u/RelativeStrain7761

My 2 week update on my LASEK surgery following my last post!

Day 8-9: these two days were fairly similar. I had pretty blurry vision but it wasn't bad enough to affect my day to day life. Seeing things at a distance was definitely the worst part and I had noticed that my light sensitivity was a little worse than previous days. Overall I have no pain or discomfort. My eyes started to feel dryer around this time as well, especially first thing in the morning and towards the end of the afternoon.

Day 10: I started to feel a little discomfort in my left eye, like i had an eyelash in it. It wasn't painful, more irritating. My vision remained blurry and the dry eyes were similar to previous days.

Day 11: my eyesight was considerably worse on this day which gave me a lot of anxiety. My left eye especially was struggling and still had the sensation of having something in it. The dry eye was worse and I found myself reaching for my lubricating drops every hour or so.

Day 12: my Vision continued to be rubbish, eyes dry and my left eye still feeling like it had something in it. If I just put drops in and really focused, I could see things in the distance, but not for long at all.

Day 13-15: all of my previous problems persisted and I was getting increasingly worried about the healing process. It felt like I was just taking steps backwards on healing and it was very frustrating my eyes were also much drier throughout the day

Day 16: (today) This morning I woke up to find my Vision much sharper than before. I could see things at a distance I couldn't see before the surgery. However, when talking to others I'm still not able to see as well as most other people. But for me it has been an amazing improvement and I can't believe it could possibly get better. I've been able to see details I've never been able to make out before in my whole life. I am still very light sensitive and my eyes are very dry in the morning. The sensation of having something in my left eye is still very much there also

I will make sure to do a 3 and 4 week update and report back on my checkup in a couple of weeks!

Prescription before LASEK:

Left: -8.25 / Cyl: -1.85

Right: -8.75 / cyl: -1.50

I got my LASEK surgery done in Exeter, UK with Optical Express

Day 0: I walked in and was immediately taken through for the last tests and checkups and then straight through to surgery. Everyone in there was lovely, I was quickly walked through what to expect and every step of the surgery was counted down for me. 25 seconds in each eye to remove the cornea and 50 seconds in each eye of laser treatment. Procedure was painless but watching them fiddle around with my eyes was pretty grim. Pain started minuets after the procedure and gradually worsened throughout the night. Pain levels were very high, 9/10 and it was relentless with no painkillers easing it in the slightest.

Day 1: Pain started immediately when I opened my eyes in the morning. I spent most of the day in a dark room in and out of sleep. Getting the drops in was very challenging with such swollen eyelids and apart from the drops I did not open my eyes at all. Pain subsided to 7/10 that evening

Day 2: I was still unable to open my eyes other than to force drops in there. Pain was significantly better and felt more like irritation.

Day 3: I was finally able to open my eyes in the afternoon. They sometimes felt fine and sometimes felt gritty. They got tired easily and I was unable to keep them open for long periods. Vision was very blurry and the bandage lenses were getting notably drier and irritating.

Day 4: bandage lenses were removed and I was told to use extra hydrating drop for the day. Vision was functional, but still very blurry. Pain was completely gone but eyes started to itch infrequently throughout the day.

Days 5-7: every day I wake up to find my Vision is a little better.It fluctuates throughout the day and improves after applying drops. No pain, swelling or itchiness but I do wake up every morning with very dry eyes. Every night I think I need to remove my contact lenses before going to bed, its so surreal being able to see last thing at night!!!

Overall, first couple of days were extremely painful but I did have a very strong prescription prior to the surgery and have noticed most people don't report experiencing as much pain. However, as my sight continues to improve I am more and more excited that I've had the surgery done and would highly recommend it to anyone considering it!