LASIK...Are You Happy?

[Playmaker]

If you've had LASIK, are you happy?

I remember reading a Golf Digest article from a few years ago about Tiger and dozens of other pro golfers and other athletes getting it done around 2000 when it first became wide-spread and thinking I'd never do it myself. However, I'm now 22 and my eyes have been relatively stable lately, so I'm thinking about taking the plunge.

I realize there are immediate risks, but once the procedure is done, have there been any common long-term risks? LASIK has been around for at least a decade, so there must be enough long-term data out there.

Or are all of us near-sighted individuals still better off sticking with contacts?

 

[The Batt?sai]

i'll be happy when its free

 

[Leros]

My pupils are too large. Doctor says that in the future, the surgery will be an option for me, but for now its contacts.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Originally posted by: Playmaker
If you've had LASIK, are you happy?

I remember reading a Golf Digest article from a few years ago about Tiger and dozens of other pro golfers and other athletes getting it done around 2000 when it first became wide-spread and thinking I'd never do it myself. However, I'm now 22 and my eyes have been relatively stable lately, so I'm thinking about taking the plunge.

I realize there are immediate risks, but once the procedure is done, have there been any common long-term risks? LASIK has been around for at least a decade, so there must be enough long-term data out there.

Or are all of us near-sighted individuals still better off sticking with contacts?

Wait till you're 25. I'm not there yet, so I'll gladly wait. The technology is improving so much and so quickly that wait a few more years, and you'll be like wow.

 

[jai6638]

My aunt, her sister and her son did it. They seem to be happy with the surgery although for my aunt, she still has a reduced number in her right eye. Hence, she has to do the surgery again to fix it. The fact that they had a high prescription ( 8+ ) made it worth it for them.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

I've heard that side effects can be dry eyes and halos at night

 

[Playmaker]

Originally posted by: DLeRium

Originally posted by: Playmaker
If you've had LASIK, are you happy?

I remember reading a Golf Digest article from a few years ago about Tiger and dozens of other pro golfers and other athletes getting it done around 2000 when it first became wide-spread and thinking I'd never do it myself. However, I'm now 22 and my eyes have been relatively stable lately, so I'm thinking about taking the plunge.

I realize there are immediate risks, but once the procedure is done, have there been any common long-term risks? LASIK has been around for at least a decade, so there must be enough long-term data out there.

Or are all of us near-sighted individuals still better off sticking with contacts?

Wait till you're 25. I'm not there yet, so I'll gladly wait. The technology is improving so much and so quickly that wait a few more years, and you'll be like wow.

I've read that for years. It can always get better or there will always be some better tech on the horizon, but I see where you're coming from.

If I take the plunge it would be a year and a half from now anyway, when I'm pushing 24, because I want to do it with pre-tax flexible spending account money through my job and I can only put so much in per month.

Then again, I wear Focus Night and Days for 30 continuous days and they don't really bother me, so maybe I shouldn't risk it.

 

[ForumMaster]

i plan on having it done in the future. for now i have contacts and although it's fine, it does irritate the eye after a couple of hours. i'm still in high school so i have to wait atleast 10 years so that my eyes really will be stable.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

I did it in 2000. I'm happy I did it. My dad paid for it. (bonus) Much better than wearing glasses. I would reccommend it to anyone in need of vision correction.
Edit: I should say that it took me two years before my eyes were "normal" again. They were dry for a long time.

The proceedure is not without side affects.

 

[ohmide]

I had it done last year and I'm 25. I had really bad eyesight -8.75 in both with a ton of astigmatism. I got the intralase (laser cuts the flap, not a blade). I can see 20/25 in both and am pretty satisfied. It cost 4k total so that kinda sucked but yeah I think it was worth it. Night time = halos and dry eyes but yeah...nothing can be totally perfect I suppose. If you have astigmatism my doc says that they are making more mods to the lasers to assist with that so if you're still in your early 20s I'd wait till 25 or so. This technology seems to be much like others...the longer you wait the better everything gets.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Originally posted by: ohmide
I had it done last year and I'm 25. I had really bad eyesight -8.75 in both with a ton of astigmatism. I got the intralase (laser cuts the flap, not a blade). I can see 20/25 in both and am pretty satisfied. It cost 4k total so that kinda sucked but yeah I think it was worth it. Night time = halos and dry eyes but yeah...nothing can be totally perfect I suppose. If you have astigmatism my doc says that they are making more mods to the lasers to assist with that so if you're still in your early 20s I'd wait till 25 or so. This technology seems to be much like others...the longer you wait the better everything gets.

