[Cosmop]

I had LASIK done on my eyes last Friday and I thought I would share my experience.
I wore glasses for the last fifteen years and this is the first week I was able to drive without lenses. I went to my follow up on Saturday and the doctor said I was already seeing 20/15. It’s really is a life changing experience. I keep reaching at my eyes to adjust my glasses but they’re not there. It’s like people with the phantom limb syndrome. I keep feeling I still have glasses on. The other thing that keeps freaking me out is when I look in the mirror after a shower or at work and I can see myself crystal clear looking back.
The actual surgery only took about ten minutes. It didn’t hurt but the first phase where they make the flap was a very uncomfortable level of pressure for about 15 seconds per eye. The second phase where they use the laser, there was zero pain and not bad at all. Once I got home and the anesthetic wore off I was in a lot of pain for the first three hours. It burned and I wanted to rub my eyes so bad but had to resist. I wish they would have sent me home with some good pain killers. They didn’t so I took an old Demerol I had in the medicine cabinet. It took the pain away and I slept for five hours. Once I woke up I felt great and my eyes were about 75% normal feeling and just a little discomfort. The next day I was 95% normal. I still have a little haze when there is direct light shining in my eye but that’s normal for the first week or two.
I’m still getting use to it but I’m very glad I did it.

[lambtron]

Congrats, my pops had this done a few years ago, after wearing glasses for 40+ years, he now only has to wear glasses when reading. Pretty impressive stuff.

[FrankiE90]

wow, very nice.
think'n bout doing lasik - 1 eye at a time...

[Blake]

i've had lasik. see perfectly. hurt like shit.

[Amir87]

I've been debating doing LASIK for years. Bad stories is what scares, but with everything medical related comes a risk you must be willing to take.

Congrats!

[e60_M5_2020]

How did your insurance company treat the LASIK procedure? I know each policy is different, but does this tend to be a cosmetic surgery unless you're legally blind?

Glad to hear it went well.

[number335]

had lasik surgery done on myself about 10 yrs ago. i still remember lying there, smelling the smoke from the laser burning through my eyes. it was one of the best things i've ever done.

[Ender514]

i had it done almost 2 yrs ago. best thing i ever did.

[BMW F22]

I was thinking about it but I'm scared of that shit. I heard some people didn't heal all the way so their eyes are still fucked. Does it depend on who you go to or does it depend on the healing capability of each person?

Had it done myself because I had irregular vision in my eyes, meaning I was nearsighted in one eye and far sighted in the other so I was getting headaches. Spot on about the uncomfortable seconds when they make the flap...it's like a really bad itchy pressure very very dull light pain for a few secs then it goes away. Recovery wasn't bad for me. Just that my eyes were streaming tears continuously and it was itchy but no pain whatsoever. My eyes, however, did get worse but they are still have very good vision just very little blurriness when I try to read signs that are far away.

[10M3MAN]

Same here...had it done about to years ago and it was money well spent. I love not having to find and or clean glasses and contacts anymore...ITS AWESOME I love it....

[Small Yellow]

Hehe I remember that feeling when I first got contacts.. Going to get surgery in about 4 years

[Genro757]

One of the great things about being military is that I didnt have to pay the $2K-4K that everyone else did...got PRK done...after having to wear contacts or glasses since I was 14..great stuff...and congrats!...welcome to the wonderful world of sight!!!

[tweak84]

had it done over a year ago, i went from having terrible eyesight (around -8.5 in both eyes) to 20/15!! its defiantly worth it and i would do it again in a second

[Ender514]

Originally Posted by BMW E90

I was thinking about it but I'm scared of that shit. I heard some people didn't heal all the way so their eyes are still fucked. Does it depend on who you go to or does it depend on the healing capability of each person?

do your homework. dont go to some local hole in the wall place. go to a recognized place were the docs have done thousands of these procedures. oh, and also see what procedures they use. there are different techniques and equipments.

[josephr25]

To anybody that's scared of it... I saw an ABC 20/20 show the night before my surgery, about LASIK. It was about a woman who's surgery was completely f*cked up and how her eyes hurt all the time. I think she has to put some sort of eyedrop for the rest of her life.

I got my surgery and lo and behold, I have 20/15 vision. I paid 4.5K but it was worth it. Also I went w/ a surgeon who's been doing it since they invented it.

It is worth more than any mod you can do to your car. It's funny how we take vision for granted.

[Cosmop]

How did your insurance company treat the LASIK procedure? I know each policy is different, but does this tend to be a cosmetic surgery unless you're legally blind?

My insurance didn't cover the LASIK, it cost me almost 4K. I went to the top eye center here in Houston to have it done. They have all the most current technology and supposedly the three major pieces of equipment they use are the only ones certified by the military to be used on US fighter pilots. Maybe that's just marketing BS but it sounded good to me.

EDIT: I was able to pay for it with a flexable medical spending account through work so at least I got to pay for it with pre-tax money

had lasik surgery done on myself about 10 yrs ago. i still remember lying there, smelling the smoke from the laser burning through my eyes.

Yeah when they were using the laser I caught a whiff of my burning cornea. I was kind of expecting it so I didn't freak out but still it's a little unsettling.

[kyleb350]

I'm seriously thinking about doing this. The only drawback I hear is that you'll need reading glasses sooner as you get older. Good to hear so many good experiences though. Perhaps I'll actually do it this year

[josephr25]

Originally Posted by kyleb350

I'm seriously thinking about doing this. The only drawback I hear is that you'll need reading glasses sooner as you get older. Good to hear so many good experiences though. Perhaps I'll actually do it this year

Once you reach 40 your vision will degrade significantly; that's what all LASIK places told me. If you're close to that age you'll probably want to wait after that.

It's obviously not perfect but I believe the success rate is 95%. My friend's surgery was screwed up (not life- or vision-threatening), but he went back in and now it's fine. But he had the micro-keratome (basically a little saw) instead of a laser.

...

Insurance will most likely not cover any of it since it's considered cosmetic surgery. I got 500 bucks off due to our vision plan here... I would have gotten the same discount had I mentioned I was referred by somebody.

[Scorpion]

Glad to hear it worked out, congrats on the new view lol. My dad was thinking about getting it done.

[DevJ]

I'm getting Lasik eye surgery in a few years, my eyes will probably change a bit till then..my best friend's dad is an ophthalmologist so I get it for free

[akack79]

eventually I will get Lasik, too apprehensive atm. Grats that you are contacts/glasses free for now!!