Contemplating Lasik

[Squilly]

I'm contemplating between getting Lasik (eye surgery, gives you 20/20 vision). Has anyone here ever gotten it done before? I'm 18, my brother who was 24 at the time got it done and loves it. Am I too young for it? My vision sucks as it is but want another perspective, for those of you that got it done.

[r.j.s]

Yes, you're probably too young still - give it another 2-3 years.

[dinggus]

Wife was going to get it when she was 22, they recommended that she waited until she was 25+, to let her eyes mature some more.

[prostuff1]

most all doctors will require a couple eye exams where your prescription does not change at all or very very little. They want to see that your vision has stabilized and is change little or not at all.

[stonyc]

I had Lasik at 25, you're probably still a little young.

It changes your life.

There are a ton of little things that just add up that I don't think people who've never had to wear glasses take for granted...

Wake up in the middle of the night to grab a glass of water or go to the bathroom? No more fumbling for your glasses.

Walk outside in the cold for awhile, then come inside and have your glasses fog up so that you have to take off your glasses and try to dry them off repeatedly for a few minutes, all the while not being able to see? No more.

Sunglasses? Yes, sir.

Being able to go on my honeymoon and go snorkeling without a prescription set of goggles? Yes, please. Add ski goggles to that list, too.

The procedure itself was amazing... I won't lie, there are some uncomfortable points. Particularly the instrument they used to keep your eyes open. And the vacuum they had to apply to contour your cornea to the optimal shape.

But getting back to the amazing part... I could see my vision improve along the periphery of my sight as they were applying the laser.

Let me repeat that for you... I could see my vision improve as they were applying the laser. Yes, it happens that fast.

End result? 20/20 in my right eye, 20/15 in my left.

[mobilehaathi]

Have you considered revolutionizing LASIK so that it can be done on younger people? There, I've given you and idea; all you need now is a logo, and you'll be rich!

[Menge]

I had it done when I was ~21 (I'm now 29). I had pretty bad Myopia (almost 6 diopters in each eye). It has its good and bad sides:

Good news:
- If you want to not wear glasses for Myopia, it's great! I no longer have Myopia.
- The procedure is quick, painless and recovery is very, VERY easy on the patient (itches like hell on first afternoon – sleep it off – and you'll get bloomy vision for a while but it goes away).

Catches I had to deal with:
- Most important catch: The procedure is not 100% guaranteed that you won't wear glasses for the rest of your life. While I no longer have Myopia, I do have light Astigmatism – which I didn't have before. As people grow older their eyes naturally develop other issues (like the need for reading glasses when you're 50 – which would happen with or without this surgery). This procedure is not a silver bullet for all eye-diseases. There is no such thing.
- Also, since the post-op is basically your cornea stuck to your eye by its sheer surface tension (they can't glue it back or stitch it back without completely ruining your eyes), you won't be able to do contact sports or go to the beach or swimming pools for at least 6 months. It's a time period in which you should be careful regarding the cleanliness of your eyes so things don't get infected.
- If you have really bad Myopia like I did, the surgery can cause a weird situation: since the surgery is only done on part of your cornea, at night your pupil might grow larger than the area in which the surgery was done. When you have really bad Myopia it will cause your eyes to see at the same time through the area that was fixed and through the area that wasn't fixed. In my case, I end up seeing a focused image with a light blurred image on top of it. Also causes pretty bad light flares at night. I'm told this is a non-issue if you don't have acute Myopia.

The last catch almost made me regret having Lasik done. But in the end, I've been glass-less for the past ~10 years now and I look better because of it. The next glasses I need won't be Hubble telescope lenses because of it.

Please make sure your doctor makes you aware of all the consequences you'll have due to this surgery (you won't have "scars" in the knife-to-the-gut sense, but you will have sight-related scars of various degrees depending on how acute your situation is).

After re-reading my post I see it makes it look like it's a bad thing. It's not. It's a good thing for a lot of cases. If you have any doubts or specific questions, reply to me and I'll get you more info/opinions

[dma550]

My wife had it done and doesn't have any regrets, except chronic dry-eyes.

----------

Oh, and I agree with the others, and likely your doctor, wait until later in life. Your eyes change past your mid 20's. You can only get this procedure once.

[Squilly]

Originally Posted by stonyc

The procedure itself was amazing... I won't lie, there are some uncomfortable points. Particularly the instrument they used to keep your eyes open. And the vacuum they had to apply to contour your cornea to the optimal shape.

Is there a part where you smell your eye burning? My brother told me he found that to be the most uncomfortable part. Or did you get the non-invasive surgery?

But getting back to the amazing part... I could see my vision improve along the periphery of my sight as they were applying the laser.

