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Cazz
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 posted on 18-5-2008 at 12:11 AM |
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The 'undecided' club!!
New members welcome, lol.
Anyone else out there seem to be going around in circles trying to decide whether laser eye surgery is the best or the worse thing since sliced
bread???
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welshman10
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![[*]](./images/oxygen/default_icon.gif) posted on 18-5-2008 at 01:37 PM |
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Count me in Cazz!
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foureyesnotts
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| posted on 19-5-2008 at 11:32 AM |
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I'm another one umming and aahing.
I think if it all goes to plan and your eyes heal nicely it's fab. If you're one of the few where you end up worse off then it ain't so
great is it!
I think the medical consent form they give you to look at for information at the consultation really highlights the risks - i.e. 'the long term
effects of this procedure are not yet completely known'
I think that's what puts me off the most. Who's to say 40 years down the line directing lasers into your eyes might seriously damage your
eyesight and render you blind?
I do so hate wearing glasses though...
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holly126
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| posted on 19-5-2008 at 02:43 PM |
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Hey guys!
I was really undecided about having the surgery and it took me ages to finally decide to have it done! The deal clincher for me was one of my friends
having it done at the same place and seeing her progress over the last few months.
I had the surgery (ultra lasik plus) May 9th and so far so good! It was definitely the right decision for me, and hopefully the long term effects
won't be detrimental! I would say that unless you are 100% sure that you want to have it done to maybe hold off on any rash decisions. At the
end of the day I'd had enough of glasses and lenses and desperately wanted to be rid of them!
Best of luck with whatever decision you all end up making!
Hol
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Cazz
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| posted on 19-5-2008 at 06:05 PM |
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I know what you mean about wearing glasses, I hate the fact that the lenses in my glasses make my eyes look a lot smaller than they actually are.
Luckily my eyes are not small to begin with, but when people try my glasses on to see if the shape suits them (they can never tell because the
strength of the lenses usually makes them feel sick and unable to see anyway!!) their eyes look really tiny. (5.75 and - 6.0)
However, with my glasses I can see for miles..... I looked up at a plane this morning and I'm sure I could make out the whites of the
pilot's eyes!!!! - although I couldn't quite tell if he'd had laser surgery 
My last prescription was slightly lower than this current one by -0.25 (R) and -0.50 (L) and it had got to the point that I was squinting at the
clock/couldn't make out the faces of the actors on stage at the theatre(which wasn't good for the comedy factor)/unable to read road signs
until quite close and unable to read the credits after a TV show. I hated all that as I like to have clear crisp vision, and I have to decide whether
I would be prepared to put up with these types of things if lasered and left with a small prescription, not high enough to correct, but a pain
nevertheless, which seems quite likely.....
[Edited on 19-5-2008 by Cazz]
[Edited on 19-5-2008 by Cazz]
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holly126
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| posted on 20-5-2008 at 10:28 AM |
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That was one of my main concerns too... the last question I asked before being taken 'through the doors' was "what is the likelihood of
under/over correction?". My surgeon explained that it was 5% (2.5% either way) - The last thing I wanted was to still have to wear glasses
afterwards... especially if he overcorrected my vision and I became long sighted! He reassured me though, and that gave me the final push to go
ahead.
You have to place so much trust in your surgeon and I was so nervous before and during the surgery that I almost passed out at one point! I just had
to keep reminding myself that a few seconds of discomfort will equal (hopefully) decent eye sight. I can definitely see far better now than when I
wore my glasses.
Please don't take this message as a push for having it done, I just wanted to let you know that I had the same concerns before surgery too and
it's all about weighing up the risks.
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Cazz
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| posted on 20-5-2008 at 07:35 PM |
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You're right, I know. it's just that i seem to be taking a long time to weigh!!!!!
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Cazz
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| posted on 20-5-2008 at 08:28 PM |
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Hey Welshman10
I just noticed that you are not 'blind' anymore - does this mean you've taken the plunge and had your eyes zapped??
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princess
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 posted on 21-5-2008 at 10:02 AM |
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deciding to take the plunge
well i have been umming and rrring for the last 1 year weather to take the plunge and have the laser treatment. i wera glasses for driving however my
eyesight is defo going downhill. so i went for my consulation last week in chester and i cant believe how fantastic the staff were i was so nervous
just by having the eye examination...all went well and i have booked in for my treatment TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! its this afternoon im so scared but
after 3 people in my work place having had this done in the same branch within the last 2 months and all of them have had no problems and defo
recommend it...x so im taking the plunge and hopefully no regrets...ill keep you all updated if you like...
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welshman10
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| posted on 21-5-2008 at 11:43 AM |
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Let us know how it goes my little princess
And no Cazz, I haven't had it done yet 
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princess
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| posted on 21-5-2008 at 01:35 PM |
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treatment day
ok will do ..only 1hr and 40 mins left till my treatment im getting a little scared now....x
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Cazz
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| posted on 21-5-2008 at 11:37 PM |
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Hope all went well for Princess, hopefully we'll hear in a few days time.
