Bad vision today, unfortunately, is not uncommon. This problem concerns so many people, and everyone struggles with it as it can. Someone wears glasses or lenses, and someone decides on more radical measures.

Why I decided on the surgery for vision correction

I had poor eyesight since high school. For a long time I wore glasses, and over time I switched to contact lenses, which made my life much easier. She began to think about the operation at the age of 18, but waited for the moment when myopia stopped progressing.

In principle, it would be possible to continue to use contact lenses, but I began to notice that during the allergy season they began to fail me. There was a slight mist in the eyes and dryness that prevented seeing clearly. Out of season allergies everything was still good.

I also did not like to take with me on trips a whole arsenal of accessories: a solution, a container, tweezers for lenses, a spare pair of lenses, glasses … The lens, anyway, could fall out or deteriorate at any moment, and the glasses would break. It was necessary to swim in the sea with very great care, it is impossible to dive.

When I was 22 years old, my vision stabilized, and at 27 I decided to have an operation (at that time my left eye was -7.5, my right eye was -8). But first it was necessary to find out all the nuances and get tested.

We find out the details

Everything needs to be ready, so I began to study all the available information on the topic of restoring vision. I read a lot of forums and reviews, with prejudice I interrogated acquaintances who had gone through this procedure, watched a video from operations. By the way, I am especially advised to be particularly impressionable.

Among all my friends, everything went well, no one regretted that he had decided to restore his sight. For myself, I realized that the risks are minimal and the effect should surpass all possible consequences.

What to prepare for

Before the operation, you will definitely need to undergo a diagnosis, after which it will become clear whether you can do it or not. If you wear lenses, you will have to discard them at least a week before the examination.

On the day of diagnosis, you should not get behind the wheel, you will need to take sunglasses and an attendant with you, as you drop drops that widen the pupil. After these drops, many people have photophobia, it becomes poorly visible near. You will not be able to work at the computer on this day, so it is worth planning diagnostics for your free time.

I constantly wore lenses, so the transition to glasses was extremely difficult for me. The review was narrowed, the quality of vision decreased significantly, and the head was very sore. I advise you to warn your employer that you are preparing for an operation and your productivity may temporarily decline.

If you are approved for surgery, you will need to pass tests, a list of which you will be provided in the clinic. This can be done both at the place of residence and in any private laboratory.

During surgery

I was operated on by the Lasik method . This method was advised to me by the doctor, since it can correct myopia up to -15 with it, and the healing process is quite painless. In addition, this method has been operated on for more than 20 years, and we can talk about long-term consequences.

The operation is very fast. According to my feelings, it lasted about 5 minutes. It was absolutely not painful. But here it is very important to listen to everything that the doctor says and to carry out everything he asks for. Fear must be left behind the operating room door. This is the key to a successful and painless procedure.

On the day of the operation, it is also necessary to take along an accompanying person, sunglasses, and just in case anesthetic pills (but this is not at all necessary). Many people mistakenly think that they will inject an injection into the eye, but no, you just drop anesthetic drops. That is quite enough.

After the operation, painful sensations may appear, in my case they looked like a burning sensation inside the eyeball. The next day everything went away. By the way, at your request, you can open a sick-list.

When to wait for the result

When I left the operating room, I saw everything at once. There was a slight mist in the eyes, but no more. On the way home, I already read the signs on the street, it was amazing! The next day was the first postoperative examination, which showed that my sight was restored to 100%.

Each subsequent inspection confirmed that I now have one. But it is worth talking about the final result no earlier than in 3 months. From the side effects, I had a halo effect and a light fog close up. It goes with time.

Tip: keep all contracts and receipts, because in the future it will be possible to make a tax deduction.

Stars that made vision correction

For some reason, it is widely believed in the network that doctors themselves and famous personalities do not perform vision restoration operations. However, it is not. Many simply do not like to advertise this information, and some simply can not do it for medical reasons.

As for the stars that made the laser vision correction, among them are Julia Savicheva, Valdis Pelsh, Alexander Tsekalo, Alexey Kortnev, Irina Ortman, Lyanka Gryu , Mila Jovovich and many others. Interviews with them and publications in social networks can be easily found on the Internet.

Laser vision restoration: reviews

Questions to the expert

– What are the long-term effects of laser vision correction?

– The long-term effects of laser surgery are primarily associated with age-related changes. All of us, without exception, expect a decrease in the stock of accommodation (the ability to clearly see objects located at different distances) and the associated reading glasses. Patients with myopia who have undergone laser vision correction, due to the characteristics of myopia (and 90% of laser corrections are performed for myopia, that is, myopia), this fate will be 2-5 years earlier, at the onset of this phenomenon at 45 years.

The second problem is for older people if a cataract develops. The fact is that most of the formulas used to calculate intraocular lenses in cataract surgery use data from the correlation of the cornea curvature to the length of the eye, and during laser vision correction the cornea curvature changes. It is good that in our time there are a number of methods for taking into account these parameters, but certain flaws are possible.

The third problem is related to the diagnosis of glaucoma: most clinics are repelled by intraocular pressure in the diagnosis of glaucoma, but we should not forget that in patients who have undergone laser vision correction, intraocular pressure is always measured lower than it actually is.

– Is vision loss possible after laser correction?

– If you do not consider the option “something went wrong” (this option is generally best avoided with all the force), then visual impairment is possible in the first 6 months, this is called regression. Unfortunately, no reliable reasons for this phenomenon have been identified, and many authors cite various reasons. Rather, it is a combination of factors such as the structure and density of the cornea plus the influence of hormonal levels. But it can be said that this phenomenon is more susceptible to patients with high degrees of myopia, those who take hormones, and those with a thin cornea. Patients over 30 years old with a weak degree of myopia, simple myopic astigmatism, thick cornea (the doctor measures the thickness of the cornea) are less susceptible. Nevertheless, regression is not a reason to be upset, in the absolute majority of cases, additional correction is possible , after which there is practically no regression.

– Is it possible to go blind after the operation?

Of course, the likelihood of complications after laser vision correction exists, but the probability of an irreversible decrease in vision is 1 in 5000 (this is the official data of the World Health Organization). Vision correction with the help of an excimer laser is today considered the safest type of surgery in medicine in general.

– Who do not recommend surgery?

– First of all, you should think about the real need for laser vision correction for patients over 35 years old who lead a lifestyle associated with long-term work in the vicinity and having myopia up to -3.5. Remember, spoke about presbyopia (age-related changes of vision) and 45 years? It is worth considering what is more important – to see well into the distance or to be able to read without glasses, and also to paint eyelashes for women, this is very important. But everything above -3.5 can be operated on, since such patients, unfortunately, are doomed to wear 2 pairs of glasses – for distance and for proximity.

– There is a rumor that it is impossible to do vision correction before the birth, because during the birth it is possible to lose the effect of the operation. Is it so?

– Contraindication to natural delivery is the presence of untreated peripheral dystrophy of the retina, retinal detachment, keratoconus. Laser vision correction is not a contraindication to natural childbirth. However, a number of authors, including myself, follow their instructions and recommend planning a pregnancy no earlier than 6 months after surgery. Also, laser vision correction is carried out not earlier than 3 months after the end of the lactation period. This is due to the hormonal background of the woman.