Lasik Eye Surgery

[Bardicrune]

I've been wearing glasses since 3rd grade, and am getting tired of purchasing a new pair every 2-3 years or so. Also fed up with the constant cleaning of the lenses and frames.

I'm curious as to any opinions on Lasik surgery. I don't have anyone near me that has had it done and I'm curious as to any stories you, or people you know, have about it. I'm trying to determine whether or not to have this done and am just looking for some feedback. I know about the procedure itself, just looking more for info on what to expect 2+ years down the line.

[Nefarious]

A family's co-worker had lasik surgery about 3(?) years ago. He said that the first month was a bit of an annoyance. He had a few complications which only caused dryness and a little irritation. Other than that, he was very pleased at the increased vision he had recovered. I've been thinking about this myself, but I'm paranoid (as always) when it comes to my own body.

[Melena]

I've known 3 people who did it. Two different co-workers (one of which went to his home country of India to have it done since it was cheaper then getting it done in the states) and all 3 loved it. Only complaints was the dry eyes for the first few days and the being useless with everything fuzzy the first day while you recover. Just make sure to do your research on the doctors in your area performing it, see what reviews they've gotten both good and bad, and go from there.

[aduidarnenye]

I had it done about 1.5 years ago. I had to have the most expensive possible type of surgery because of my astigmatism. My eyes are fine now. A bit dry every day, but eye drops fix that.

The surgery itself was hell for me. I was terrified I'd have to go back in six months to have one eye redone if it regressed. I was really sick for several days afterwards, massive headache and nausea. But that sort of thing affects people differently and I am still glad I had it done.

[Viq]

One of my good friends had it done about 4 months ago. I was his roommate at the time, so I saw all the stuff he had to do afterwards. It seemed relatively painless, with not a great deal of maintenance afterwards. He had to sleep with some swimming goggles on for a week or two, but that was probably the worst part of it. He said that within a week he was completely comfortable, and could see perfectly. I also wear glasses, but I actually like them. He has spent the last 4 months trying to convince me to get the surgery done, though.

[Fhqwghads]

I had mine done over a decade ago. I don't regret it a single bit. You'll have to be very careful for a while after it's done to protect your cornea. I do have dry eyes though, which is a nuisance, but that's more due to my abuse of contact lenses than from getting LASIK done. I don't even think about it at this point, unless someone brings it up. I'm very active, and even do probably the worst possible thing you could do that pushes the boundaries after this procedure - boxing and kickboxing. Getting hit in the eye with a punch is probably a really bad idea, but I've not had any problems.

Anyway, I highly recommend it, and I'd imagine that over the past 10 years they've improved the procedure dramatically. Just do your homework and find an experienced doctor who has done it thousands of times. You don't want some newbie fuckhead cutting your eyeball open and shooting lasers at it.

[Tweek]

how old are you? most places you have to be 25

about 10 people from my work have had it done and my parents had it done over 5 years they all love it.


one of my good friends told me his mothers friend had it done and she is basically blind now they fucked some shit up permanently but it was done a long time ago before it was as common as it is now so I'm sure it is just one of those freak stories and not common.

[Bardicrune]

how old are you? most places you have to be 25

about 10 people from my work have had it done and my parents had it done over 5 years they all love it.


one of my good friends told me his mothers friend had it done and she is basically blind now they fucked some shit up permanently but it was done a long time ago before it was as common as it is now so I'm sure it is just one of those freak stories and not common.

I'm an old fart. 33 currently.

[Counterfeit]

Did someone change your avatar for you or was it like that before you posted?

[Bardicrune]

Did someone change your avatar for you or was it like that before you posted?

I think I've been using that avatar on this forum since I joined 5 years ago.

[aduidarnenye]

one of my good friends told me his mothers friend had it done and she is basically blind now they fucked some shit up permanently but it was done a long time ago before it was as common as it is now so I'm sure it is just one of those freak stories and not common.

There's like a 0.5% chance of being permanently blinded. They make you sign waivers and stuff.

[Ezek]

Have you considered PRK? It has a longer recovery time and is generally more painful than Lasik, but the advantage is you won't have the flap in your eye become dislodged somehow like with Lasik surgery (since they pretty much just zap your eye with lazerz instead of opening it up like with Lasik).

