Optimax, Birmingham

I have to warn anyone that is considering having laser eye surgery not to go into the process lightly!

I really didn't think about what having laser surgery would involve until the day I turned up at the clinic, I really wish I had considered it more than I did.

Before I had laser eye surgery my prescription was -4.5 and -4.75 and I also had astigmatism. I researched laser eye surgery on the internet and decided that as Optimax seemed to be the cheapest, I would go with them-not the best way to decide the fate of your eyesight. I made the appointment for about 6 weeks time and then didn’t really think about it.

A few days before the treatment I had to remove my lenses for a few days and wear my glasses. I had booked a few days off work and arranged for my parents to drive me to the clinic in Birmingham. On the day of the treatment I started to get a bit nervous but I was determined to go and get it done as I had booked the time off work.

When I arrived I had my eyes checked by someone who appeared to be a receptionist and then went in to see the ophthalmologist. The ophthalmologist put a anaesthetic drops in my eyes and did a few tests on them to see if I was suitable. I was beginning to wish I wasn’t suitable as the whole process was making me nervous, but unfortunately I was eligible! He said I could have Lasek or Lasek so I opted for Lasek as it was cheaper and has a better recovery rate, although I was warned it was more painful.

I then had to go into the reception area and set up my direct debit form. I had brought along all the appropriate ID, along with my bank statements as proof that I had a regular salary. The girl seemed to get flustered when trying to sort this out and even said that she couldn’t set it up as I had no money going into my account, I ended up having to point on the statement to where money goes in and out. When you’re feeling nervous this kind of thing doesn’t help.

When they eventually called me into the room to get my eyes lasered, I was really nervous. Instead of reassuring me, the ophthalmologist threatened to only do one eye-I’m not sure how this would help my nerves! The receptionist/administrator/nurse then went through the drugs that I would be taking away with me; I’m not sure why they bothered doing this as I wouldn’t be able to see for at least 24 hours.

It was then time….I was put in a dentist type chair and told to lay back, my left eye had anaesthetic put in it and was clamped open. It was really uncomfortable to have the clamp on and it actually hurt my eye socket. The actually lasering part went very quickly and apart from the last 15 seconds when it feels like it is far too close to your eye, it isn’t too scary. The worst thing is knowing that it has to happen again in your right eye. This seemed more painful than the left; I’m not convinced he put enough of the drops in.

When they had finished the procedure I sat up and was surprised how clear my vision was-maybe it was worth it after all! I went into the waiting room, grabbed my parents and got into the car (luckily I wasn’t driving). Although my eyesight was great and I could see really well, I had a feeling of impending doom at the bottom of my stomach…..

…and then it came. When the pain came it was really bad. I’m not going to lie because I believe anyone considering Epi-Lasek should know how bad it really is. I was in the car crying in pain, it was so bad that my parents even considered driving me to A&E. They decided that it would be best for me to spend the 2 hour journey asleep and gave me one of the sleeping tablets that had been provided in my bag. After around an hour of absolute agony, I managed to fall asleep.

When I finally got home my parents had to lead me in the house and put me on the sofa. I spent the next few hours going from absolute agony into sedated sleep. My parents had to turn every light in the house off and even blow out a candle as, despite having my eyes shut with eye shields on, the light hurt my eyes. When I finally got to bed my parents gave me more tablets and I managed to sleep.

The next day when the light started coming through the blinds, the agony started again. I spent the next day on the sofa begging my parents for more pain killers, I couldn’t even listen to the radio as everything annoyed me. My parents were trying to put my eye drops in and my eyes were so swollen they couldn’t get even one drop in. They are both nurses and were concerned that my eyes may get infected so they decided to call Optimax. When they called up they were adamant that all my symptoms were normal and told me to keep trying to put the drops in.

That night I had a terrible night sleep and as I hadn’t seen anything for nearly 2 days, I was starting to get paranoid. My Dad called up the clinic again and managed to speak to someone that knew what they were talking about. He mentioned that I could be having a bad reaction to the contact lens bandage in my eye and for me to go back to Birmingham and get it removed. Finally I would be free of pain!!

I got in the car straight away and went to Optimax. The ophthalmologist I saw this time was much nicer than the one that had done my surgery and as soon as he took the lens out, the pain went.


Over the next week my sight got much better and I now have 20/20 vision.

Would I recommend it to a friend? Well not Epi-lasek, no. I have heard that Lasik is much better, but then I heard that Lasek wasn’t that bad, and I thought it was awful.