My LASIK adventure.

[roddyc]

Donovan- How old are you and did you have astigmatisms?

Thanks.

What he said. I'm 25 and have mild astigmatism in one eye, but a pretty severe prescription (-5.5 in one eye and -7.5 in the other) and have always wanted Lasik, but didn't know if my sight was too bad or if I am too young.

Also, who was your doctor? I remember hearing a radio ad for a Lasik center around DFW that specializes in dealing with pilots, but the name eludes me right now.

 

[Hidy Ho]

I had mine done about 7 years ago with Lasik. The left one is still 20/20 or better, the right one is 20/40. With me it took a few days for my eyes to stay in focus because of the trauma, a few months for the dry eyes and halos to wear off. After a year the right eye changed to 20/40 (from 20/20), but then it just stayed that way. It's good enough so I didn't go back for a touch up.

They must have improved the technique because I was in a lot of discomfort for a day or so after the surgery.

Chris

I've had PRK procedure done about 7 years ago (this is where they laser cut the top of the eye rather than cutting a flap). I choose this procedure as I had some surface scars to be removed from the cornea and has less long term potential risks (no flaps that can possibly be torn off).

This procedure is much more painful afterward and I was pretty much blind for about a week afterward. I can see fine now .. and do not regret getting it done.

 

[Rickw]

I've had PRK procedure done about 7 years ago (this is where they laser cut the top of the eye rather than cutting a flap). I choose this procedure as I had some surface scars to be removed from the cornea and has less long term potential risks (no flaps that can possibly be torn off).

This procedure is much more painful afterward and I was pretty much blind for about a week afterward. I can see fine now .. and do not regret getting it done.

I had this same procedure done about 10 years ago. It had just become legal in the US when I had it done. The Dr that did mine had been doing them up in Canada for a while before it was legal to do it here.

My eyes have regressed a little and I'm wearing glasses now. I had very poor vision prior to the procedure and now, even though I wear glasses, I can still see pretty well without them. My drivers license still indicates that I don't need corrective lenses.

One thing you should know though, whether you have the lasik or the PRK procedures, the area they alter is not as big as your completely dialated pupil. So, you will usually have some distorted vision when it is dark. 90% of your vision will be corrected and 10% will be uncorrected making for a semi blurred image. It's not a big deal but you should be aware of it.

I'm happy I had it done. And btw, it cost me $4,000 back then. I had both eyes done.

Good luck to all those that get it done. My Dr told me that there will always be a small percentage of cases that don't work out well. Some cases may even result in blindness. That is just the risk you take. If your Dr denies this, go get another Dr.

 

[u12armresl]

Do they offer that where you can be put out with like versed? No way I can go through anyone putting that stuff near my eye with me being able to see it or know it's there.

 

[Donovan]

Why did they have to do one eye at a time? The doctor that I saw has a practice in the DFW area and 5 years ago when I had had it done they had done something like 280,000 surgeries with a 95% success rating. The name of the company is Berkly Caplin. They have two doctors, Berkly and Caplin and are teaching another.

Berkly has been the front runner in eye surgeries in Texas since the 80's. He is always looking to be the first and best on anything he does. I had 20/400 vision before the surgery, and now I have 20/10!

I was just curious why that guy would only do one eye at a time? It is much easier when you do both, and they already had you drugged up and ready to go. They also already had the laser fired up so it wouldn't have taken but a few more minutes to have had you done.

Just a note, your eyes will get clearer and sharper for about the next 2 weeks. Your results will be better in too weeks than they were after the first day.

One thing that they will tell you is this. You can put eye drops in your eyes as often as you need from here on out. The problem is your eyes get kind of dependent on it. So after the 7 day period try to start weening yourself off of them so that your eyes naturally start producing tears. Anyway, good luck with your eyes, and it will help you in pool, trust me I know!!!!!

LOL On the deal with one eye at a time thing. If you have an insurance that has a spending account, this will make great sense to you. I can use my spending account from each year for each eye. So I had much less out of pocket money to get it done.

Thanks for the advice on them getting clearer. THere is still some fuzziness but they are better than without glasses already. ALSO the advice on the drops after 7 days is excellant and make lots of sense. That is a big help!

 

[Donovan]

Donovan- How old are you and did you have astigmatisms?

Thanks.

38 and no astigmatisms.

 

[Donovan]

im planning on getting this done too but ive been waiting, i heard your eyes change around 40 and im 39........my eyes are changing the last year or so, id hate to get this procedure done and then have to get it redone. Has anyone had the procedure then needed it redone a few years later? I may be wrong on my info, or things may be better now.

I do plan to have to wear reading glasses some day. It is better than waiting any longer for me. Also, some doctors have a lifetime correction plan that you can purchase to go with the fee. I did buy this too. Even if I don;t use it, I figure it is well spent.

 

[Donovan]

Just like PKM, I cannot have this procedure done. And you know what, I'll probably be 60 before I'll feel safe to have this done. I'm a -7.5/-8 in my eyes with a diopter of 1.5/1.75. I can see super close with my contacts and glasses off.

Hey Donovan!! I envy the bejeebers outta you and all else that can undergo this with success!! Congrats and Good Luck!!

And Happy New Year!!

Barbara

I agree with txplshrk. Also, techonolgy doubles every year, so it may not be long until your issue is easy to fix too. I waited 7 years for lasik to handle my eyes.

 

[Icon of Sin]

Since my left eye is so bad, it did cost me a little. for both eyes, it ended up being about $2800..

Cost shouldnt even be a factor. Im sure it's worth every penny no matter what you pay. Congrats on it bud!!!