[Penthesilea]

Never had an issue, was watching TV the night after my procedure. Loved it, my dad, my brother, and I all got it done and my sister refuses to. Don't know why.

Enjoy the smell of your burning eyeballs though.

[Obiron]

I had it done about two years ago. My only complaint is that contrast seems a bit screwy for me. The most noticeable is at night, looking at lights. I get kind of a star effect around lights. Not sure how best to describe it, but I googled and found this picture of a candle that can give you an idea of what I see, although not quite to that extent. If I focus on something (not necessarily the light, just pick a point and try to focus) it goes away and everything is normal. Almost like my eyes are too lazy to focus unless I consciously try. I still have hopes that if I keep working on it, my eyes will learn how to focus better automatically. I never notice this during the day, only in the dark, so it's not a constant annoyance. I did have a slight astigmatism, which may be part of the reason this happened.

Despite this, I have no regrets getting the surgery. I can see clearly, and my one complaint is one that I can make go away if I try. Not having to worry about contacts or glasses has been well worth it.

[Ryany]

I thought about it a few years back, but decided against it when I saw that they were advertising misleading statistics. How would most people define it as being a success? I would personally call it 20/20 or better vision without any side effects. I read the fine print and found out a lot of the “95% success rate” stats I read went up to 20/40 or something like that. I see 20/15 in contacts, so I doubt I’ll mess with good vision unless I can no longer wear contacts someday.

[*Shinzon*]

I actually really want to consider this maybe once I'm out of Law school. Being from the city there are tons of places that advertise, so how do people go about researching? I've never done any kind of research on medical procedures or doctors ever.

[aduidarnenye]

I've not had many side effects after recovering from the surgery itself, except for the dry eye stuff. I did notice I could no longer see my armpit stubble when I went to shave them for about a year or so after the surgery, so I lost some of my very close vision (but this has since improved). I had that light thing for a few weeks but it went away.

[Anton]

I got LASIk 8 months ago to correct nearsight.

Most people can get PRK, but depending on your prescription and eye condition you can get LASIK. In PRK, your eye is programmed into the laser beforehand, you're eight miles high, and the laser feels cool, if anything. All the operating equipment is painlessly installed and removed, you don't really have many nerves in your eye as in the lid. The recovery time is about a week, and involves a steroid eyedrop, an antibiotic drop, and you're going to want some unpreserved tears from your local pharmacy (they come in one-shot multipacks). Also, your vision recovers gradually over a few days, and you'll need a contact lens to shield the eye for a week while it heals.

LASIK is the same procedure, except the "contact lens" for recovery is made beforehand, using excess eye material. Again, the procedure is quick, though during the surgery you see in Blur-O-Vision with the flap off. The PRK laser is done, and then the flap is put back on and left to heal. You wear bug-eye shields at night for a week, more if you get discomfort if you like sleeping on your side. But the healing time for the vision is less than 8 hours. Right after the surgery you can see clearly, but it's incredibly sharp, like going from watching Saved By The Bell on an old tv to seeing High Definition Football on the next channel. Most of the discomfort is just adjusting to the picture.

Both procedures effect the same result. I'm actually slightly farsighted now, but it's more a random factoid than any sort of impediment. My eyes are dryER than they were before the procedure, but it's hardly noticeable. Right after the procedure you're going to be pounding all sorts of eye drops, and you definitely have "dry eye", but after you recover it goes away over a few more weeks.

The total surgery time for both procedures is also laughably short. LASIK is 5 minutes, tops. PRK is about the same, for the contact.

FWIW I think it's bullshit that it's not sponsored by insurance, considering the untold fortune of 40 years of lost glasses/prescriptions you save on. Also, your eyes will naturally age like everyone else, though touchup surgeries are possible.

[takethistoyourgrave]

There's like a 0.5% chance of being permanently blinded. They make you sign waivers and stuff.

Lol, 0.5%? So 1/200 go permanently blind? I don't think so.

The numbers for irreversible serious problems are about 1/30000, or 0.0033%. Actual PERMANENT BLINDNESS is 1 in 5 million.

[Firedemon]

Had it done in February, sucked for the first week, but totally worth it. It corrected my nearsightedness so I'm happy!