LASIK usually doesn't hurt during surgery: numbing drops leave mostly pressure for a short stretch. Afterward, burning, watering or grittiness for a few hours is common; severe or worsening pain is not and needs a check.
What you feel on the table
Does LASIK eye surgery hurt once the drops wear off?
LASEK and SMILE LASIK feel different in the first days
Which pain after LASIK is a warning sign?
Dry, gritty eyes are the discomfort that lasts longest
Who shouldn't have LASIK, sore or not?
Planning a Seoul trip around the sore hours
LASIK usually doesn't hurt during surgery, so the short answer to "does lasik hurt" is no for the short time on the table and "a little, for a few hours" afterward. For someone flying in, the bigger worry is usually that first evening alone in a Seoul hotel room, with eyes that burn and water and a flight home a few days later. At EYEONCE the same doctor examines you, operates and does the follow-up checks, so the person who looks at your eye the morning after knows exactly what was done.
Numbing drops handle the surface of the eye. What you notice is pressure, a few seconds of dimmed vision, then a sandy, stinging feeling once the drops wear off. Below is what's normal, what isn't, and who shouldn't have laser surgery at all.
If you're fitting this around a trip, send two things on WhatsApp: the dates you can be in Seoul and a photo of your latest glasses prescription. The team uses them to build the schedule around you, including how many days to plan and where the next-day check falls. WhatsApp consultation runs in English, Chinese, Mongolian and Thai.
Pressure, mostly. The FDA's patient guide to LASIK says a numbing drop goes in first, then a ring is placed on the eye and suction is applied; your vision dims while it's on, and you may feel the pressure and some discomfort during that part. That stretch is short, and EYEONCE lists about 10 minutes as the typical surgery time.
For LASIK here, the Ziemer FEMTO Z8 femtosecond laser makes the thin corneal flap, and the WaveLight EX500 excimer laser, which has eye-tracking, reshapes the tissue underneath. No blade touches the eye. An instrument holds the eyelids open, so you don't have to fight the urge to blink, and you're asked to look at a light while the laser works.
The drops numb the eye, not the nerves in your stomach. EYEONCE has in-house interpreters for English, Chinese, Mongolian and Thai, so the questions you have right before surgery don't have to go through a translation app.
In short, it can sting for a few hours. The FDA describes the eye right after surgery as possibly burning, itching or feeling like something is in it, with discomfort or, in some cases, mild pain. Both eyes may water, and your doctor may suggest a mild pain reliever.
A shield goes over the eye at the end of the procedure so you don't rub it, especially in your sleep. Rubbing is the real hazard on night one, because the LASIK flap has only just been laid back and it seals without stitches. EYEONCE's aftercare asks for protective shields while sleeping in the early days and no eye rubbing at all.
The practical plan for that evening is dull on purpose: arrange transport or a companion for surgery day, go straight back to the hotel, keep the lights low and sleep. For many people the sting has eased by the next morning, while some blur and light sensitivity can take longer to settle.
LASEK is the path that tends to hurt more, and for longer. Instead of a flap, the thin surface layer of the cornea (the epithelium) is loosened and the laser treats the surface directly, so that layer has to heal over. The American Academy of Ophthalmology's EyeWiki entry on LASEK notes that a soft bandage lens stays on until the surface has healed, typically around day 3 or 4, and lists post-operative pain and discomfort among its drawbacks.
| Path | The first days usually feel like | Why |
|---|---|---|
| LASIK | A few hours of burning, watering and grittiness; light activity often the next day | The flap covers the treated tissue |
| LASEK | Discomfort and light sensitivity over several days, a bandage lens in place | The surface layer has to regrow |
| SMILE LASIK | Generally closer to LASIK than to LASEK | No flap is cut; tissue is removed through a small incision (Reinstein et al., 2014) |
So why would anyone pick the sorer option? Because LASEK suits thinner corneas, small eyes with limited flap suitability, sensitive eyes and contact-sport lifestyles, and a few extra uncomfortable days can be a fair trade for not having a flap. EYEONCE's guidance for LASEK describes gradual improvement through week one and stabilization typically by month one to three, with sunglasses outdoors in the meantime. The longer read on who LASEK is actually for covers that choice in detail.
Severe pain, or vision that gets worse instead of better, is the sign to come in. The FDA says to contact your eye doctor immediately in either case, and with any new, unusual or worsening symptom at any point after surgery.
