Regrets, I've never really regretted any decisions I've made in my life. Even when there's a little room for that, I'll make sure I swallow whichever that's making me feel that way and I'll see it through no matter what. There's just one thing I wish I would have done earlier and now that I think about, I couldn't understand why it took me so long to make this decision, only after 20 years.
I've been diagnosed with short sightedness accompanied with astigmatism since I was 5 years old. I was jealous of my elder brother when I saw my parents buying him glasses. I wanted it too, so foolishly I stood real close in front of the television everyday. I knew that by doing so, it would destroy my perfect eyesight as my parents have warned me many times to watch the television from a certain distance. They say, be careful of what you wish for. True enough my foolish wish back then came through and that was the start of a burderned lifestyle that I do not even realise and was actually happy for the first couple of years.
I started disliking the idea of having to wear glasses around the age of 14. Partly vanity but mostly inconvenience. I love sports and jogs frequently while I was in Secondary School and I'm also part of the band where we do lots of outdoor marching under the sun. Those who wear glasses will understand how annoying it gets when you perspire and do sports that requires vigorous movements. The constant need to push your glasses back into position and sometimes risk sustaining facial injury while playing sports with glasses on is pretty common. Moreover, you need to go for an eye check often to make sure that your glasses are of the right power (degree).
I decided to switch to contact lenses but that did not make anything better. To save on lenses which is considered expensive back then, I will purchase the cheapest off the shelf and I will wear them over 2-3 months which I'm not suppose to because it's a monthly lens. I experienced a lot of swelling with the eyes and many times till then point where pusses overflows and that's when I have to wear glasses until it gets better and finally change a new pair of contact lenses.
This lasted all the way up till I'm 21 years old, I was introduced to daily lenses which makes my vision so much clearer and better. I no longer have to deal with the swelling and pusses or the sudden sharp pain felt which causes me to tear non-stop. It's especially embarrassing when it stirkes in public.
All's good for a couple of years and then I started travelling really frquently which sometimes requires long hours on board and it's an extremely painful thing if you fall asleep with your lenses on. Upon waking up, most people experience super dry eyes and sometimes vision is so blur you have no choice but to get those lenses out and also you'll get bloodshot red eyes because of the lack of oxygen.
That I could still deal with the help of eye drops but the thing that made me consider and want to do something about my eyesight is all because I forgot to bring my glasses overseas. My fellow shortsighted/astigmatism friends, you probably know my pain! I felt like a total blind mice when I took out my lenses and have no glasses to rely on. Even though it is just for that mere 2-3 hours before bed, it was torturous to me.
And now comes the BEST DECISION I HAVE EVER MADE IN MY LIFE!!!!! I told myself, it's time to get something done! I did a little research and decided to book an appointment at Dr Lee Hung Ming's Clinic for an eye check up and to understand more about Lasik Surgery.
But to be honest, I was still hesitant about the idea of Lasik. I wanted to solve the problem without having to go through the process (which I thought is pretty scary) :/ I guess that is also the reason why many people did not dare to take on Lasik despite desperately wanting to solve their vision problem.
But to be honest, I was still hesitant about the idea of Lasik. I wanted to solve the problem without having to go through the process (which I thought is pretty scary) :/ I guess that is also the reason why many people did not dare to take on Lasik despite desperately wanting to solve their vision problem.
I pondered a little and finally decide to go ahead under the encouragement of my mum. She had Lasik many years back when it was just made available in the market. Technology wasn't as great back then but still she said that it was the best decision she have made. I've also asked around those who have gone through Lasik and the answers were all unanimous. They told me there's nothing to think about and you won't ever miss your glasses.
I went for a detailed eye check 3 months before my surgery and got to meet Dr Lee in person. Dr Lee's a very assuring doctor and patiently clarified all my doubts about the surgery. I went home to do a little research and understand that there are different kinds of procedures under the category of LASIK. The one that Dr Lee had recommended me is called iLASIK (Wavefront Customised). Well~ I'm not very good at explaining so I shall quote from the professional context.
