Optical Express

I had my surgery on Friday 3rd November at Bristol. Apart from the clamping which as everyone else has said is a very unusual feeling (not a good one I might add) everything else was brill. I went home and slept for about 4 hours and when I woke up I could see. At my follow up appointment at Cheltneham the next day I was already at driving standard but do not feel confident enough because I am still gettin blurred vision which as told is normal, just hope it clears up. I just want to tell everyone thatI can see. It is good but not for the faint hearted. I would say go for it.

wearing glasses for 15 years, i was pleased to hear that optical express were promoting a free consultation to find out more about laser surgery. The care and attention i received after my lasik surgery was second to none. I would recommend lasik surgery to anyone, the freedom from glasses is fantastic. I now have 20/20 vision thanks to optical express.

I had my surgery yesterday at the manchester clinic with Mr Waseem Azir. Although my vision is amazing and im really pleased with the results, all did not go as planned. Firstly once I had booked my surgery the customer service I received from head office and manchester cross street branch was terrible. I had to ring 3 times for my confirmation (which eventually had to be e-mailed the day prior to my surgery). Upon arrival I was also informed that the 10month payment plan had been put through on someone else's address so i faced the prospect of having to ring my bank to move money from my savings to pay for the surgery in full. Luckily this was resolved...after an hour of stressing!!! The pre-op tests went fine, however the waiting room was directly beside the treatment room, and the sound of the laser was less than comforting. The op itself.... The reason i dont like contact lenses is because i cant stand things in my eyes, so as you can imagine i found this less than comfortable. The clamps were HORRID,i was constantly being re-assured by staff that I was lucky as ppl with smaller eyes would find it much worse...however I didnt feel lucky. The part i found most uncomfortable was the suction they use before they make the incisions, i was told i would feel "some pressure". Pain and pressure are a long way apart and I found this very painful. On a positive it was all over very quickly. I recommend you bring your sunglasses as the waiting rm suddenly seems ridiculously bright following the op. I was in quite a bit of pain after, my eyes felt bruised and I had a bit of a cry!! But after 3 hours sleep and some ibuprofen evrything was much better. I have a bit of bruising a bloodyness but im assured that will go. In terms of vision I coldnt be happier, and I would recommend this procedure to others.

I had Lasik surgery last week, but chose not to use Optical Express and went with Optimax in the end (birmingham)..... I went to Optical Express in Bham first and was very unnerved by the hard sell, and what I felt was a very unprofessional approach. First off half way through the consultation the women said if I wasn't going to book today there was no point in her carrying on (bit rude as this was sold as a no obligation consulation)! I didn't see the surgeon and the people I did see weren't sure whether I'd be suitable for Lasik or Lasek; I was told the surgeon would decide on the day. When I asked how I would know how much time to take of work I was told 'take 2 weeks off and if you have lasik & recover quickly it'll be a bonus' .... not quite what I wanted to hear when I was trying to take things seriously! Far from the £399 per eye they advertise I was quoted over £2000, and told 'I would deffinately want wavefront' adding an extra £500 to the bill. Interestingly my surgery last week did not involve wavefront as my Optimax surgeon told me it would not benefit my particular perscription. Lastly they treid to get me to sign a contract/consent form when my pupils had been dilated and I couldn't read it. When I refused & asked to take it home they got quite upset with me. Needless to say I did not book that day! Optimax on the other hand were professional and what seemed very honest (see wavefront example above) at every stage, being able to meet the surgeon before the day made me feel much more confident in what I was getting myself into. I now have 20:20+ vision. YEY!

staff were very helpful and kind. no problems with the surgery and now i can see so much! would recommend it to anyone. Go for it!

I had my Eyes done in the Glasgow Branch of optical express on 22nd of September I was terrified everyone was fantastic This has completely changed my life the confidence that I have now is unbelievable thank you so much all of the team for being so helpful and professional. I now feel a fab fifty thank you thank you.

Had laser surgery at Newcastle in July, vision not great awaiting possible further treatment. After care has been abysmal, appointments cancelled, locations changed, no one available in my local area when I need advice, today I tried Middlesbrough, Stockton, Darlington - no one available! Tried newcastle twice - no one available, will ring back, no return call. I wish I had never heard of Optical Express

Surgeon: Dr Lorimer Esselaar Surgery: Lasik Wavefront Location: Newcastle upon Tyne Branch Date: 3rd Oct 2006 Just like to thank the following people at the Newcastle branch of Optical Express who have been very supportive during and after my laser treatment: * Jean Hey who answered all my questions prior to the operation; * Dr Lorimer Esselaar and his support staff; * Claire Dowson and all the staff at the Newcastle branch. I had a high prescription which meant I was only suitable for Lasik Wavefront, it took about a month before I had slightly better then 20:20 vision as my eyes took time to settle down (eyes still need time to settle down due to my prescription). The laser optometrist did explain this on the follow up eye check up and said the healing process would differ depending on the prescription and the individuals healing time. My advice is to think long and hard before going ahead with the laser treatment, and not to be afraid to have a chat to a friend or colleague who has already had the laser treatment. Overall I am very glad I went ahead with the surgery and find it amazing to be able to see in the morning without glasses. The strange thing is that I still wish I could wear glasses for the odd occasion :)

i have just got back from my one week check up, i had wavefront lasik treatment and now have better than 20/20 vision, this has changed my life , i would reccomend optical express at bluewater to anyone, first class service from start to finish.

No ratings yet, as I am going through the process as we speak! First went to Optical Express in Southampton about 8/9 months ago, but had to cancel the booking as I was sent at very short notice to the Gulf. Bit of a drama getting my cash back, took lots of phone calls, which left me a little concerned about how the overall experience would be. It would appear that the admin is still not perfect, but not many companies are - I have also found out that some of the comments on these sites can be taken with a pinch of salt and should be viewed from a more realistic perspective. Whilst some people no doubt have poor experiences, if you want horror stories go to the US sites where they are able to operate completely unregulated! I also found out that the delay in operations (they say you can wait for up to three hours) is because of the way they set up the rooms and lasers, and that the cancellations from January at Southampton were due to a failed Air Conditioning Unit - what people didn't mention was that Optical Express paid for them all to be seen at Reading instead, so whilst it was inconvenient, it was not quite the drama that some felt it was! So, here we are again. Phoned up and booked an appointment, and I was reminded by post, phone, mobile and text message, which was pretty impressive! Turned up early, and went through the assessment procedure again (taking two goes with the "puff in yer eye" machine because I anticipate the "puff" and tense my eyeballs....!) So, we go through all the same stuff (which actually I was quite chuffed with because it gave me a little more confidence that they were not simply going to take previous readings), and the price comes out as the same as before! This time, I decide to go for wavefront, as I have spoken to US Military people who have had this done and were raving about it. I asked how fast it could be done, and was told that as they do the surgery for one fortnight a month, and the paperwork for the rest, I was able to book anytime from Monday onwards. So, I called some debts in, and the appointment is now booked for Tuesday at Southampton - 6 days from appointment to operation! There were people actually being "done" whilst I was there, and I heard no screaming, and there were no paramedics rushing up the stairs, so confidence levels are pretty good.... So, money paid, appointment booked, my glasses (which are on the point of collapse) only have to last 120 hours, and we'll see how my Optical Express experience goes. I can't wait.....