Poll of the Day > I have decided to get lasik

(+) Yeah! (+)

I set the surgery for the 8th of August. I am so nervous.
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Jewish!
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As long as you've got a good doctor you'll be fine and in a few more months you'll be healed up
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Doctor Foxx posted...

As long as you've got a good doctor you'll be fine and in a few more months you'll be healed up

You'll be fully healed in a matter of weeks. The first week is really the worst.

The actual experience is awful but the payoff is worth it.... assuming nothing goers horribly wrong. I had mine done when it was still considered an experimental procedure but we are past that now.

It's really not bad at all and there's not really any pain. It's just slightly annoying having to deal with eyedrops all the time until your eyes heal. After a week my eyes didn't feel weird anymore and I could see perfectly.

After a month I forgot I ever had glasses at all.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugVK7ZT7cyI" data-time="
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Smarkil posted...

It's really not bad at all and there's not really any pain. It's just slightly annoying having to deal with eyedrops all the time until your eyes heal. After a week my eyes didn't feel weird anymore and I could see perfectly.

After a month I forgot I ever had glasses at all.

My main concern is transportation. The center doing it is about 2 hours away. And it is on a Wednesday. So I don't really have a ton of options for getting back from it in time to do my follow up appointment with my eye doctor the next day.

If I go by bus I will be back after their latest available appointment. If I drive, I can spend the night in a hotel, but my eyes might not be well enough for the trip the next day. Some say it is fine, some say it is better to wait a week.

Flying is too expensive to entertain as a possibility, and I don't know if anyone can take off that day to drive me.

I still have a few options, but I need to wait until Monday to see which will work best. My optometrist said they may be able to push the follow up appointment to the next day, but I should double check with the surgeon first.

JTekashiro posted...

The actual experience is awful but the payoff is worth it

My boss is attempting to freak me out. He keeps telling me no one warned him of the pain after the numbing drops and valium wore off.
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Good for you.

My wife is considering it.
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slacker03150 posted...

My boss is attempting to freak me out. He keeps telling me no one warned him of the pain after the numbing drops and valium wore off.

My boss showed me something from the final destination movies

Get someone to drive you if possible. You won't be in any condition to drive a couple days after.
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Smarkil posted...

After a month I forgot I ever had glasses at all.

You didn't get them both done at once did you? I heard they don't do that.
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I love glasses.

TallTamryu posted...

Smarkil posted...

After a month I forgot I ever had glasses at all.

You didn't get them both done at once did you? I heard they don't do that.

Yeah they do. I had both done
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TallTamryu posted...

Smarkil posted...

After a month I forgot I ever had glasses at all.

You didn't get them both done at once did you? I heard they don't do that.

I did. I'm not familiar with any facilities not doing it at the same time.
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I remember my dad got laser eye surgery about 20 years ago. We went to Vancouver Bc.

His eyes are still work well. He has never had to have it redone or anything

I wanted to get laser eye surgery. At first I was too young, then I thought it was too expensive, but after reading about botched cases, I have a fear of permanent damage.

SpeeDLeemon posted...

I love glasses.

I hate them.
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Smarkil posted...

It's really not bad at all and there's not really any pain. It's just slightly annoying having to deal with eyedrops all the time until your eyes heal. After a week my eyes didn't feel weird anymore and I could see perfectly.

After a month I forgot I ever had glasses at all.

That's what my friend said, too. That it wasn't that bad.

I don't think I'd ever forget that I had glasses. Especially since I have like 100 pairs...

Also, I want to get it. But it's way too expensive for me right now. And I would have work, anyway. I work all the time...
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdP8MsZxw90" data-time="
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I've had my eyes fried by lasers. But I couldn't get something simple like LASIK. Nope my eyes were too far gone with astigmatism! I was forced to consider PRK treatment. Even with PRK, my eyes were so far gone my doctor said any surgery could prove to be ineffective. But I persisted and asked him if he would try anyways. Eventually he agreed because we both ended up having the same first name. LOL!

So the day for surgery came. I went in and they numbed my eyes. People who only require Lasik are lucky. They come in, both eyes are completed with a few seconds each, then comes the healing. As for me, I was forced to endure the surgery for a solid 10 minutes. The experience was straight out of a nightmare. I could smell the flesh from my eyes burning. Trust me, that is not a smell you would ever like to register in your mind...They gave me a stuffed animal to hold on, to draw focus away from my eyes. I squeezed that thing like hell! The entire time you have to hold perfectly still. Through all the tears and pain.

My week of hell began immediately afterward. After the initial pain meds wore off it became impossible to ignore what my eyes were feeling. If you imagine someone taking steak knives, shoving them straight through your pupil, and leaving them there...you will get an idea of how it felt. I'm really grateful my dad could take off of work and spend the night with me at a hotel. Between the pain and the loopiness from the meds I was in no condition to be by myself.

On the follow-up appointment with the doctor the next day we realized the only solution to stopping my pain was taking the same numbing eye drops that I had started with. I finally got some relief, but it did nothing for the accompanying temporary blindness. It happens to everyone, as I understand it, and I was no different. I had to be guided to the car and guided back into my house. Luckily I know my own place well enough that I could get around with only 10% vision possible or so. I had to make my entire place as dark as possible. Any major light source would cause pain to my eyes . And closing my eyelids Felt like rubbing sandpaper on my eyeballs. Sleeping was no fun, either.

Even once you get past the pain, and the blindness, there is a mountain of boredom to overcome. Coming up with ways to pass the time when everything I like to do requires my eyes was just another struggle. My family came to my rescue once again! My younger sister stayed with me and played through the first Ratchet & Clank from beginning to end. Took her about 12 hours straight but we enjoyed the time together. She thought Clank was cute and was glad she played it. It was really hard but I found ways to overcome pain, boredom, and blindness for the next week.

My story ends well enough. While I was unable to obtain perfect 20/20 vision. I was able to leave glasses behind. Had to go to the DMV and retest myself so I would be allowed to drive without glasses.

It's been about 5 years now. Haven't needed glasses since. Completing PRK surgery was one of the most unpleasant experiences of my life! But it has brought me the freedom to ignore all of the frustrations and costs that come with glasses. No more wiping off fingerprints. No more difficulties with sunglasses. It's also gave me a huge boost in confidence which translated well into everything else I did. The quality of my life definitely improved. I did encounter a couple side effects such as "haloing" around light sources. Driving at night also became a little more difficult. But when all is said and done, I'm really glad I was able to accomplished the surgery. Couldn't have done it without family and friends!
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