Welshman - I thought you'd come over all decisive and had a sneaky zap for a mo then..... lol. 
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foureyesnotts
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| posted on 22-5-2008 at 08:46 AM |
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Hope it all went well for you yesterday princess - let us know how you got on as soon as your eyes are recovered enough to be at a computer again!
I've been going almost cross-eyed with all the information I've been reading about laser eye surgery! The London Vision Clinic do a really
good, free guide about what to look for when choosing treatment/clinics, that's helped me understand a bit more about what's on offer and
what qualifications/standards surgeons should have.
I've got a consultation with Optical Express next Friday so will be interested to see how they compare (price, treatment and service) with UL.
I'm still nervous as hell at the thought of it, and there'll always be a bit of a worry at the back of my mind about complications/long term
effects but I'm about 99.7% sure I'm going to go through with it. I just can't bear the thought of being a specky four eyes for the
rest of my life!
[Edited on 22-5-2008 by foureyesnotts]
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Cazz
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| posted on 22-5-2008 at 10:50 PM |
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Hey, Foureyesnotts,
Don't get too cross eyed with info, they won't know which way to point the laser!!!
Seriously tho, I know what you mean, I feel like some kind of unpaid consultant on laser service providers. Any time someone mentions, or asks a
question about a provider I pipe up with some piece of information that I've absorbed about that particular provider.
Then, about 0.5 seconds afterwards I think '' Oh, you sad, sad cow!!'' Lol.
What's your prescription?
[Edited on 22-5-2008 by Cazz]
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princess
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| posted on 24-5-2008 at 12:51 PM |
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had it done!!!!!!
hi everyone...x
well can you belive im actually typing at my laptop already...x
i had my laser treatment at 3.40pm on wednesday and i want to tell you all who are squeemish, scared or nervous that i am the biggest chicken ever and
yes..when i walked in i nearly vomited and fainted my heart was beating so fast..i promise you that it didnt hurt no pian only slight discomfort when
they put pressure on your eyes..apart from that it was great in total was on the table for like no more than 10 mins.. and i had my next day
appointment and have 20/20 vision... already.. i cant belive i can see!!! please please go for it.. i still am wearing my sunglasses and already
typing this is giving me a slight headache so im trying not to look at the screen so appologies for any mis spelling.. just wanted to tell all that i
had it and i have no regrets, i had no stinging, no itching, no soreness like a few of my friends commented o.. well i is only saturday..x
thank you all for wishing me luck and i hope that it makes you go for it..i promise you that if it hurt or caused me any pain i would say!! i cant
belive i can see.. also the staff at Chester were fantastic i think it helps if the staff are friendly also if you tell them your scared!!!
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kazza
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| posted on 24-5-2008 at 01:52 PM |
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thats great princess
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welshman10
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| posted on 24-5-2008 at 03:59 PM |
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Hi Princess
That's great reassurance for us "undecideds".
How long was it between you having your first consultation to having the operation?
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Cazz
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| posted on 24-5-2008 at 07:55 PM |
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Hey Princess
Great news, glad to see you back so soon and feeling so positive.
What was your prescription, and what treatment did you have, ?
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foureyesnotts
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| posted on 26-5-2008 at 08:40 AM |
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Glad it all went well Princess!
Cazz the prescription on my contact lenses packet says -4.75 and -5.00, but the opthamologist at UL said that the prescription for contact lenses and
the prescription for glasses is very different and they'd actually be treating the glasses prescription.
I'm going to ring my optician tomorrow to get them to give me a copy of my prescription in time for me to take along to my appointment at Optical
Express on Friday.
I'm also wondering whether Wavefront is worth an extra £300 per eye when I'd really struggle to afford the whole thing anyway, even with 5%
discount and the payments spread over 3 years interest free!
Is anyone else any nearer to reaching a decision about the whole thing yet??
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kazza
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| posted on 26-5-2008 at 06:15 PM |
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I decided against wavefront ,but only after reassurance that I did'nt need it ,they will tell you at your cosultation , they showed me a picture
of my eye ball and it was all black apart from a little blue in the middle , apparentley if there was a lot of blue wavefront would have been
recommended, this was at ultralase , I could have had it if I wanted to and thankfully I have'nt lived to regret it , hope this makes sense good
luck kazza
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Cazz
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| posted on 27-5-2008 at 10:57 PM |
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Hi Foureyesnotts
Yeah, my contact lens prescription is -5.25 and - 5.50, but my specs are - 5.50 and -6.0, the contact lens guy said this is because contacts are
closer to your eye than glasses are so there is no 'lost vision' in the space between your eye and where the lens of your glasses sits.
(mind you, I would have thought that the CL prescription would be more accurate in that case!)
Anyhow, they will do a full set of eye tests at your consultation. One of the most scary things for me was that there was about a -1.0 difference
between the eye test readings taken at OE and UL - which makes me think that, I would end up either under or over corrected, depending on whichever
reading was most accurate.
