Lasik - do it / don't do it?

aneajo

. Seriously, the worst thing of it all, was having to wearing glasses (no contacts) for the two week period before Lasik. That totally sucked because after wearing contacts for so long, it was so hard getting used to glasses.

This is the part I wouldn't like, but I would so love to be able to do this procedure. I hate messing with contacts

kblue2007

. Seriously, the worst thing of it all, was having to wearing glasses (no contacts) for the two week period before Lasik. That totally sucked because after wearing contacts for so long, it was so hard getting used to glasses.

This is the part I wouldn't like, but I would so love to be able to do this procedure. I hate messing with contacts

I didn't have to do that...I went for a consult on a tuesday and had the procedure done that thursday, and had no problems. I would make sure that that's a mandatory prerequiste??!!

12skipafew99100

I had lasik 8 or 9 years ago. I still wear no glasses but need readers if the print is really small. I'm mid 40's and was told needing readers has nothing to do with the lasik. Presbyopioa happens to nearly everyone in their 40's resulting in the need for reading glasses.

I love it. While my site is no longer better than 20/20, I still don't require glasses at all. That may change at my next visit but if I got glasses it would be purely for distance like movies and such. I would do it all again in a heart beat. Don't be scared, its quick and painless.
At the beginning I would get dry eyes occasionally, especially at night if I was sleeping on the side of my face but a quick couple drops would always fix me right up. At this point I only get dry eyes once a month or so.

I was told if I did not need glasses completely, it would reduce my need for glasses significantly. If your site is very very bad, this may be the case for you. I was told near sited patients are better candidates for this surgery than far sited ones.

Good luck. I hope you get good results. Keep us posted

BellySoonGone

I did it last year and I LOVE it. I was so blind I had to remember where I set my glasses down at night and God help me if I forgot or they got nudged off the table. I actually got PRK done...very similar procedure but it takes longer to heal BUT they impact less of your cornea so in theory you'd have better chances of doing it again down the road when you got older.

As for cost, think of it this way: new frames and lenses (for batty old me anyway) were running me $500 a pop every year (I work outside, so they get beat up pretty fast). My PRK only cost me $2,000 total, so in four years I have paid the same as I would have with glasses. I went to a University eye clinic where they were doing research and participated in a project (very simple, room temperature saline vs refrigerated saline) so I got top of the line at half the price.

Oh yeah, Lasik and PRK are now allowable medical expenses for those of us with an HSA (that's what triggered me to go for it).

Later down the line you will probably need reading glasses (or still need them if you use them now) but that is a muscular thing in the eye and not an eye thing per se.

Hope this helped!

Thanks, this definitely helped! I lean towards the PRK too - although takes longer I feel that in the long run there is no flap that can detach..that's one less thing to worry.

hofdog

Great posts, I have been thinking about getting it done too. Guess I will start my research!

BellySoonGone

I am an optometrist and I do recommened it for my patients that do want to free themselves from glasses and contact lenses. It is a surgery and like surgery does come with risks involved. If you dont mind wearing contacts/glasses then its not worht the risks.

If you are a type a personality, perfectionist type of personality I do not recommend it. There are many factors involved in how the eye heals for your final vison post surgery. You are going to see better then you did before without glasses post surgery. But depending how your eyes heal you may end up one or two steps off from your "ideal" or "perfect' set of glasses. 90% of people do not notice or arent affected by this, but in my experience the only people who regret or arent happy with the surgery are the other 10%.

Here are some things that can help determinine if you are a good candidate. If your optometrists told you that your prescription only changed a small amount but when you get new glasses that is a big difference to you and you were having a hard time with the old glasses then dont get lasik. You may end up perfect post surgery or you may end up those one or two small steps from perfect that is considered a perfect lasik surgery. Can you wear old glasses from years ago and still happy with how you see? Your eyes need to be stable for lasik/prk but in addition odds are those old glasses may be different then your ideal prescrption which is a slight possibility of refractive surgery.

There are many factors that determine if your candidate (corneal thickness, dry eyes, night glare, pupil size, prescription etc) but those I mentioned above are just from personal experience that you should figure our for yourself to determine if you are an ideal candidate.

Lastly, the majority of patients who do get it done, the first thing they say post surgery is usually " I wish I would have got it done years earlier" which shows how happy they results usually are. i just posted my small little rant so you dont end up in the small 10% (probably less) who is unhappy with the results after spending all that money.

Thanks doc!! this really helps - I mean it sounds encouraging.
I am a good candidate - at least that is what I was told at my last visit, but I need to hear from many people still and from what I mostly read here makes me think that I need to worry less about being in the 10%. So far I am very much (at least more than ever before) inclined to go for it.

Dawn111567

After putting aside $3,000 in our FSA last year to finally be able to have it done, I was rejected because my cornea's were too thin! :ohwell: So I am stuck wearing contacts & glasses. :ohwell:

HeatherShrinking

Do it! I had Lasik 2 years ago and it was the best decision ever! I had custom wave front Lasik because I had astigmatism. I wish I would have done it much earlier. I always wore contacts and my eyes were very sensitive to any solution or saline.

I was freaking myself out about having surgery. It was all in my head. I had been in the chair for about a minute and was just about to tell them I was too scared and changed my mind, when they told me they were done making the flap for the first eye. (I thought they were still setting up!) After that I relaxed and enjoyed the blurry laser light show. It took maybe 5 minutes total.

They corrected my vision to 15/20 (or is it 20/15? Which ever one means you can see a bit better than normal). The place I went has life time touch ups. :-) They did tell me that as I aged, eventually I'd need reading glasses. Really worth it. Before you do it, invest in a good pair of polorized sunglasses. Everything seemed extra bright for a few weeks.

ElleJay221

I had it done last July - and I love it! I had to wear glasses all the time, and have done so for the last 20 years. Lasik was painless, and easy. I have had no problems.

My Dr did mention that as I grow older (I was 40 when I had it done), I may need reading glasses as my eyes age. But reading glasses, I could handle. Not being able to walk to the bathroom through the night without glasses - sucked!

BellySoonGone

I had it done last July - and I love it! I had to wear glasses all the time, and have done so for the last 20 years. Lasik was painless, and easy. I have had no problems.

My Dr did mention that as I grow older (I was 40 when I had it done), I may need reading glasses as my eyes age. But reading glasses, I could handle. Not being able to walk to the bathroom through the night without glasses - sucked!

Oh funny - yeah - the going to the bathroom at night - it would be very funny if it weren't so true..

seemae

I used to work for an eye doctor and yes you can still wear contacts after lasik. Also, PLEASE do your research. There are a LOT of horrible places that will do it for cheap. The only thing i can think of with PRK vs Lasik is that you can't be a jet pilot in the air force if you had lasik lol

Really? I spoke to an Air Force rep and asked him about Lasik and he said that as long as your vision is 20/20, regardless of whether you had Lasik or not, you can be a jet pilot.

I know it USED to be that you couldn't but in 2003 or 2004 (don't quote me here, I'm pretty sure that's when but I'm just remembering off the top of my head), they modified the standards for being a pilot so those who had Lasik done aren't excluded any longer.

It seems logical, anyhow. Lasik has come a very long way since it was first introduced and is now a reliable, safe procedure.

For those of you talking about glasses - check out www.zennioptical.com. They have tons of different glasses and they have a lot of affordable options - some as low as like $10. I haven't bought a pair of glasses anywhere else since I found them. You just have to get your prescription written down for you from your eye doctor.