Being nervous on the day of your surgery is normal
We fear what we don’t know. And of course, there’s no way of knowing what it’s going to be like to have Laser Eye Surgery and what the outcome is going to be until you have it.
For this reason, a little fear and nerves are completely normal. It helps get you excited and remind you that you are doing something incredibly important and that the decision is not to be taken lightly.
All that being said, a good clinic will make it so that the fear or nerves you feel are not so strong that you can’t sleep or are anxiously searching google and reading other people’s stories the night before.
A good clinic reduces this anxiety by helping you see and understand as much of what you don’t know as possible. They know the importance of making you feel calm and comfortable during the process, and so, from the very beginning, they take the time to ensure you are well informed and that any of your doubts are put to rest.
The more you know, the more the nerves go from being tainted by anxiety and fear to being infused with healthy alertness and sense of excitement.
Here are a few of the main areas which are useful to know about:
Surgery length
Over the years, the length of the Laser Eye Surgery procedure has been dramatically reduced.
PRK, a surface treatment that is one of the original types of Laser Eye Surgery, takes around fifteen minutes to perform. In contrast, ReLEx SMILE, the latest generation of Laser Eye Surgery, takes just two minutes to perform.
The figures you hear will thus be different for the particular treatment in question. However, they may also differ depending on where you hear them from.
For instance, some clinics may tell you the treatment time according to how long it takes for the laser to treat one eye, whereas others may report the length of the whole procedure from the moment you enter the surgery room to the moment you leave.
That being said, you’re not going to be spending much time there anyway. Typically, if you go to a high-quality clinic and are having LASIK or ReLEx SMILE, you can expect to be in and out of the surgery room in around ten minutes.
Surgery flow
The day of the surgery can be a bit of a mystery and, therefore, a bit daunting. But the more you find out, you more you feel at ease and appreciate the decades of work that has gone into it all to make it how it is.
It all starts with the staff greeting you at the clinic and explaining everything you need to know and do. Depending on your clinic, you may then sit and wait for your treatment, or you might be offered a complimentary massage.
You will then be prepped to go into the surgery room, where you will spend the next few minutes with the expert laser eye surgeon—whom you should have already met. They will do everything possible to make you feel comfortable, such as giving you a blanket so you’re nice and warm and having a friendly chat with you.
The next part is often what amazes patients the most. The actual procedure takes a few minutes to perform, and before you know it, it will be over and you’ll be taking five or ten minutes to lay down in a quiet room to allow your eyes to rest a little.
After that, it’s time to go home via a taxi or a lift from a friend, where you will spend the rest of the day, or the next few hours at least, relaxing with your eyes closed. Most people see immediate results when they sit up after the procedure, but this downtime allows your eyes the best possible conditions for recovery.
Potential pain & discomfort
No matter if you hear there will be no pain or discomfort whatsoever during the procedure, there can still be a little tinge of doubt that you might be the one to feel some.
There is really no solution to this other than to do your research (from reliable sources) and to know that it’s okay to be a little scared or nervous. In fact, if you weren’t a little nervous about such a life-changing treatment, it would be a little weird.
The calming voice of the surgeon
Laser eye surgeons are experts in what they do. This means they not only know everything there is to know about the eyes and how to treat them, they know how to help their patients feel secure and at ease.
One of the ways they may do this is by talking you through each step of the treatment while it is happening. Rather than being distracting and a little disconcerting, patients often report how nice this is as they can hear the reassuring calm and control of the surgeon’s voice.
No unwanted surprises
As Laser Eye Surgery is typically a new experience for everyone who has it, much of the fear comes from the mind conjuring up a million and one ideas about all the things that could go wrong.
It’s not that these things are likely to happen, but rather that the process is unfamiliar and the fear of stepping into the unknown creates all these potential scenarios to keep you on your toes. As we said, some of these nerves can be useful, but in an incredibly safe procedure that’s been performed millions of times, most of it is downright unnecessary.
Patients are often surprised by many things about the procedure—how quick and comfortable it was, how soon they could see results—but unwanted surprises are almost unheard of. Especially today with advanced tech and when working with an expert surgical team with a wealth of knowledge and experience.
Still nervous? Drop us a comment below or get in touch for a chat with one of our friendly clinic coordinators.
