From Blurry to Crystal Clear: My Journey with Laser Eye Surgery
Note: This is a kinda long post.
I closed my copy of Sidney Sheldon’s Tell Me Your Dreams and blew out the candle. Yet another book completed in the middle of the night. I had been warned several times not to strain my eyes by reading with low light, but how could I drop such an intriguing book?
I was diagnosed with shortsightedness when I was 10 years old. This was just after getting into JSS1. I struggled to see the board and write notes in class. My parents wear glasses, but my mother’s eye defect is more inclined to reading than general eyesight. When I was told I would wear glasses, I was thrilled. Only smart people wear glasses. Right? Right?
This verdict had me wearing an eye contraption along few of my classmates. Others were straight-up fascinated and would ask to see my glasses. The daredevils would snatch it off my face and run away, leaving me wandering blindly. In senior secondary school, this struggle was reduced. But I somehow found myself with a permanent seat close to the back of the class. I changed my glasses every other year. After 4 years of handling them with so much care, I wondered if my optician’s “Your eyes will get better” statement was factually incorrect. I mean, he has a whole degree in the field. There’s no way he would be wrong.
Getting into the university, I got accustomed to the lifestyle and accepted it. I’d remove my glasses to feel cool or attend an event. In my 3rd year, I learned about contacts. Immediately told my optician to get me some. The first time I tried on contacts, my brother nearly died of laughter at how much I was crying. We struggled but eventually got the lenses in my eyes. Subsequently, wearing them became more manageable. Still, I couldn’t participate in sports as much as I would have liked. I still played football and did athletics including running, the long and high jump. I couldn’t swim. Still had to be careful with my frames as I broke quite a number of them. My folks got tired and made me request two frames at a time to always have a backup pair of glasses.
On graduating, it felt like my eyesight deteriorated. I struggled to see well at night, and since my social life had improved, I went out frequently. Then with work, staring for long at my laptop gave me frequent headaches. Also, the problem of looking for your glasses but needing your glasses to find your glasses. I was truly tired of the glasses lifestyle.
Pre-surgery
I spent almost a month researching about eye surgery. I had seen posts and TikToks from people that had undergone laser eye surgery and had complications. However, I learned that the risk level is low. Besides, the hospital I had picked had a perfect success rate.
When I finally decided to go for it, I left my house for the Eye Foundation Hospital branch at The Providence, Lekki. I paid for registration at the reception area and got a hospital card. Shortly after, I was called in to see Dr. Eme, the optometrist at the hospital. I went through visual acuity tests, and he documented the state of my eyesight. I was amused at how hard I struggled to read off the charts. He said I should consider the surgery as it was an excellent way to reduce the stress of wearing glasses. I confirmed that I would like to.
I was told to carry out eye tests in the lab to check whether I was eligible for the procedure. I went upstairs for this and was attended to by another doctor. My eye pressure, thickness, and other vitals were checked. I was notified that my eyes were indeed in a position to be operated on. But I had to see the primary doctor on duty at the other branch. I left for the Eye Foundation branch on Admiralty Way. Waited for a bit before I was attended to. Dr. Abimbola Ashaye conducted further eye checks and confirmed my eligibility for the SMILE operation.
The SMILE procedure is a fairly new option that is used to correct shortsightedness and other refractive eye errors. This option was preferable because unlike LASIK, it takes a shorter time to recover and only one incision is made to the cornea.
I was asked if I wore contacts, as I needed my eyes to be healthy. The last time I wore contacts was in December 2022. This was not a problem. My eyes were dilated for further investigations. I told the doctor I wanted to be operated on that Thursday, but when I heard the surgery cost, I had to delay it for 3 more weeks. My eyesight was blurry after dilation, and I struggled to return home. Should have come with someone for this, but I had no idea what it would be like. I was given eye drops to use, pending the surgery, as my eyes were dry on examination.
Surgery Day
I didn’t use contacts within the next 3 weeks as I waited for the surgery to happen. Almost changed my mind several times, but the thought of being able to swim, do sports activities, and wear makeup without glasses was appealing. Also, I had sat on my glasses yet again, and I didn’t want to get another pair. I took a day off work and went to bed early the day before the surgery.
I left my house on Wednesday, accompanied by my housemate on the surgery day, at 8:04 am. I had been told to come in between 8 am — 9 am. The Lagos sun was shining down intensely, and I wondered why it chose that day to be that hot. Traffic was annoying, and we got to Lekki Phase 1 at exactly 8:58 am.
I gave the receptionist my hospital card, and she brought up my records. My file was taken to the optometrist’s office, and I was called in shortly after. The doctor conducted the usual tests, checking for eye pressure and the reading visual acuity test. I was taken upstairs to recheck my eyes for eye-rings and other things. Loved how particular they were about checking for everything.
After this, I signed a consent form and was taken into the elevator to the surgical ward area. In the surgical ward area, I left my belongings with my housemate and was taken into an enclosed ward. I was given a hospital robe with a hair net and face mask here. My footwear was taken off, and I was given hospital slippers. My phone, earrings, and glasses were left on a table in this ward.
