21 August, 2013 – That is the
fateful day I literally experienced Newton’s "T'was blind but now I
see" phenomenon.
In other words, I finally got around to doing my
EPI-LASIK operation! And speaking as someone who has suffered from
terrible myopia all my life - stumbling around till I got my
spectacles before the age of 7 - believe me when I say that this operation
has been the best gift I have ever given
myself.
For the benefit of my friends
who have shown care, concern, and curiosity regarding the process of getting my
eyes “fixed”, here is a recount of my experience. I hope these insights will be helpful for
your own decision-making!
From the first
time I heard about lasik more than five years ago, I knew I would definitely be
doing it, SOMEDAY. It was only a matter
of When, Where, and How Much.
Although I considered the option of driving
in to Malaysia for my lasik operation due to price (the figures are definitely
way more attractive when converted to Malaysian Ringget!), I eventually decided
that I would rather spend the necessary few dollars more for a reputable LASIK specialist
in Singapore with a long-standing success record.
The first step
was to check out their website and make an enquiry call. The girl on the phone was very patient and
professional in explaining to me the things to take note in advance:
-
Atleast 10 days in advance of the examination
review, I cannot wear my hard contact lenses.
-
Atleast 2 days in advance of the examination
review - if I intend to do the surgery the day immediately after the review - I
cannot wear soft contact lenses.
- If working, I would be given 2 days of Medical
Certificate to rest.
-
It is advisable not to drive for 5 days after
the operation as vision may be blurry during the healing period.
-
It is OK to jog as long as the sweat does not
get into the eyes.
-
It is OK to fly on an airplane after 1 week from
the operation date.
-
It is OK to participate in Surface Water sports (e.g.,
swimming, wakeboarding) after 2 weeks from the operation date.
-
It is OK to dive after a month from the
operation date.
-
I can choose to do a LASIK or EPI-LASIK
procedure.
-
It is possible to do a 12 months with 0% interest
payment scheme with certain credit cards.
Armed with this
information, I watched and waited for an opening in my calendar. The minute my schedule opened up with a few
available days, I snatched up the phone and placed an appointment for the
examination review, followed by a tentative date and time for the surgery the
next day (provided my eyes were approved for surgery by the examination).
When I reached Clear
Vision clinic for my examination appointment at 2PM on 20 August, the friendly staff took me
through a series of 9 or 10 different eye tests. As I peered into their various eye machine contraptions,
they took pictures of my cornea, measured the shape and size, checked my eye
degree, tested eye pressure with little puffs of air blown into the eye, tested
my muscle control skills by asking me not to blink while they shone various
lights into my eyes, and patiently answered all my inquisitive questions about what exactly the machines were doing.
After they were
done, one of the staff sat me down on a comfortable sofa and went through a
clear and efficient slide presentation on the difference between LASIK and EPI-Lasik procedures, what to
expect during the operation, and a brief introduction about the surgeon, Dr. Tony
Ho. The following
video was also very informative on why EPI-Lasik is the recommended way to go,
especially for someone with dry eyes, thin corneas, and - high myopia *raise
hand*.
When the staff
had done the preliminary checks, they sent me over to Dr. Ho’s private clinic
in Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre, just 3 minutes walk from the Clearvision Eye
Clinic. After 2-3 more eye tests at this
other clinic, Dr. Ho called me into his room and told me that based on the
examination results, he was confident he would be able to carry out a
successful EPI-Lasik procedure for me.
However, he cautioned me as a note that due to my degree being very high
(900 degrees per eye), the lasik would have to burn deeper into the cornea. Thus, should I wish to go for any corrective
surgery in future after the initial Epi-Lasik, I would need to go through all
the checks again. But hey, the important thing is that I CAN do
the op, right? So I danced out of the
doctor’s office happily. Figuratively,
of course.
The next day, Sis and I were up and ready for my first surgery ever. Yes, I was a little nervous. And very psyched. After all, it was my LAST day of wearing
spectacles!
When I reached
the clinic, the staff got me to sign the necessary documents, explained the
various medicated eye drops I would need to apply after the operation, and then
decked me out in the operating room garb.
