I had lasek treatment on Saturday February 11th at Birmingham after having a consultation in Nottingham. Believe it or not I wasn't remotely nervous about having laser eye surgery because I had wanted it so desperately for a few years. And as it turned out I was proved right as the procedure was totally painless and over in what seemed like a few minutes. The only problem was waiting so long - my appointment was 2:30 but the surgery eventually started at 6:15. But to make up for this the staff were incredibly friendly, reassuring and kept me informed during the procedure.

I originally choose to have the Lasik procedure due to the quicker recovery time and what appeared to be less hassle involved. But Mr George recommended Lasek so I went with his better judgement. For the next few days my vision was blurred and eyes felt uncomfortable at times (though never painful). The worst thing was having to wear these horrendous goggles at night (to stop you rubbing your eyes). They were uncomfortable and left marks around my eyes but fortunately I only had to wear them for one week. It was also annoying having to put eye drops in every few hours but soon got used to doing it.

I had the whole week off work but my Wednesday my vision suddenly improved dramatically (particularly Long distance) though I couldn't read anything close up. I had my contact lenses removed and by the end of the first week my long distance vision was brilliant. I could also read close up again.

If anything the thing that took the longest time was that in-between distance (not far away but not close up). For about 4 weeks I struggled focusing - particularly on writing eg digital clocks and teletext from across the room appeared blurred. Watching TV was sometimes difficult and in my first few days back at work I struggled seeing the computer screen. But I was reassured at Nottingham that this was perfectly normal and within 4 weeks of surgery it would disappear. And sure enough almost to the day that's exactly what happened. My vision is now nearly perfect and still improving and at my last check up they were delighted with my progress. I do not need glasses anymore and can function without them perfectly.

I would recommend having laser eye surgery to anyone. It has certainly been life changing for me as I often didn't wear my glasses when I was out of the house or work (I hated them that much). I can now see things much clearer and even things in the distance I have never seen before. Though I must emphasise that with Lasek in particular you have to be patient with the results. Don't expect your vision to be perfect overnight - it may take several weeks. There were times when I was worried that it wasn't working. But as it as turned out I had nothing to worry about.