I attended the Shaftsbury avenue clinic for a consultation and was advised that I would be suitable for lasik treatment and opted for the wavefront surgery for a total of £1795 (both eyes). I had been to a competitor and was quoted £3000 for the same so this seemed reasonable. I was told I would be able to have surgery on the Saturday and be able to return to work with near perfect vision on the Monday.

When I attended for surgery I met with the surgeon and was told I could not have lasik and would have to have lasek and would probably need a week off work. This was very upsetting as I was not at all prepared for this as the staff at my consultation had not explained this at all. The surgeon's accent was also very strong and this made it very difficult to understand what he was saying.

I was subsequently counselled by a member of the team who explained things further and put me at ease. I underwent the lasek surgery and found the immediate results amazing.

My eyes became painful, as expected, over the next few days and, whilst I was able to see things around me, I was unable to use a computer and read so I could not work.

When I went back to the clinic to have the contact lens bandages removed, my left eye had not healed too well and the optician put another lens in. This caused such severe discomfort I could not see at all and had to have my boyfriend guide me home as I could not keep my eyes open due to the pain.

This was very very upsetting.

I went back for a second time to have the contact lens removed and was seen by an optician who instilled confidence in me for the first time. She looked at my left eye and informed me that the contact lens that had been put in was torn and that was the reason for my sever discomfort. Once this was taken out, my vision and level of comfort improved rapidly over the next few days and I was able to drive a week after my surgery.

I found the whole experience rather slap-dash; some of the staff are obviously well trained and care about their patients. Others seem to not understand how seriously you are going to take having surgery on your eyes and adopt a rather careless attitude to the way you are treated.

I would recommend the surgery, but the service was rather below par; I guess that's why it is so much cheaper than other places.