"The iLASIK procedure is an individualized LASIK treatment that uses an aberrometer to determine the individual characteristics of your eye. Just like a fingerprint, our eyes are unique - each having its own individual characrteristics. The iLASIK procedure is wavefront guided; it uses a 3-D measurement tool to measure how your eye processes images to guide the laser in re-shaping the front of the eye (cornea). Wavefront guided procedure can provide a potentially superior vision correction alternative, because it measures and treats individualized imperfections of each eye that are never treated with standard or optimized treatment, or corrected with glasses or contact lenses."
The best Lasik treatment will be recommended by the doctor to the patient based on individual's eye condition.
I have searched up a lot about Lasik online and read what people have to say on various forums however, I really felt that nothing could calm your nerves no matter how much you know. Words are just words, what I feel matters most is trusting your doctor!
There is nothing you have to do prior surgery, the only slight inconvenience is that I was instructed to stop wearing lenses one week before surgery and to go without make-up for a week post surgery.
Let me take you through briefly through the whole process. My surgery was scheduled at 10am in the morning so I woke up early and got there an hour before, another eye check was ran to ensure that there is no changes from my previous check up. I put on the clinical gown and was then given lots of eye drops and anesthetics. Waited a little and the next thing I know I was in the operating theatre with my eyes wide open and starring at bright lights! You would not feel any sort of pain and I was just too nervous to care about what's going except for it to end. The surgery was really simple and fast(less than 30 mins), all I did was to keep my eyes open and look straight at the blinking red light my doctor had instructed me to. It was over in no time, the nurses gave me solutions and eye drops and off I go!
I would not lie as I think that it's important to prepare those who are interested to go through Lasik. I really felt no pain during the surgery but I did experience a lot of discomfort after the surgery and it is not something I could describe exactly with words. I'll just list them in points.
- I could barely open my eyes right after the surgery
- Faint but long lasting pain in the eye
- Vision blurness
- Constant tearing
- Sensitive to light
I think it's a must to have someone to bring you home after the surgery as you won't be able to see clearly yet. And with all those discomfort, it's simply not advisable to take public transport or to be on your own. The best thing is to head straight home and go to sleep.
I slept from noon till night without waking up at all and only did because I was hungry. When I woke up I could already see without my glasses, I won't say it's super clear but it gets better over days. The recovery rate varies on individual condition but usually within 3 days you should be able to get clear vision. However getting clear vision does not mean that you have fully recovered, it takes time for it heal completely and you will have to go back for post-op check ups. For my condition I felt that it took longer than usual to recover completely. I did not get back to driving only after 3 months as my eyes were extremely sensitive to night lights after the surgery and I see strong halos if I look at the traffic lights. I could still see perfectly but I just want to be safe and not risk it.
Its been 5 months till date after getting the surgery and I'd say the only thing you'll regret is regretting not getting Lasik! It completely hassle free to travel now, I don't even have to worry about glasses and lenses. I could ride on a bike with my eyes wide open without having to worry about my lens falling off. I could go swimming and see my surroundings in clarity. I could fall asleep anytime without dealing with dry lenses sticking onto my eyeballs. It is just AMAZING!!!!!
There are many clinic and doctors that is licensed to do Lasik but the reason why I choose Dr Lee Hung Ming is because of his fruitful experience and success rate of surgery, on top of that it makes me feel more secure that it is done in a Hospital (Gleneagles Hospital).
For more detailed Lasik information or if you would like to make a booking, you may refer to the information below.
Lee Hung Ming Eye Centre
Gleneagles Hospital, Level 3 Hospital Block
6A Napier Road, Singapore 258500
+65 6470 3366
contact@leehmeyecentre.com.sg
Lee Hung Ming Eye Centre
Gleneagles Hospital, Level 3 Hospital Block
6A Napier Road, Singapore 258500
+65 6470 3366
contact@leehmeyecentre.com.sg
I sincerely encourage everyone that is suffering from poor vision to take some time to consider about Lasik.
"EYES ARE THE WINDOW TO THE SOUL." <3 nbsp="" p="">