every hour, three types of dots, with 5 minutes break between them. So, technically, I had to put dots to my eyes all the time, no sleeping. And I had to remember all the time that I'm not allowed to touch my eyes at all, and not allowed to frown. It's quite hard, cause all the time you feel like as if there's something in your eye. But well, I managed with that too:)
ON THE NEXT DAY
On the next day I had to go to the clinic again and show my eyes to the doc. This is where some troubles appeared. I had no such nausea since childhood! The brain gets too much new information, so I felt really bad after car riding. There and back. But the good news was that the doctor (another one) was really surprised that the surgery was only 24 hours ago. I rehabilitate really quickly! But anyway, when I got home I was nearly dead from seasickness. It took me four hours and half of the all food in our house, two hours of sleeping to feel less or more fine.
CONCLUSION
But anyway, everything totally worthed the result! No I can't help reading every inscription I see on a distance, cause I just enjoy the fact that now I can see it. The world looks so much brighter, I see so much things I never noticed before! OK, I still have to use dots for three months, and I have to be super careful, and I wear sunglasses even at home at night. But this all will change. And what will stay with me - it's my new, 100% vision!:)
I wish you all the best and will be happy if you'll support me with vote:)
Love, Inber
Nice Article!
Surgeries is one my worst fears...Thank you for writing on it!
oh, congratulations on your running smooth operation.
I hope you will be fine and there will be no problem in your eyes for the future (hopefully no side effects).
Pstt, by the way. did the doctor install a special chip in your cornea?
like, suddenly you can see through the wall? I'm so curious. Hmmm (-.-?
If it was so:) I hoped to receive super power so much lol:)
Ah, if it can be like that.
maybe i will do it too :D
Thanks for sharing this I am going to be trying to get Lasik myself sometime next year.
Get prepared:) It's really scary experience, but lasts only for 10 minutes:)
Holy **** that surgery sounds terrifying. I'd probably die to anxiety if I was put in a similar situation. It's good to hear you made it through.
It was REALLY scary. I expected it to be less terrifying.
So great that its over. I know how it feels. Me too had the similar surgery 5-6 years back (perhaps more). It was LASIK surgery to get rid of glasses, it went all fine, no pain and hardly took 10 mins. But I can relate, I was pretty nervous before surgery and more than happy after I was done. Guess all relief now :D Wish you well, Take Care!!
It was fast, yep, but perhaps the most scary medical experience in all my life:)
I'm glad it all went well!
So happy for you, glad it all went fine.
Thank you!:) I'm so happy that I finally made it, world is so much a better place then I thought lol:)
Wow, you've done a great job, take care.
Hi Inber, I am so happy for you!!!! Good to know all is well and you made it through to get your vision back to 100%.
Thank you so much for your kind words and for your support!:)
I'm glad it all went well.