Lasik surgery?

I had LASIK done about 6 years ago and it literally changed my life. I was legally blind (20/400), hated glasses because there was no peripheral vision, and was so dependent on my contacts I would sleep with them in and carry a little bottle of contact juice with me everywhere.

I had a family friend recommend a doctor in CA who apprenticed with the doctor who invented it, so I felt pretty confident in going to him. It was totally painless, they even give you a valium to relax, and the next day I opened my eyes and could see the digits on my alarm clock in crystal-clear reality…not be afraid to do water sports…no more anxiety about losing contacts, etc.

The only side effects for me was immediately after the surgery my eyes were tearing so bad I couldn’t open them, but was so tired I just went home and to sleep…they give you these soft goggles to wear for a week or so when sleeping so you don’t rub your eye or something at night. If you want all the gritty details I can tell you, but I don’t want to go on and gross people out.

I had the procedure done in 2000. My doctor was an “early adopter” and charged accordingly. This means it was NOT one of those $1000/eye specials you see advertised. I would certainly pay more, if I were you, and go to someone with 10+ years of experience. There were several pre-surgery consultations.

Right from the beginning, I felt LASIK was amazing. I had thick glasses from age 8 on, and my perscription was so strong that even when I got contact lenses I couldn’t wear the disposable ones and they were very expensive (astigmatism sp? was a factor). Anyway, the Lasik brought me right to 20/20 with very little recovery time. For the first six months or so, I used eye drops regularly. It didn’t bother me much to have to do this.

Now that it is 8 years later, I do notice that my eyes tear more than normal, but I’m not sure if that is the procedure’s fault or if I have seasonal allergies. In any case, drops are cerntainly never necessary and I have no trouble with night vision. I’d have it done again in a minute. I think if you find the right doctor you should go for it.

I haven’t had this surgery done, but for this (your eyes) or virtually any surgery, I would go for the most experienced surgeon you can get—he or she should be doing this ten times a day or more all year long.

Had my eyes done almost a year ago. Both my eyes had been short sighted with almost double digits plus astigmatism. In my particular field having sharp visual acuity was very important so I asked my coworkers who had it done. They had recommended this one fellow who had 3 separate locations just for him. I checked out the machines he used as well as their maintence logs. Also verified his creditials as a ophlamologist. Had an appointment with him to see if I was comfortable with him. I guess what really convince me to try him was that he corrected a coworkers eyes which were LASIK by someone else. To do LASIK was one thing but to correct someone else mistakes told me that he was a master at this. Every doctor will tell you that you can get it corrected by them if they make a mistake but how many would eventry if it was some else mistake? Now that a year has passes I have no regrets doing it. I find myself using moisture drops more often when the air is dry but that was almost the same amount of liquid as when I used rewetting drops when I wore contacts

I have always heard that LASIK doesn’t prevent age-related visual changes (presbyopia); so most people will wind up needing reading glasses anyway. I suggest doing thorough research and going for at least a few different consultations. And please report back on what you choose… Thanks, and Good Luck!!

definetly have it done. Here’s some info to consider. 1) the doctor’s probably won’t tell this unless you ask. Have only your dominant eye done. This way you can prolong the need for bifocals. This is what happened for me. I would have already needed them about two years ago, but because I didn’t do both eyes, I now read with my bad eye. Not sure if this is your type of vision, but ask your dr.

My boss recently got Lasik, I can’t because I have astigmatism, but she said it worked miracles. The recovery process was phenomenally fast and there was little to no pain. However, I have heard that it’s not permanent. Your eyes will continue to degrade. So after a while you may need to return to spectacles albeit a much lighter prescription

@shockvalue- one thing that I do know is that having astigmatism does’nt necessarily mean you can’t get Lasik. I have astigmatism and know someone who had it and had the surgery. He had it done a little while ago and still uses reading glasses.