Having poor eyesight can be a bother. Without glasses or contact lenses, you won’t be able to see or read anything.
For people who have been wearing these types of eyewear for years, using and owning them can sometimes be an inconvenience. Eyeglasses are prone to breakage. You need to replace them based on your ophthalmologist’s recommendations, which can be as often as annually or every two years.
Contact lenses can be bothersome, too; you need to follow your specialist’s instructions on wearing them. You have to use a rewetting solution throughout the day to keep your eyes moist. You also have to remember to remove your contacts before sleeping and to clean them regularly.
Improved Eyesight Sans Corrective Lenses
If you’re tired of wearing eyeglasses and contacts to see clearly, you can enjoy the benefits of having clear eyesight without any eyewear by undergoing LASIK eye surgery.
LASIK surgery is a safe, effective corrective eye procedure that targets the cornea to help improve vision. It can correct astigmatism, nearsightedness, and farsightedness.
This procedure is quite popular not only because the success rate is always high, but also because the surgery is quick. The laser part usually takes 20 to 50 seconds to correct your vision. This can go faster or slower, depending on your prescription and the amount of correction you need. The whole procedure, however, may take less than 10 minutes for each eye.
Recovery After LASIK
Although the surgery itself is quick, non-invasive, and painless, the days and weeks following the procedure will be accompanied by some discomfort and inconvenience.
If you are planning to undergo LASIK eye surgery sometime soon, below are some of the things you should expect and prepare for during the recovery stage:
1. Blurred vision
After the surgery, you will have a blurry or hazy vision for the next one or two weeks. Eye specialists also say that the more correction you need, the longer it will take your eyesight to fully clear up after the procedure.
After a week or two, you will find the haziness subsiding and your eyesight becoming clearer.
2. Fluctuating vision
Post-LASIK, you will experience unstable eyesight as well. Your vision will fluctuate daily for about a week or so.
However, this is not something that you have to worry about. When you feel your eyesight is fluctuating after surgery, it means that your corneas are trying to stabilize.
3. Some pain and discomfort
When you undergo LASIK, a laser will be used to remove some corneal tissue. As a result, your cornea will be reshaped, which will allow you to see better. Because of this, you will feel some pain and discomfort post-surgery.
These feelings of discomfort can come in the form of sensitivity to light and sensations of tearing, itchiness, and burning. The level of pain and uneasiness you will experience will depend on how your eyes handle the procedure and the technology used.
Your LASIK surgeon will prescribe you some pain medication to help with the irritation.
4. Red and dry eyes
Aside from some levels of pain and discomfort, your eyes may also become dry after the procedure. You will also be prescribed some eye drops which you have to use to relieve the dryness.
Additionally, you may experience red eyes post-surgery as well. The redness, however, usually disappears within a few days.
5. Post-LASIK eye care
Finally, taking care of your eyes is vital after surgery if you want to minimize all the pain and discomfort you are feeling and to hasten recovery.
Some of the most important post-LASIK eye care tips you have to follow are:
- Get enough rest and stay away from any strenuous activities for the next 24 hours
- Avoid rubbing or touching your eyes
- Do not wear makeup or apply similar products near and around the eye area
- Avoid getting water or sweat in your eyes
- Stay away from dusty, dirty, and smoky places
- Avoid swimming or splashing your eyes with possibly contaminated water from pools, hot tubs, spas, lakes, and oceans
- Wear protective eyewear or shades when going out
- Use your eye shields when sleeping
During your LASIK eye surgery consultation, your specialist will discuss everything that you have to expect after the procedure. You will be given a list of dos and don’ts to follow during the recovery stage as well.
It is essential that you follow all of your surgeon’s instructions to the T to hasten your recovery and to experience clear eyesight as soon as possible.
AUTHOR BIO
Joel Hunter, MD is an Ophthalmologist, Refractive Surgeon, and the Founder of Hunter Vision in Orlando, Florida. A recognized and respected specialist in vision correction who has performed thousands of refractive surgeries, Joel gives lectures across the country and trains fellow doctors in the newest LASIK surgery techniques.