Now to talk about recovery. *picks up where journal entry left off*
I wake up at 3:15pm, and put in the first of my eye drops. I have four sets: one to be put in every 10 minutes, another every 30 minutes, and two others every half hour but separated by a five-minute gap. I listen to Orwell's "Animal Farm" (praise the Lord for audiobooks!) and later venture downstairs to the Outback Steakhouse from which I would get all my meals. I walk into the hallway with the trepidation of an orator going into his first public speech, and place my order. I'm wearing sunglasses indoors despite the evening hour, and am surprised to find that no one is throwing me the furtive, examining, suspicious glances that I expect. I eat dinner and go back to my audiobook.
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| Since the hotel doesn't allow food delivery, I just went to Outback! #lunchspecial |
Day 2 (the day after surgery)
I wake up at some unholy hour, maybe 4 a.m., and feel a pang of hunger. I finish the other half of my dinner and spend the morning continuing my audioread of H.G. Wells' "The Invisible Man." My eyes are still Water Works Central and I've already run through the bedside box of tissues. I wash my face (very carefully) and brush my teeth — even if no one will see me all day, that's no reason not to keep myself in order.
Now for the awkward moment: The doorbell to my room rings while I'm asleep. Thinking that the sound emanated from next door, I still lie there. Something tells me to get up and I make my way to the foyer, where a housekeeper has let herself in with her master room card. Both of us are surprised. She tells me in Korean that it was past checkout time, and I tell her that I'm not scheduled to check out until tomorrow (I thought it would be best to buy a second night at the hotel. Thanks, Orbitz, for the discount). Her cell phone rings; apparently, the front desk has called to give her the update that she shouldn't be in my room because I'm not checking out today. She apologizes, empties the trash cans and leaves.
I can see a little more clearly than yesterday but that's not saying much. The pain today is mild and goes in and out, but is only a minor annoyance.
Day 3
Not going to lie, I was miserable for the first half of this day. This is all I wrote in my journal...
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| And that was all he wrote... |
Day 8
Fast forward to a week after the surgery. I haven't had any pain since day 3, so I'm super happy about that. Since arriving at home, I've mostly been lounging around, audiobooking/audiobibling, and doing some light stretching (since I can't do "strenuous exercise" for another month).
I've been responding to text messages via voice note, which is AMAZING! I can't see well enough to type yet, but I'll be there soon.
Three days ago, my small group went out to dinner at a shabu shabu place. My friend Aaron came to escort me to the place, and was surprised that I could see well enough not to get hit by a car (there was that one time I fell into a hole, though...but that's an aside). It was great to see my boys again and to interact with someone outside a vision clinic.
I can see fairly well now, definitely better than pre-surgery. As I walked to the nearby clinic for a checkup today, I was AMAZED at how I could read everything outside — names of buildings on the other side of the street, all sorts of things. Oddly, my vision is still fuzzy indoors and my eyes bend color light a bit, but nothing major. My peripheral vision is SHOT, so I have to physically turn my body around to check and see, for example, if a car is coming when I cross the street. The computer screen is still a problem, although it's sort of bearable if I wear sunglasses and zoom the text up about 300%.
Recovery has gone much faster than expected!
3 Weeks Later
I'm basically normal now! My vision is pretty great and I can use the computer without a problem. I have been breezing through books and am enjoying waking up and being able to see the numbers on my alarm clock across the room. I only have two sets of eye drops now, and as long as I use them regularly, my eyes don't get irritated.
My vision is better than 20/20 and still has some improvement to go! I've finally gotten back into a normal sleep schedule and can go outside freely (although I'm still wearing sunglasses to follow the doctor's orders). I'm so happy that I had LASEK and even convinced a friend to have her own surgery the other day.
Advice and Total Cost
Here's a breakdown of what I spent on the whole LASEK process. As a personal finance pundit in training, I'm always interested in total cost of ownership:
- Operation: 800,000 KRW
- Post-op checkups & medicine: 200,000 KRW
- Train tickets & food: 102,000 KRW (yes, I kept the receipts)
- Hotel: 140,000 KRW (One $200/night stay was free due to the clinic's promotion)
- Total: 1,240,000 KRW (USD $1,158)
In short, my entire LASEK process still cost $300 less than it would have in Daegu. Considering that a six-month of my contact lenses in the States cost about $300, this made loads of sense for me. The recovery wasn't a tenth as bad as I thought it would be. It really only "hurt" for one day, and other than that, recovery is just annoying and limits your activity. Honestly, it's been nice having a mandated break and not being able to be as active as normal, but now I'm raring to go again.
A few pieces of advice for anyone considering taking the plunge: Don't watch YouTube videos of the operation being done because they will most likely make you freak out. Don't overthink it. Do take at least a week (or more) off if you go for LASEK because you'll need it. Finally, pick a reputable surgeon and get ready for perfect vision for life!
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| Bye bye, contacts! Here's to never needing you again! |