A nurse wheeled my chair to the actual surgery room. I was then transferred from the chair to the surgical bed. I was covered with a cloth sheet and asked to speak if I needed anything or if the room was too cold.
Each eye had to be operated on one at a time. My left eye was covered, and my right eye was disinfected and cleaned. The doctor came in a bit later and talked me through the procedure. She clamped back my eyelashes to prevent blinking and to ensure my eyes were as open as possible. The bed was navigated under the machine.
I was told to focus on the green light in the circular laser mechanism above my eyes. The lens mechanism was slowly moved toward my eye, and I focused on the green light until my vision got blurry. This took about 10 seconds. I felt the incision being made on my eyeball. The surgical bed was pushed back out from underneath the machine afterward. The doctor then adjusted my right cornea with a tiny scalpel. The adjustment was mildly uncomfortable, and she applied eye drops while she did this.
My right eye was covered when she was done. The same action happened to my left eye. The whole process took less than 2 minutes. After she was done with the left eye, I was led to sit back on the chair and moved to another part of the surgical room. Here, the doctor further examined and properly cleaned my eyes.
I was taken back to the ward after this. I noticed my eyes were really red. The nurse told me that was all and I would be required to return for a checkup the next day. I made my way back downstairs, assisted by my housemate. The nurse gave me 3 bottles of eye drops — antibiotics, moisturizing, and steroids.
My vision at this point was mainly bright and a bit blurry. I also received dark sunglasses to wear as I had to minimize light exposure to my eyes for at least 24 hours. After receiving the medications and sunglasses, I left for home.
On getting home, I went to my room to lie down, remembering to make the room as dark as possible. Then I set hourly alarms for my eye drops application. I ate lunch and promptly dosed off. I felt a random prickly feeling in my eyes occasionally, but it was not so discomforting. I woke up every hour to apply eye drops and listened to music. I didn’t use my phone to avoid the screen light. Went to sleep after applying the last round of eye drops at 10:23 pm.
Post-surgery
I was up at 7:08 am the following day. Expected to open my eyes and start singing, “I can see clearly nowww.” Alas, my vision was still slightly blurry. I had a shower, keeping it in mind to keep water away from my eyes.
After this, I put the sunglasses back on and requested a ride to take me to the hospital. I noticed how easy it was to read off billboards, and I felt a certain thrill within me. Getting to the hospital, I could see a lot. I went to see Dr. Eme, who made me do the visual acuity tests again. I could read some letters in the last line of the chart. He was astonished. Apparently, it takes some people more than a week to achieve that feat.
I had to see Dr. Ashaye as well. She applied eye drops to my eyes and took a look at them. She said the procedure had gone well, and my eyes would be fully functional quickly. I was told to come back in a week for another checkup.
I went back home and kept the sunglasses on. I had to work, but I mainly had meetings. I applied the eye drops every 6 hours according to the new instruction from the doctor. I used my phone a bit and was indoors until the day ended. I was on my laptop around midnight for a listening session for Davido’s Timeless album.
On Friday, I woke up and was feeling restless. I could see much better, and my eyes just felt slightly weepy. Took a bath and left the house to drop off laundry. I ended up going to the gym. Did my workouts with perfect vision. I was glad I didn’t have to adjust my glasses between sets.
Went back home, and I had meetings. Did some design updates on Figma. Left the house in the evening to see John Wick 4. I wanted to test the state of my new eyesight. Easy with the judging reader. I could see clearly that night, but cars and street lights were bright and spiral. Didn’t feel any pain in my eyes. However, I had a slight headache which might have been a residual symptom of Malaria that I had refused to treat days before.
I sat in the middle row at the cinema and could see perfectly. The weepy sensation I had experienced earlier in the day had stopped. Watched the movie until the end and went home around midnight.
In the days that followed, I went out and worked normally. Went to the beach, art exhibition, brunch, and the hair salon. My eyes kept getting better and better. I still have a bit of light sensitivity at night, but I can see things without any blur. Had a follow-up appointment with Dr. Ashaye 2 weeks after the surgery. I could read off the reading charts easily and she confirmed that my eyes were in a perfect state.
Cost Breakdown:
Hospital registration — 15,000 Naira
Initial eye tests/consultation — 200,000 Naira
SMILE eye surgery — 3,000,000 Naira
Post-surgery medication and sunglasses — 50,000 Naira
If you ask me if I would do the surgery over again, I’d say yes without a pause. Feels like my whole life has been transformed and I am experiencing visual ease doing all the things I love. Can’t believe I did life for almost 15 years without perfect vision. I am more excited about trying new experiences and seeing (Get it?) all life has coming my way.
Eye surgery is an option I think people should explore, as it provides a permanent solution to eye issues. It is important to ensure you use the service of a trusted doctor and hospital. The team at Eye Foundation Hospital did an amazing job.
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April 11. 02:11 pm.