My Trans PRK recovery (nobody could’ve warned me about what I was getting myself into)

I’m 22 (-3.25L and -3.0R) and got Trans PRK done on both eyes recently. My doctor is very experienced and she warned me a considerable number of times that the recovery would be pretty miserable so I would be prepared. I’m someone who has a pretty decent pain tolerance compared to some of my friends which led me to think I could handle it.

The actual surgery was a breeze, about 45 seconds each eye and no major discomfort. My doctor was happy with the way it went and counselled me on the different eye drops I need to be using.

An hour later, all hell broke loose. My eyes felt like they were on fire. It felt like there was a poisonous flesh eating bacteria released into my eyelids. This sensation of burning was constant and though very painful, manageable. The worst part was the occasional sensation of a hot needle being poked into my eye from the inside of my head. This feeling occurred almost every 20 seconds and it always caught me by surprise because I never got used to the sudden almost unimaginable, recurring pain. My eyes were swollen and extremely light sensitive. I had constant tears flowing out of my eyes and a runny nose. Pain level 9/10. Pain killers and soothing eye drops were of no help. I held onto my parents and cried the entire night. I think if somebody would’ve asked me at that point if perfect vision was a good reward for going through this amount of turmoil, I definitely would have said no. Ended up getting around 4-5 hours of sleep.

The next morning the pain got slightly better. I wasn’t constantly in fear of the needles poking into my eyes and could relax by listening to some music. The pain kept fading as the day went by and I thanked the universe for getting me through the hardest parts.

I’m currently 6 days post surgery with my bandage lenses off and feeling good. Now that I can see things much more clearly than before, I could say that it was worth it. However, nothing could have prepared me for the hell I went through 18 hours post surgery. Just wanted to share my experience and warn people out there that if you’re unlucky or have a low pain tolerance like me, be prepared to have the worst night of your life.