Rebecca McCleary

Implantable Contact Lens (ICL)

With her little girl in her arms, Rebecca McCleary realised she was missing out on so much.

Extremely short-sighted, with a prescription of minus 16, Rebecca knew she was not able to see potential dangers facing 2 ½ year old daughter Elizabeth because of her poor vision.

Now, after seeking help from Vision Surgery and Research Centre in East Yorkshire, Rebecca has 20/20 vision and is living life to the full.

“I know it might sound a bit corny but this has changed my life,” said Rebecca, 34. “You don’t realise how much wearing glasses restricts your life until you don’t need them anymore.

“I never imagined I’d be able to live my life without glasses. But I’ve got peripheral vision and I can see everything so clearly.

“It has, quite simply, had a dramatic and positive impact on my quality of life.”

Rebecca, of Market Weighton, had worn glasses since the age of six. With such a high prescription, contact lenses were not an option for her.

After Elizabeth was born in November 2014, her poor eyesight became more of an issue in everyday life with her daughter and husband Andrew.

“I was always worried about my daughter pulling at my glasses because my vision would instantly become blurred,” she said. “I was worried about driving because, all of a sudden, I was responsible for someone else’s life too.

“One day, I was coming out of the shower and I didn’t see water on the floor because I wasn’t wearing my glasses. Elizabeth came in and slipped on the water because I wasn’t able to warn her and that was it.

“I knew it was time to do something about this.”

Rebecca contacted Milind Pande, one of the UK’s most respected eye surgeons and medical director of Vision Surgery and Research Centre in North Ferriby.

She said: “I had total faith in him. He was so calm and I knew I could trust him.”

Mr Pande advised Rebecca that she was suitable for contact lens implants, where bespoke lenses tailored exactly to her needs were implanted over her existing lenses under general anaesthetic.

He said: “Patients with high prescriptions like Rebecca are not suitable for laser surgery so this is an ideal solution for them.

“While some may still require glasses for reading or close work, the results for Rebecca were outstanding and she no longer requires glasses for any task.”

Rebecca underwent surgery at Spire Hospital, Anlaby, on her first eye in June 2017 and on her second in August and the improvement in her vision was beyond her expectations.

She said: “I remember driving home with my husband in the car and playing a game to see who could read the furthest away number plate. I was reading number plates even he couldn’t see.”

Now with 20/20 vision in her right eye and better than 20/20 vision in her left, which had been her ‘worst’ eye, Rebecca has no hesitation in recommending Mr Pande and Vision Surgery and Research Centre.

She said: “It wasn’t about the hassle of wearing glasses for me, it was about quality of life.

“There was so much before that I couldn’t see and experience and people should be aware of this option and the brilliant results that Mr Pande can achieve.

“People should know there is hope.”