I looked into have Lasik done and even went to a consultation. Unfortunately, I'm not a good candidate because... get this... my pupil is too big. Apparently, if your pupils are too big you risk having a "halo" effect that affects night time vision mostly. If that occurs there is absolutely nothing they can do to correct it (or so my doctor says).

Bummer... I was looking forward to life with perfect vision.

I definately have to agree with this. The two minutes I spend putting on my contacts in the morning is nothing. I do a lot of reading, and that, in turn, affects your eyes. Your eyesight may revert after the surgery, then you'll have to wear glasses, because you won't be able to put contacts in your eyes. The surgery changes the shape of your eye... I think it flattens in out, which makes wearing contacts impossible. Some places do lifetime vision correction... But you know, with inflation, that can always change. Ten years down the line, you get a letter in the mail- "We no longer do lifetime corrections. Have a nice day!" And then, well, if you want to see, you need to wear glasses. Sometimes it doesn't work at all, and people end up haveing to wear glasses for the rest of their lives. It's just not worth it. The fact that there is ANY CHANCE that I might go blind, or have my eyes permanently damaged by this surgery turns me off to the idea right away. I hope that made some sense. !Estoy Cansado!

Newbie,

Thank You. http://www.greekchat.com/forums/ubb/smile.gif

Kevin

Hi there,
Thanks to everyone who replied. Just thought I'd give a little update/ info. According to my doctor and a website I checked - no one has gone blind as a result of an American/ FDA approved Lasik treatment. Also, this doctor has never had a patients vision get worse that it was originally from the surgery. The real risks are light halos and starbursts, increased problems with driving at night, infections and problems with the corneal flap they cut open not healing properly.

As for me, they are willing to do the surgery on me but I have large pupils too. That means I stand at increased risk to have light halo/night driving problems. Since I was already squeamish about it - I'm officially not doing it. However, if I'd been an ideal candidate I would definitely do it.

Thanks for the sharing of the update, Veruca!! Well, I think that's a smart choice, since sensitivity to light REALLY bothers me (I rarely go out into the bright sun without sunglasses). Anyway, do you wear glasses/contacts?

Veruca76,

Your Welcome http://www.greekchat.com/forums/ubb/smile.gif I think you made a wise decision. In my opinion we havent had a long enough history of these lasik treatments. Enough factual proof to say that they definitely wont cause blindness as a result of the procedure. I think that generally its a great procedure and serves a lot of people well. I'm just suspect about it. It seems so market driven and I totally agree with KayDeeCareBear. Before my transplant I had that halo effect all the time.

Kevin

I know this is an old thread but I didn't want to start a new one and then have everyone scream at me. I am getting LASIK on Monday morning and wanted to know if anyone on GC has had it.

I read this thread which is very anti-lasik, but I've been legally blind in one eye my whole life and the doctor I am going to (Dr. Maloney) was one of the first doctors authorized to perform this surgery in the US and is considered one of the best in the world. I have a congenital eye disease and have always dreamed of being able to see. The doctors at the Jule Stien Eye Institute at UCLA have been trying to convince me to get surgery for many years, it is only in the past two years that I have felt safe getting my eyes fixed.

I have heard from a lot of people that their eyes are kind of dry for the first few days and that they are light sensitive, or have a flap problem, but I am totally ready to do this b/c I can't wear contacts and my glasses are such a burden.

Anyone have any POSTIVE advise? What to do before/after, etc?

By the way, for those of you who have large pupils, there are special lasers now for people with large pupils. I have two friends who were not considered good candidates a couple of years ago who have now had the surgery and have 20/15 vision.

Laura

Laura, I don't know anyone who has gone through the surgery, so I do not have any advice for you. I just wanted to wish you a successful surgery!! :)

Lasik Surgery
 

Laura, I had LASIK done this past March, and I cannot say enough positive things about it! I truly feel that I have been given a tremendous gift. I was one of those people who could not see the alarm clock without my glasses, and I have been known to walk into furniture when I wasn't wearing my glasses or contacts.

