After Surgery - ICL Part 4
Since I did my surgery on Saturday morning, I took most of the weekend to just rest up. I used my phone for only short periods of time to reply messages. On Monday, I was back at work!
It was wondrous to wake up with crystal clear eye sight.
Doctor's comments during review
13 Jan 2025 (1 week): Dr said that my eye pressure was good, my left eye was healing faster, and overall I was healing beautifully despite such high degrees.
I was very pleased and moved because I was reminded by how bad my eyesight was and how I now had clear eyesight :')
After ICL Care:
According to instructions, for the first month you need 4 drops each eye every 2 hours. I set alarms on my phone to help me with this.
I also wore protective eye shields just for the first day when going home, and the first night. I looked like a bug. xD
OPTIVE eye drops - I used this really liberally and it helped a lot! Eventually OPTIVE (Sodium carboxymethylcellulose) was kind of pricey at $20 per box, so I went to Shopee and used 'Refresh Plus' eye drops, that were apparently used often after LASIK. (source) Don't take my word for it, you can check with your doctor if these are suitable for you.
Felt eye pressure and some headaches especially on the first day, probably because the lens creates eye pressure and is still settling in. I mostly slept it away! Everything was very bright and clear. There was definitely some light sensitivity and I guess you could use sunglasses to help with that, or slowly adjust! Most of the pain disappeared after two days.
Halos:
You may experience halos! It looks like rings of light around bright light sources, like street lamps.
One of the staff assured me that halos are very, very normal and they are caused by the way the lens sits in your eyes. For me, the first night was the most intense and I was quite shocked and amazed by how the street lamps from far away were so bright.
Jan 2025 (right after surgery): Very pronounced haloes, kind of cool.
April 2025: Still seeing halos but they are much milder.
July 2025: Only see the occasional halo when I intentionally look at the overhead traffic lights at night. They have mostly disappeared!
Overall Vision
After a few days, everything became in clear, SHARP focus. I often joke with my husband that now all I see at home is random dirt and mould hiding in nooks and crannies. You're about to experience super sharp vision!!!
Night Vision
All good! I did not experience any 'night blindness' or such.
Dry eyes
After your last follow up at 6 weeks, you can use the lubricant eyedrops as and when you wish. I still carry a few with me as my eyes feel dry when I am tired. For the first month, avoid smoke and dirt.
One BBQ dinner at a woodfired restaurant dried my eyes out once and I used a couple vials of eyedrops that night.
Swimming
You may swim after the first month. This was to minimise contact with bacteria and possible infections, even though the small slit in your eye should heal really quickly. I only continued pool activities in March as my mum told me to give it a few months to be extra safe.
Going forwardSomeone on Reddit suggested going to the aquarium to give their eyes a treat, and I think this is such a fun idea! I'll try it once the aquarium re-opens.
Life is great now! I'm glad I had the opportunity to do this surgery and that it was a successful one. I am extremely thankful to my doctor and team for giving my eyes a new lease of life :')
*Not everyone's experience is the same so please understand I am just sharing my journey)
Hope this series has been useful to you! Wishing you all the best.
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Disclaimer:
I'm not affiliated to the clinic, and this is not a sponsored post. Just sharing my experience and two cents.
I'm also not a medical professional so questions of that nature should be directed to your doctor instead :)
Read the whole ICL series:
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