The line between the two lists below is the direction things are moving. Normal discomfort fades; warning signs build.
Usually expected in the first day or two
Not to sit out in a hotel room
Infection and a shifted flap are rare after LASIK, but they are the reasons the second list exists, and both are easier to manage when caught early. EYEONCE's own instruction is direct: if you feel a foreign-body sensation or pain, visit the clinic right away, or see a local ophthalmologist first and then get in touch. Re-examination and, where appropriate, re-treatment fall under the clinic's lifetime aftercare; the exact conditions are explained at consultation.
The thing I'd least like a patient to do is wait out worsening pain in a hotel room because they don't want to bother anyone. A message that turns out to be nothing is a good outcome.
If something here touches a worry you already carry, such as a past eye infection or eyes that are always dry, put it in one WhatsApp message together with your latest prescription.
The sting fades within hours; dryness can hang around for weeks. The FDA notes you may be advised to use artificial tears, and that glare, halos and difficulty driving at night may persist while vision stabilizes.
EYEONCE's aftercare for laser surgery asks you to avoid electronic screens as much as possible for one to three months, keep away from dust and smoke, and use every prescribed drop and artificial tear as directed. For someone who spends ten hours a day on a laptop, that screen advice is the hardest part of recovery to follow, and it's worth deciding before the trip how you'll handle the first weeks back at work.
Eyes that are already dry before surgery tend to notice post-operative dryness more, which is why tear quality matters at the exam as much as the prescription does.
Some eyes shouldn't have LASIK at all, and pain has nothing to do with it. The FDA's page When is LASIK not for me? lists situations such as a prescription that is still changing, very dry eyes, thin corneas, large pupils, certain diseases that affect healing, contact sports, pregnancy or nursing, and jobs that restrict refractive surgery.
For some of those, there's another route rather than a flat no. Thinner corneas may point to LASEK. Very high myopia, very dry eyes, large pupils at night or corneas too thin for any laser may point to ICL, an implantable lens that removes no corneal tissue; EYEONCE uses the EVO Aqua ICL with CentraFLOW. And for some people the right answer is to keep wearing glasses for now.
Contact lenses distort those measurements, so soft lenses come out at least 5 to 7 days before the exam, and hard, RGP or ortho-k lenses need a longer break. If you're unsure how long yours need, that's a question to ask on WhatsApp before you book flights.
For laser vision correction, a stay of about 3 to 5 days is typical: exam and surgery can often be done the same day, with a next-day check before you fly home. The first evening is the uncomfortable one, so the plan works better with nothing scheduled after surgery.
The clinic is closed on Wednesdays and Sundays, so a surgery day whose next day is open is worth choosing. A Monday, Thursday or Friday surgery keeps the next-day check on a clinic day. EYEONCE is on the 5th and 6th floors of Duo Sinnonhyeon, 368 Sapyeong-daero, Seocho-gu, and appointments are required.
After you're home, the restrictions are about protection more than pain: no eye rubbing, no swimming, sauna or steam rooms for about a month, and no eye makeup for two weeks. The post on SMILE LASIK recovery and daily life walks through the weeks after, and the checklist for LASIK in Korea covers what to settle before you book.
When you're ready to see how the days line up, send your travel dates and a photo of your current prescription on WhatsApp, along with anything from the warning list that worries you. The team builds the schedule around those dates, so you know before buying a ticket how many nights to book and on which day your next-day check falls.
Results and suitability vary by individual. Your procedure recommendation is confirmed only through an in-person diagnostic exam.
Representative Director · Former Clinical Instructor, Dept. of Ophthalmology, Samsung Seoul Hospital · Member, Korean Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery · Member, American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery
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An English-speaking eye clinic in the heart of Gangnam, Seoul — moments from Sinnonhyeon Station and easily reached from Incheon International Airport.
5–6F, Duo Sinnonhyeon, 368 Sapyeong-daero, Seocho-gu, Seoul, South Korea
+82-10-6308-0984 — English, Chinese, Mongolian & Thai
Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri 09:00–18:00 · Sat 09:00–16:00 · Lunch break 13:00–14:00 · Closed Wed & Sun
By appointment only · Registration may close early depending on the day’s schedule.
Sinnonhyeon Station (Line 9 / Sinbundang Line) — 3 min walk. Gangnam Station (Line 2) nearby.