Surviving Without Make-Up For Laser Eye Surgery: If I Can Do It, Anyone Can

I've been kinda sorta thinking about it for the last eleventy billion years or so, but my impending 30th finally provided the kick up the arse I needed to go and have laser eye surgery. Funnily enough, once I'd decided on a provider there was only a week between my consultation and the surgery itself and while it's unspeakably amazing to be able to see without specs or contacts, undergoing laser eye surgery has had its drawbacks.

Forget concerns about potential complications: for three days before the op and a week afterwards, my surgeon dictated that I couldn't wear any slap at all - not a single solitary scrap.

That was enough to to momentarily take my make-up lovin' mind clean off any worries I was having about the surgery, but once the initial panic subsided I was pretty confident that I could go make-up free for a fortnight without completely falling to pieces.

Ha! I could have cried with happiness when I was eventually permitted to get at all my lovely make-up again.

If I had to do it over, I'd make sure that I was a bit more organised beauty wise ...

1. The number one thing I missed was being able to wear mascara, and while eyelash extensions are forbidden (that's why I went with the two-week option), it is possible to have lashes tinted and/or permed as long as it's done at least week beforehand. I reckon a treatment like Yumi Lashes would fit the bill very nicely indeed.
2. I'd quit prodding and poking blocked pores well in advance of the surgery so that my skin would be nice and calm when the option of plastering over squeeze-induced redness was taken away. The memory of having to face the world with a camouflage-free red, swollen, lumpy chin thanks to a slightly overenthusiastic session in front of that accursed magnifying mirroris going to haunt me for the longest time.On the upside, I haven't partaken in any such boldness for over a fortnight now and my skin's looking all the better for it, so every cloud and all that.
3. I'd have the foresight (badumm tisch!) to try on the plastic goggles that I had to wear for the first three nights after surgery without Himself in the vicinity, realised they were beyond hideous, and avoid being seen in them at all costs.

Happily, I managed to get two things right: I did my nails the night before going under the laser, so I had pretty fingers to distract me from my blotchy, wan complexion and bloodshot eyes.

Awesome talon skillz!

I also made sure that I had my biggest sunglasses at the ready anytime I left the house afterwards. Wearing sunnies was a recommended post-op precaution anyway, but it had the added and blessed benefit of hiding half my unmade-up face and my eyes when I was at my most bloodshot in the few days immediately following the surgery.

So if you saw some looper wearing her sunglasses and admiring her nails on the Underground in London over the last week or so - hello!

Always refer to your own ophthalmic surgical team for advice and approval before undertaking any beauty treatment prior to or after surgery. What was applicable to my situation may not be for yours, and all have their own rules about what's permissible pre-op or at any given stage of recovery. Only your own team can let you know what's appropriate for your eyes.