The halos and dry eyes go away over time. I had VERY bad halos when driving at night for quite a while after the surgery. It was rough. I didn't consider myself to be fully recovered for over two years after the procedure.

 

[kranky]

My wife had it done 6 months ago and just had an enhancement two weeks ago. Her vision was terrible and had to wear glasses everywhere. She is very pleased with the outcome after the enhancement. Her eyes were very dry for about 4-5 months after the initial procedure, but that could have been aggravated due to it being winter, and the heating system running a lot. She has minimal halos.

For someone who had to wear glasses every waking moment except in the shower, she is thrilled to have good vision without glasses.

 

[TripleAAA]

I came really close to doing it, but opted to go with contacts for now. Will probably do it in a few more years when technology is better and prices are perhaps cheaper.

 

[arcas]

I'm one of those people who has to wear glasses all the time. Surgery is tempting but given my astigmatism it scares the hell out of me. It took two attempts to get my current pair of glasses and they're still not quite "right". I'm curious about the halos, too: do they only appear for very bright lights like car headlights? How about when looking through a telescope?

 

[KK]

I had it done Feb. of 2005. My eyes are just about perfect, no dry eyes, no halos. I believe i was 20/15 one week after the procedure.

 

[KarmaPolice]

I am 22 so I guess I am a little young for it...but i want to at some point..maybe when its really a tried and true system.

Just the SLIGHT chance of losing my eyesight for the rest of my life is too much. I know its a small chance but damn...living life wihtout glasses is not worth the risk of living life without seeing.

 

[CollectiveUnconscious]

I got it done in 2000 at 21. No side-effects, and I'm still seeing 20/15 in the right and 20/25 in the left.

 

[FallenHero]

AFAIK, the dry eyes and halo problems that many people experienced have been corrected in recent years. It was a bigger problem when it first came out though.

 

[bigfil]

they dont have the technology for my eyes yet
apparently they will have it in the next year or so
my lens needs to be replaced

on a side note the tests they did on my eyes totally jacked me up
after dilating them and putting all kinds of crap in them i got in my car to drive to work which was just down the street, i couldnt see anything it was fun

 

[Kaido]

I have a friend who works at an eyeglass shop...I was discussing Lasik with her and she wasn't sold on it. She said they cut your cornea (?) and if they mess up, they just keep cutting it without telling you. Once it's cut, you can never "uncut" it, so you're stuck that way. She also said that eventually you will have to get glasses again. So I'm not quite ready to take the plunge yet

 

[TygGer]

I really want to get this done because everyone that I've personally talked to has had nothing but great things to say about it.

I've already gone in for the consultation and the only next to do is schedule the surgery.

 

[lokiju]

I had it done in 2003 and haven't had any complaints.

Only issues I've had that I thought would go away after not using contacts are dryness at night time and halo's around lights at night.

But I can't really say the surgery made these worse than they were with contacts and considering I wore contacts from 1992 through 2003, I don't really know if that's just the way my eyes are or what.

I still feel to this day that it's without a doubt the best money I've ever spent.

 

[sash1]

I'll eventually get it done. My prescription hasn't changed at all since I first got my glasses about 7 years ago. I hate wearing glasses, and I can't put in contacts to save my life.

 

[trmiv]

I got wavefront LASIK about a year and half ago, and I'm very happy with it. I wore glasses for 18 years and I was tired of it, I love not wearing glasses.

 

[iwantanewcomputer]

Originally posted by: DLeRium

Originally posted by: Playmaker
If you've had LASIK, are you happy?

I remember reading a Golf Digest article from a few years ago about Tiger and dozens of other pro golfers and other athletes getting it done around 2000 when it first became wide-spread and thinking I'd never do it myself. However, I'm now 22 and my eyes have been relatively stable lately, so I'm thinking about taking the plunge.

I realize there are immediate risks, but once the procedure is done, have there been any common long-term risks? LASIK has been around for at least a decade, so there must be enough long-term data out there.

Or are all of us near-sighted individuals still better off sticking with contacts?

Wait till you're 25. I'm not there yet, so I'll gladly wait. The technology is improving so much and so quickly that wait a few more years, and you'll be like wow.

people have been saying that same thing for 10 years now