Laser surgery or not for poor eyesight.

[sillyminny]

Someone on the debate board suggested I ask here about this topic. I am terrified of something going wrong yet my optomistrist suggest I will do fine.

I find my 7.75 and 8.0 sight limiting as it is difficult to wear contacts much.

Any comments? Please check out this site as well.

www.surgicaleyes.org
It is full of horror stories. AAhhhhhh!

 

[leahannpen]

I just had Lasik done and it went great. I no longer have to deal with sliding glasses, or dry annoying contacts. Whoo-hoo! They have come so far in technology since this started. I was a bit nervous, but it went smooth and it was fast. It takes just a few seconds per eye, usually.

It's a wonderful feeling and the chances of something going wrong is pretty slim. There is always a chance, but it's rare. There was a wonderful 75 year old woman there getting it done the day I was. Amazing!

 

[Chattyaholic]

My neighbor and her husband (both in their early 30's) had it done a year or so ago, and have been very happy with the results. I'm still too scared to do it though, so will continue to live with glasses.

 

[Ted and Holly]

I know many people who have had LASIK and it has always been successful. Ted tried to get it done last week. It is a touchy subject in our house. He went through the initial screening and then a lengthy 3-hour appointment in which they did a more in=depth examination to make sure he was eligible. Then he was sent to a retinal specialist to have something checked out.

Last Tuesday we went for the surgery. Ted paid his money, and went through listening to all of the things he had to do AFTER the surgery. They gave him tranqulizers and was sitting waiting for the Dr. to be ready.

The Dr. came RUNNING in and told him they had a decision to make together. Ted has a large prescription, and the Dr. (JUST THEN????) decided that Ted's corneas were only thick enough to do the procedure ONCE... no touch-ups EVER!!

They decided not to do the surgery, and Ted is waiting for LASEK which he is more eligible for. It was SUCH a bummer, but we're both happy the Dr. decided not to do it unless he could get PERFECT vision....

Find a competent Dr. and make sure he LOOKS AT YOUR CHART more than 2 mintues before the surgery!!!!


Holly

 

[A kid at heart]

I had lasik done a little over a yr ago and my eyes were -5.25 and -5.00 and I have perfect 20/20.
I have had no regrets other than not doing it sooner!

 

[coqui]

It should be fine. Just research the doctors and don't just go for the cheapest.

 

[elgerber]

My BIL is a laser eye surgeon, so most of our family has had it done. DH, myself, FIL, his wife, SIL, aunt, uncle. We had vision issues ranging from minor (dh only had 1 eye done), to coke bottle glasses for 58 years, and we all love it. None of us have had any problems, and it is great. Make sure you do you research and feel comfortable with the surgeon, and as the above poster said, do not go with the cheapest.

Erika

 

[Breezy_Carol]

My brother is an opthamologist specializing in the retina. He wears glasses. He does not do LASIK and has not had it done.

My husband is an optometrist and also wears glasses and has not had it done.. While he will refer patients out if they ask for LASIK, I don't think he suggests it.

This says a lot to me.

 

[ellyn2000]

I went to my normal eye dr. and had lasik. I was unhappy with the results because I was "far sighted" and was not made clear that this group has a longer healing time and it's very different. I went from +5 to -6. This was a big difference and caused me to have little or no sight in one eye. My dr. wouldn't consider an enhancement, only offered me free contacts. I then contacted a dr. with a very, very large practice in the next city. He gave me a free consultation and told me he would do the enhancement for a discounted price. I was very happy after the second procedure. I had both of them done on a Friday so that I could sleep alot on Saturday and did fine. There's really no down time after the procedure except for the day it's done, but my dr. suggests that you sleep as much as possible to keep your eyes closed so the "flap" can settle in. I highly recommend it.

 

[Rock'n Robin]

Here's a question--I am very nearsighted but now am having some reading issues as well. When one doctor talked about LASIK, he said he would do one eye for close vision and one eye for far vision. Is it better to do that, or just get the far vision done and wear reading glasses occasionally? I just want to see the clock radio when I wake up!
Robin M.