LASIK in Istanbul – my experience report – report from Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Operation report by Simon, 1978 / Operation in April 2009

Consider the awakening of spring and the appearance of the dawn. Beauty reveals itself to those who observe.
Khalil Gibran
And thanks to Swisslasik and Eyestar, we can now do this without glasses.
How it all began: together with my friend Prisca, who came along as an accompanying person, we flew with Turkish Airlines to Istanbul on Sunday, 19 April 2009, where we were picked up by Birol in an elegant car. Together with two other patients who had arrived with us, we spent the evening together. The next morning at 11 a.m., we were picked up by Fred. The walk from the recommended Taksim Gonen Hotel to the Eyestar clinic was very short, even on foot. Upon arrival, we were greeted extremely warmly. We took a seat in the waiting area, where we were immediately offered something to drink. Everything looked very trustworthy, well maintained and professional, so much so that my friend spontaneously whispered to me whether it might be possible for her to have her eyes lasered as well. Without hesitation, she asked a member of staff whether short-notice eye laser treatment would even be possible. After consulting with the doctor, Prisca was informed that she could also take part in the preliminary examination. Instantly, Prisca was handed the form to fill in her details. After a while, I was called into the examination room, where the doctor examined my eyes very thoroughly. The assessments were more detailed than those during the preliminary examination in Zurich. At all times, Fred was available to us and translated everything for us, even into Swiss German. Once Prisca’s examinations were also completed, it was confirmed that her eyes were suitable for laser surgery as well. We had to pay the fee immediately, which was about a quarter of the cost compared to an operation in Switzerland. Afterwards, we went to eat something before returning to the clinic at around 4 p.m. Upon arrival, the procedure was explained to us and the other six patients in great detail once again before we went one floor up. Up there, we had to put another pair of blue shoe covers over the first ones to keep everything as sterile as possible. I was the second to go in. While the first patient was being lasered, I was allowed to sit in the massage chair. There, the numbing drops were applied to my eyes and everything was disinfected. The lasering itself was not as bad as expected and was over very quickly. Above all, I felt no pain at all. After the subsequent follow-up examination, we returned to the hotel, where we applied our cocktail of eye drops as instructed and then fell asleep. The next morning, after the second follow-up check, the four of us went on a sightseeing tour through Istanbul. Vision was already very satisfactory on the first day after the operation. On Wednesday, 22 April, after a short shopping trip, we flew home again in good spirits. At home, we rested our eyes as recommended. Nevertheless, there were fluctuations in visual acuity, especially for my friend. Now, after two weeks, we are both satisfied and hope that in the coming weeks our eyes will heal well and that visual acuity will fully return.
Life is enchanting; one only has to see it through the right glasses.
Alexandre Dumas the Younger
Or have your eyes lasered by the right people.