So, I'm going under the... er, laser tomorrow, and I'm just wondering what kind of opinions everyone has on the subject. I'm getting iLasik - they suction your eye in place, laser open a hole into your cornea, flip back the cut out and then use a second laser to correct your vision. There are a couple of other types that I'm aware of (one where they use a blade to preform the initial incision and one where - if you have bad eye topography or an exceptionally thin cornea - they dissolve the outer few layers of your eye with some sort of (presumably safe) acid and then perform the correction) but this one has the shortest recovery time and is... er... the only one that I can get. It's not /illegal/ to do this procedure on someone under the age of twenty-one, but it's not technically legal, per se, (their test groups were all over the age of twenty-one, so that's what all their permits say, blah blah blah) so there aren't all that many clinics who are clamouring to operate on me. As well as that, I have the kind of eyes that are described as "big and beautiful" and they're kind of modifying the surgery to accommodate for that. The smallest that they could get my pupils with full fluorescent lights on for a test that is usually done in near-darkness is 8.4X8.6, which is about the size of most people's pupils when they're in full darkness. Anyway, I already know that Hally thinks that I'm an idiot for doing this (especially when I'm blowing next year's rent on the operation) but I'm curious as to everyone else's experiences with it. I have to put drops in my eyes every hour for three days, so I'm not so hot on this procedure right now, but if I were just getting zapped, I'm sure that I'd be jumping for joy. Metaphorically, of course: physical jumping requires effort. Everyone I know who's ever done it has said said things ranging between "it went perfectly and it's nice not to have the hassle of specs" and "it was the best decision that I've ever made." Edit: I know, I know - I talk too much. Basically: Anyone had it done? Have a horror story? Tell me what you think. :K
I've had a recent urge to do this. Although you could go blind (and make it into a law suit ) or you might never have to wear eye-wear again. Great options, right?
I've actually been reading into it a lot because I have a friend who really doesn't want me to get it, and I think that there's more chance of blindness as a result of a boob job than there is from getting your eyes lasered. Though, /your/ eyesight isn't what's at risk with the latter surgical procedure, so that may have some kind of impact on your decision. And thankfully I won't be getting one of those any time soon (ie ever), so we don't really need to discuss that one.
Um, well...if I were you I definitely wouldn't be asking to hear horror stories about an operation that you are about to go through the next day... Luckily for you, I do not have any horror stories on the subject, although I do believe that it's a very risky thing to do. Laser eye surgery sounds extremely interesting and has helped a heck of a lot of people and is definitely worth it if it is done right and there are no problems. Unfortunately, it hasn't been around long enough for me to be confident in the success rate. Especially when failure generally means blindness. If I were to consider laser eye surgery I would wait 5-10 years.
I like horror stories, they make me all 'oooh, Schadenfreude.' "Realistically, the chance of going blind from laser eye surgery using today's technology, is about the same as the chance of dying in a plane crash — roughly 1 in 5 million." (edited for grammar) - London Vision Clinic I don't really see how you can actually go blind at all from something like this. Maybe if you rip off the corneal flap and then poke yourself in the eye. *shrugs* And they've been doing procedures like this for over fifty years, though you're right about the exact operation that I'm undergoing - it's the newest one. It's the only one that's customized exactly to the eyes of the patient, as it corrects topographical errors that can't be fixed by regular glasses. They've been using the excimer laser for about twenty years. The most likely risk for me is halos around lights, because I have ginormous pupils, but I think that I can deal with that. Other than that, I'm looking at dry eyes. I guess that y'all will know shortly whether or not I'm blind. Operation's in a couple of hours. (Y)
My mum had this done, and didn't have any problems. + She sees perfectly now. So sorry, no horror stories.
I agree with it I would love to have it done myself, the going blind part scares the crap out of me but to knock off these glasses and see again better would be wonderful. Although I could go with contacts but im to lazy to go get fitted and such right now and I see them a pain in the rear over time thinking... so yeah laser all the way....If you got it done hope all went well!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My sister's BF got laser eye surgery He had to wear goggles when he went to sleep, because if he rubbed his eyes in the night his cornea might be ripped out >_< But now he actually has better vision than an average person I actually quite like the idea of being a laser eye surgeon... It looks satisfying...
I had Lasik done several months ago. A blood vessel burst hemorrhaged the procedure (which sucked), but it cleared up in a couple weeks, and all was well. My vision stabilized in about five weeks, and I didn't have any other issues with recovery.
hmmm starting to wonder how much it costs for people here, sounds like something i maybe interested in providing the stories doesn't get worse lol
I'm pretty sure it's generally quite expensive...especially since I doubt any medical insurance plans would help cover any of the cost
~2700 for me. I'd never, ever, even think about going to a place that offers those 599 per eye deals or whatever. This is definitely not something you want to bargain hunt for. After all, few thousand is pretty cheap anyway for the convenience it brings.
I'm paying around twenty-four hundred CAD an eye (total cost: a little less than my tuition next year), but after seeing all the tests that they do to make this perfect for moi, I wouldn't go from iLasik to Lasik if someone was going to slice me for free. I am getting fifteen hundred back for insurance (yay, my parents are teachers! I love teacher-insurance), but it's still not something you can pull together overnight. I've had money saved for this since I was 16. I'm getting in as much computertime now as I can so that I don't feel deprived afterwards when I have to "rest my eyes." I think that I'm, like, addicted or something. Or at least a total loser. =)
I had a teacher last year who had Lasik done, she told me it went fine and her vision is better than the average person now. Though, one thing...if you're not 21 yet, why get the surgery done so soon? Vision continues degenerating for the average person until they're ~25 years old, and only then stabilizes...well, until people get really old, but that's another story. (Or at least according to my mom, who's a doctor so I generally trust her opinion on these things. Except when she walks up to my sister and I with a plate of peanuts and tells us to "have some protein program." Then it's just tacky.)
I hate the feeling of waking up in the morning and not being able to see perfectly. I've hated it since even before I actually got glasses for the first time, and I want the surgery done as soon as possible. I had an eye appointment about a month and a half ago that was my first one in over a eighteen months, and my vision hadn't changed since the last time I was there. Since my vision hadn't changed in over a year, they're at least mildly placated with respect to stability. Since it stopped changing, it's highly unlikely that it will change anymore at all, and if it does, I have a grace period where I can go back and get lasered again. That probably seems uneccessary, but they've declared that I'm suitable for surgery, so I'm cool with it. (Aside from the fact that your vision can never be guaranteed to stop degenerating. Twenty-five is an average, and I'm speshul. Defs not average at all. Oh, right, this had a point. I (along with my optometrist) am of the belief that those old wives tales about reading a lot in the darkness and such does cause your vision to become more myopic. Until I went to university, I read for pleasure for six or seven hours a day. I mean, I didn't study, but I still spent a lot of time in darkened rooms reading and shizz. I haven't actually gotten in to the habit of studying yet, so I'm not reading anymore. And once I do start studying, I'm going to be wearing +1 reading glasses (even though I don't strictly need them) because then my eyes won't evolve to be more near-sighted. Does that make any sense/answer your question?)
I hear you on the wanting to wake up and being to SEE part. x_x I had laser surgery done not too long ago and the overall process was really smooth and worth it. Only horror story I have is that I managed to smash my face into a doorpost while my vision was still distorted from the surgery. x)