Many people are born with or develop poor eyesight, and for decades the only option for vision correction was wearing either glasses or contacts. That all changed when LASIK surgery became available; LASIK surgery is a type of non-invasive laser eye surgery that corrects the eyes and usually corrects vision to near perfect. Most people who get LASIK no longer need glasses or contacts to correct their vision. LASIK surgery is a short and simple procedure, but there is a recovery period. If you're planning on having LASIK surgery done to correct your eyesight, use the following tips to help ensure a smooth recovery:

Keep Your Hands Away From Your Eyes

In the days following LASIK surgery, your eyes may feel a bit dry or irritated. However, it is extremely important that you refrain from rubbing your eyes or touching them since doing so can introduce bacteria or can hurt the surface of the eyes. Most people touch or rub their eyes without even realizing that they are doing it, so for the first few days after your LASIK surgery, you may want to consider keeping your eyes covered with protective glasses.

Bathe Carefully

While your eyes are recovering from LASIK surgery, you will need to pay careful attention to your bathing routine. Showers are not recommended at first since you need to avoid splashing water in your eyes or accidentally introducing soap or shampoo to the eye area. Your best bet is to take a bath or use sponge baths to clean yourself until your eyes are completely healed.

Administer Eye Drops as Prescribed

Following your LASIK surgery, your eye doctor will most likely prescribe a couple of eye drops for you to use. Make sure that you fill your prescription for the eye drops right away and administer them exactly as prescribed. One eye drop will most likely be an antibiotic eye drop that promotes healing within your eyes and helps prevent infections. The other eye drop may be a lubricating eye drop that will help keep your eyes from feeling uncomfortable and will keep the cornea from becoming irritated. You will need to administer your eye drops several times a day according to schedule.

Avoid Bright Lights

It is not uncommon for eyes to be extra sensitive to light following LASIK surgery. If you have to be outdoors, make sure that you wear dark sunglasses. At home, keep the blinds and curtains closed and make sure that it is as dim as possible indoors. You can also wear sunglasses indoors if it is extremely bright. 

To learn more about LASIK, contact a company like Cornea Consultants of Nashville.