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foureyesnotts
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| posted on 28-5-2008 at 01:24 PM |
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Well I've just picked up my prescription from D&A to take to my consultation at OE on Friday and apparently I'm -5.25 in my right and
-5.00 in my left (along with a bunch of cyl and axis measurements too).
I think my biggest worry has always been that most people who say how great its been/well its gone have had comparitively small prescriptions. The
higher the prescription the more needs lasering off, am I right?
At my UL consultation I hadn't taken along my last prescription and she had to make sure it was the same as my glasses. I'm not sure what
she did wrong but when I was sat in the chair with all those different lenses ('with or without', 'clearer on the green or the
red' etc), the end result was way off what my glasses were and I couldn't see a thing. When it got to a point where what she was showing me
were exactly the same and I said as such, she'd reply 'yes, but if you HAD to choose which?'. So I picked one and ended up with blurred
vision. She asked me to read the bottom line and I was just sat there saying 'er...WHAT bottom line?' !!!!!
Didn't really reassure me that I was in good hands I have to say.
Are you still very much undecided then Cazz?
Kazza - nothing was mentioned at my consultation with UL as to whether it was worth doing the wavefront or not. They basically said it was up to me
and they'd recommend me for any of the treatments.
Will however, definately be a question, for OE on Friday though.
Also, aren't UL supposed to ring you after your consultation (think my advisor said the following week) to see if I had any more questions or
wanted to book anything. It's been 2 weeks on Friday since I went to UL and I've not heard a peep from them?!
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Cazz
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| posted on 29-5-2008 at 12:10 AM |
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Blimey, your UL eye test seems a little, umm, ap hazard.....
I was also told that the higher your prescription, the more lasering needed! I was told at both consultations that wavefront would be recommended, so
maybe, if they left it up to you, your tests showed you didn't necessarily need it??
Yeah, I am still pretty much undecided for a few reasons, the highish prescription thing you mention (although there is a post from 'Fat
Bloke' on the 'Nearly two weeks on' thread - 27/05/08, 2.05pm which says differently in his case)
Also, I have needed a new prescription recently as everything in the distance seemed to become blurred all of a sudden, like one week I was seeing
fine, then the next I was having difficulty with road signs etc. Although I was told at my 2 laser consultations that this was probably a gradual
thing and would be considered to be stable enough for surgery, it did seem to appear quite suddenly and the fact that I can now see clearly with a
stronger prescription makes me think I should wait to make sure no further worsening occurs in the near future.
On saying that, i really want to be independent from glasses and contacts!
Aaarrrgggghhhhh!!!!!! It's like a big wrestling match going on in my mind!!!
Actually, no one has rung me after either of my consultations, which is fine by me, cos i'd only have to tell them I was undecided anyway. I did
get an offer from UL about 3 weeks later, by letter and email, of pay nothing until May 2009, then have 18 mths interest free credit.
[Edited on 28-5-2008 by Cazz]
[Edited on 28-5-2008 by Cazz]
[Edited on 28-5-2008 by Cazz]
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holly126
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| posted on 29-5-2008 at 09:43 AM |
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Cazz you'll probably find that you'll be bombarded with offers from UL from now on! I pretty much received an email every other day and
something through the post every week, so don't feel you have to rush to take up the offer, it'll more than likely still be there in a few
months.
I was told that I didn't need Wavefront, but when it comes to your eyes I think you just want to have the very best treatment, so I went ahead
with the 'all singing all dancing' package anyway.
I'm 3 weeks post op now and my sight has just been amazing! Even in the shower this morning, it occurred to me that I could see which bottle was
the shampoo and which was the conditioner without having to bring it right up to my face to read it! I hadn't properly appreciated it before
today because I think you immediately adjust to clear sight like you've always had it! I know a lot of people will probably disagree, but for me
I have to keep reminding myself that I'm not wearing lenses or glasses!
My prescription wasn't so strong as foureyesnotts & Cazz - my left eye was -1.75 cl -2.00 and my right eye was -3.25 cl -0.50, but I
couldn't see past my elbow! I'm most looking foward to being able to go in the sea when I go on holiday without having to scream at
everyone "don't splash me! I'm wearing contacts!!"
Best of luck with your decisions guys!!!
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Cazz
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| posted on 30-5-2008 at 12:27 AM |
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Thanks Holly, Glad all went well for you - I love a happy ending. 
I'm actually sat here with a swollen, sore, very blurred left eye after some kind of contact lens event earlier today.
Not sure what caused it - they are a new pair of monthlies (2nd wear), also I used a new mascara today and perhaps hay fever season has started!!
Whatever, from the sound of the posts of people who have had laser, I'm having more pain, swelling and blurriness from this than if i'd had
lasik!! lol.
Guess it's dark glasses for work tomorrow  (without the beard of
course!!!!!) Lol. 
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