Next was the
application of the numbing eye drops. I
was pleasantly surprised and extremely relieved that no anesthetic injections
were needed! (If you hate needles as much as I do, you will understand how I felt.)
Finally, the eye
cover went on and I was ready!
They asked me
to sit in a chair right outside the operating room and practice staring
straight at a little blinking red light a few feet away. I could hear the sizzle of the laser as the
guy before me did his operation. It
freaked me out a little.
Then the
sliding door opened, and the guy exited the operating theatre, looking - normal. Hey, if
he can survive the ordeal, then so can I, right? I took a deep breath, turned to Sis and said, “Here we
go!” and stepped into the room.
Dr. Ho was
seated at the head of the operating bed, and welcomed me in. The operating assistant instructed me to lie
down and Dr. Ho held my head in place, explaining his actions calmly and
soothingly.
He positioned
the lasik machine over my eye and I stared up at the monster looming over me.
feeling very much like the one-eyed Cyclops. It was
a simple-looking machine. There were two lasik
lights staring dully back at me – one red and one yellow-green. The doctor told me to stare at the red
light.
“Don’t worry,”
he reassured, like as if he could read my thoughts. “You won’t feel any pain.”
He proceeded to
clean my eye and placed a round circular object in my eye to keep my eyelids from closing. A blunt scapula appeared in my vision and
gently scraped away the top layer of my eye.
It was a weird sensation, since I could feel the scraping but felt no
pain.
Then he told me
to keep looking at the red light…. And the green laser started its job. It was a five-step process. I concentrated on only two things – staring at
the red light and breathing slowly and evenly.
My subconscious noted the sizzling sound once again, and Dr. Ho’s voice stating, “Stage one… stage two…” My vision
began to blur. It looked or felt like a
speckled lights display taking place on a clear glass right in front of my eye.
“Stage five.” The green laser stopped. The actual process per eye was not more than
two minutes! Dr. Ho pushed away the monster above me, gently scraped back the
top layer of eye film with his scapula, and deposited the temporary soft lens
over my cornea for protection.
Perhaps the
only part I found disconcerting was when they slowly emptied a syringe of liquid into
my eye to wash it out. Blame it on my claustrophobic
issues perhaps, but for those few short moments, I had to fight the momentary
feeling of panic.
Other than
that, it was fine. And PAINLESS.
Within the next
five minutes, my other eye was done, and I could get up from the bed and pose
for a picture with Dr. Ho!
My vision was
immediately clear, though not sharp. I could see with
about 90% clarity, as they predicted for the first day, and the staff led me to a
room to sit and recuperate. My eyelids
were so heavy, and I just felt like sleeping, sleeping, sleeping.
So after an hour, I put on the 100% UV-blocking sunglasses they
provided, flagged a cab home, and went straight to bed.
The staff
preempted discomfort and pain after the anesthesia wears off but said it was
subjective to each person. When I woke
up three hours later to put my eye drops, I still felt fine and could see fine,
too. My eyes were a little dry, but they
were not painful.
And truth is, I
have felt no pain up till this day, for which I am very thankful!
The recovery
process was as predicted, with the next two days having blurred vision, around70-80%
clarity. I was sleeping most of the time though, so it was not too much of a bother. On the second day, I went back
for a Check Up to ensure everything was recovering well without any infection.
I started driving by the third day as the vision improved, howbeit
facing slight discomfort whenever the bright sunlight glinted off the cars in
front of me, despite my shades. One week
later, I went back for the second check up and removed the temporary contact
lenses. A few days later, I flew to
China.
Although my
vision still occasionally blurs for a short while now and then, which is
expected as part of the recovery process for the month or so after the surgery,
I am extremely happy with my newfound eyesight.
Goodbye to the
banes of fuzzy vision and heavy reliance on contact lenses and prescription
glasses... Hello, perfect eyesight!
For those of you who are interested in doing lasik for yourself, I highly recommend Clearvision Eye Clinic as the place to go. I experienced professional and attentive customer service, and felt safe and in good hands the entire way. The price for EPI-Lasik for 2 eyes is SGD $3,388. You can call them at 67333316 or visit their website at http://www.clearvision.com.sg/ for more details.
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