That's insane.

----------

Originally Posted by mobilehaathi

Have you considered revolutionizing LASIK so that it can be done on younger people? There, I've given you and idea; all you need now is a logo, and you'll be rich!

Eyes still developing, wouldn't be good. That's (I think) why doctors don't recommend it.

----------

Originally Posted by dma550

My wife had it done and doesn't have any regrets, except chronic dry-eyes.

----------

Oh, and I agree with the others, and likely your doctor, wait until later in life. Your eyes change past your mid 20's. You can only get this procedure once.

You can only get it done once?

[Menge]

Originally Posted by Squilly

Is there a part where you smell your eye burning? My brother told me he found that to be the most uncomfortable part. Or did you get the non-invasive surgery?

In Lasik you can smell your eye burning. You don't feel a thing, though. I couldn't see my eyesight improving during the burning, though. The flap they cut in your eye before the burning phase prevents you from focusing at all.

Originally Posted by Squilly

You can only get it done once?

Lasik can be re-done if your cornea is thick enough. In fact, if something should go wrong, they can correct it at a later time. You can even re-do the surgery decades after in order to compensate for other eye deformities. But only if your cornea is thick enough.

[Squilly]

Originally Posted by Menge

In Lasik you can smell your eye burning. You don't feel a thing, though. I couldn't see my eyesight improving during the burning, though. The flap they cut in your eye before the burning phase prevents you from focusing at all.


Lasik can be re-done if your cornea is thick enough. In fact, if something should go wrong, they can correct it at a later time. You can even re-do the surgery decades after in order to compensate for other eye deformities. But only if your cornea is thick enough.

Isn't there a non-invasive procedure to prevent all that?

[Menge]

Originally Posted by Squilly

Isn't there a non-invasive procedure to prevent all that?

Permanent? Not that I know of. Contacts? :P

[r.j.s]

Originally Posted by Squilly

Isn't there a non-invasive procedure to prevent all that?

Non-invasive? No.

Lasik is invasive.

So is PRK.

[Squilly]

http://voices.yahoo.com/a-non-invasi...l-8739269.html
?

[r.j.s]

Originally Posted by Squilly

http://voices.yahoo.com/a-non-invasi...l-8739269.html
?

Seems to be primarily aimed at astigmatism in older people.

Find a medical journal article on it and see if it might be an option for you.

[MacBoobsPro]

Originally Posted by Squilly

I'm contemplating between getting Lasik (eye surgery, gives you 20/20 vision). Has anyone here ever gotten it done before? I'm 18, my brother who was 24 at the time got it done and loves it. Am I too young for it? My vision sucks as it is but want another perspective, for those of you that got it done.

If you can, do it! Its worth it!

I had it done, although I was duped into having and paying for more than I needed which was a bit of a scam going at the time. My vision is great except at night with bright lights things become a bit blurry. I think this only happened because I had extra stuff done I didnt actually need but like i said I was duped along with many others at the time. Make sure you get a few opinions from different companies. I was told my sight wasnt that bad but when it came to what was required I "needed" to pay top whack. i.e. lasik from 499 per eye ended up being 1250 per eye!!!

The procedure does not hurt at all - infact its quite relaxing. It took about 10 minutes of actual zapping. Go home. Sit in a dark room for a bit as everything seems a bit too bright as your pupils are dilated. Your vision will be great as soon as then put your flaps back

I did post a lengthy thread on this a few years back when I had it done but I cant find it.

[AustinIllini]

18 is kind of young. They need multiple measurements over significant time with no change. I got my eyes done at 22 with PRK (my corneas were too thin for LASIK). I would definitely consider PRK as an alternative despite the crappy recovery period. Also, definitely focus on getting a good Ophthalmologist to perform the operation and you should have no problem.

When you get the chance, do it. People come out of the operation with immediate results. It qualifies for flex healthcare spending if you do it when you're employed.

[r.j.s]

Originally Posted by AustinIllini

18 is kind of young. They need multiple measurements over significant time with no change. I got my eyes done at 22 with PRK (my corneas were too thin for LASIK). I would definitely consider PRK as an alternative despite the crappy recovery period. Also, definitely focus on getting a good Ophthalmologist to perform the operation and you should have no problem.

When you get the chance, do it. People come out of the operation with immediate results. It qualifies for flex healthcare spending if you do it when you're employed.

I had PRK also. I had mine done by the Army, and they don't do lasik unless they have to.

[Squilly]

What's the difference between Lasik and PRK?

[r.j.s]

Originally Posted by Squilly

What's the difference between Lasik and PRK?

Is your google broke?

Come on, we aren't here to answer EVERY question.