My prescription was one of the more severe ones that my doctor had treated, and I did have severe astigmatism in both eyes prior to surgery. I did a lot of research and interviewed several doctors. My situation is a bit complicated because I am married, and my husband has a vision impairment that cannot be corrected with glasses or contacts. Because of this visual impairment, he is unable to get a driver's license. So as you can see (no pun inteneded), my eyes are very important to both of our lives.

My advice to you is to follow any pre-operative directions that your surgeon has given to you. When you do return home after surgery, do nap for several hours. It really does help your eyes to heal. Finally, my last piece of advice is to be prepared for incredible results when you return to your doctor the next day for your exam. Because my vision was so horrible before surgery, I didn't dare hope for 20/20 vision; I was just hoping that my reliance on glasses or contacts would be significantly less after surgery. When I went for my post-operative visit the following morning, I found out that my vision was 20/25 in my left eye and 20/20 in my right eye. I actually had better vision after the surgery than I did with my glasses. (My peripheral vision was drastically improved.)

It has now been five months since I had the surgery, and I have had absolutely no complications from it. My doctor had told me that I may have dry eyes and require drops to keep them moist, but I have not had any dryness issues. One of the other common side effects is the appearance of "halos" around sources of light especially at night; I am pleased to report that this is not a problem either.

It sounds as if you have already done your homework and chosen a surgeon you believe in and trust. I am confident that you will have a wonderful LASIK experience. I am very sorry that this post is so long, but I just have so many wonderful things to say about the surgery. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to PM me. Good luck.

I'm so happy to read about your experiences, EtaPhiZTA!!

I too am extremely nearsighted... I've been wearing glasses since I was 2! :eek: and have had a great deal of trouble with contacts.

Now, I work for an insurance provider, and they offer a deal through a (very established) local eye doctor where they will do your LASIK for a reduced fee, and include in that fee anything that you could possibly need before or after the surgery. I can't quite afford to do it yet, but I'm hoping to save up the money within the next year or two!

Good luck with your surgery and let us know how it goes!

EtaPhiZTA,

Thank you so much for your long post. It is always nice to hear positive stories from other people who have serious nearsightedness. My Lasik will be a slightly more complicated surgery than the norm so it was really important to me to find the best surgeon who everyone trusts. I can't see the alarm clock either and walk into the chair in my family room every couple of days on my way to the kitchen (I've even broken my toe several times doing this).

I can't wait to see without glasses and am so excited for you that you have 20/20 in one eye. They think my right eye will be about 20/15 and my left eye will be about 20/30. I am sad for your husband that he can't have his eyes fixed too, but maybe someday with all the new surgeries they will be able to fix his eyes too.

I'll make sure I let you know how it goes!

Laura

LASIK - How did it go?
 

Laura,
It's Tuesday morning and I am thinking of you. How did your LASIK go? You are probably at your doctor's office now for your follow-up visit having him tell you that you now have 20/20 vision. Please be sure to post your story or PM me if you want.

Courtney

$$$$$$$
 

How much does it cost where you are? I heard last night that I can go from Oklahoma where it's about $1200 per eye or so to Texas where it's about $600 per eye. Same LASIK procedure!

What does it cost where you are?

My husband had it done two years ago when we were dating and I got to see him get it done! His dad is an eye doctor, so his dad assisted...

He is not blind. He sees better than 20/20 now. If you go to someone who knows what they are doing then the risks are minimal. He has had no problems with it! I do not know how much it costs since he had it done for free.

LASIK costs
 

I paid $2700 for my LASIK surgery. That included all pre- and post-operative care as well as the actual surgery. Unfortunately, none of it was covered by insurance, but I was able to pay for it with pre-tax dollars from a FLEX account. However, I must say that I think it was worth every penny!