 

[snyder1]

Glad it worked out for you ... but I've worn glasses since I was 13 & don't know any better so I don't mind them. In a way it seems like cosmetic surgery to me ... I'd have to hate my glasses pretty bad to let somebody cut my eye open so I didn't have to wear them. Don't mean any disprespect, but to me, it wouldn't be worth the risk. Good luck to you & I'm curious if your pool game improves - keep us posted ...

John

 

[Donovan]

So now this means you will be running 80 to 100 balls instead of 50 to 60...ohhhh boyyyy cuejoey look out !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i know when to take a hint i'll pack a lunch...................

WELL, that means, I will be still a hundred short of your imaginary runs too. I bring to lunches as it is, I am a big guy you know!

IF we could play at an 8th of thatl, we wouldn't be bragging up imaginary skills. LMAO

 

[Donovan]

I had mine done about 7 years ago with Lasik. The left one is still 20/20 or better, the right one is 20/40. With me it took a few days for my eyes to stay in focus because of the trauma, a few months for the dry eyes and halos to wear off. After a year the right eye changed to 20/40 (from 20/20), but then it just stayed that way. It's good enough so I didn't go back for a touch up.

They must have improved the technique because I was in a lot of discomfort for a day or so after the surgery.

Chris

They say it is different for everyone. No matter how it felt I did not touch my eye until the doctor said I was good to go. I have no idea if that make any difference. i suppose it did itch for a minute or so every so oftem, but it did go away on it's own. Putting the lubricating drops in the fridge, helped with the itching if it was drops time. Thanks Chris!

 

[Donovan]

What he said. I'm 25 and have mild astigmatism in one eye, but a pretty severe prescription (-5.5 in one eye and -7.5 in the other) and have always wanted Lasik, but didn't know if my sight was too bad or if I am too young.

Also, who was your doctor? I remember hearing a radio ad for a Lasik center around DFW that specializes in dealing with pilots, but the name eludes me right now.

It was at LasikPlus Vison Center in Plano, TX and his name is Robert Smith II.

 

[Donovan]

Do they offer that where you can be put out with like versed? No way I can go through anyone putting that stuff near my eye with me being able to see it or know it's there.

I gotta tell you, they offered me Zanex to relax. I don't know if I needed it, but most people said it helped them. If you just keep in mind, a little discomfort for a lifetime of no discomfort, it should help you deal with it. You can go watch it getting done at his place too. My fiance watched the whole thing through a glass walled seating area. It was very cool. Just ask for extra relaxation medicine.

 

[Donovan]

Glad it worked out for you ... but I've worn glasses since I was 13 & don't know any better so I don't mind them. In a way it seems like cosmetic surgery to me ... I'd have to hate my glasses pretty bad to let somebody cut my eye open so I didn't have to wear them. Don't mean any disprespect, but to me, it wouldn't be worth the risk. Good luck to you & I'm curious if your pool game improves - keep us posted ...

John

I felt that way early on, but everytime I looked over my frames for that long thin cut, I thought...It isn't fair to me to have to give up this handicap to my opponents all the time. That was when I realized that I was over worrying and thinking about the psychology stuff.

I no longer feel that it is cosmetic. This is not for looks. This is for freedom and functionality and don't think you can leave me long and I have to shoot it by feel alone anymore! Thanks for your comment John. I did want to talk about this.

 

[snyder1]

I felt that way early on, but everytime I looked over my frames for that long thin cut, I thought...It isn't fair to me to have to give up this handicap to my opponents all the time. That was when I realized that I was over worrying and thinking about the psychology stuff.

I no longer feel that it is cosmetic. This is not for looks. This is for freedom and functionality and don't think you can leave me long and I have to shoot it by feel alone anymore! Thanks for your comment John. I did want to talk about this.

Donovan - I see your point. There are times I also feel at a disadvantage wearing glasses by the "lotta green" shots. I know I'll never be a top player, so it doesn't make sense for me. There are more great pool players than you think that wear glasses though, so there's hope for me yet ....

John

 

[juanbond]

Since my left eye is so bad, it did cost me a little. for both eyes, it ended up being about $2800. The guy that is doing mine has done 10,000 fighter pilots for the US Air Force, before starting his own practice. 2 people from work that had this done, told me that even if you have to take a loan out on your house it is worth it. It was the most important thing they ever spent money on in thier life.

For me it will be like enhancing one of your 5 senses. So that is kind of a priceless thing in life. For people who get ear implants and hear for the first time, it is a miracle. For me to see clearly without dodging frames and having blurry balls to look at, will hopefully feel that way for me.

A few friends of mine have had the procedure and they all loved the results... Costs were about the same, in the $2K-$3K range. Glad to see you're doing something great for yourself and making the world around you much clearer without props.

Wait though...10,000 lasik's on fighter pilots alone?!? I'd bet he's fudging his numbers just a wee bit... I mean look at it this way: the first Lasik surgery in the U.S. was 1991. So, he'd need to average almost 13 fighter pilot lasiks a week, every week for 15 years straight!!! And that's starting from day one of Lasik being performed for the first time in the US. Anyhow, not important, but that figure just stood out to me. Kinda reminds me of Minnesota Fats telling tall tales... This doc must have been a fighter-pilot-lasik MACHINE!!! He once ran 150-lasiks-and-out in a single session!!!

 

[acedotcom]

I got my right eye (the dominant eye) done on the 30th. They had a hard time getting my eye to dilate, so they ended up putting in like 20 drops in my eye. This is more than most people get.

They use a device to pry open your eye and keep it open. It feels like a giant lens holding your eyelids back. Then they put something over my eye and you feel some pressure for about 20 seconds. This is where they cut the top layer of your lens off. It only feels like pressure not painful. Next they take a little soft-ended tool and pull back the lens, zap your eye with the laser for about 30 seconds, and flip the lens back over. He put a “bandage” clear contact lens over my eye and took the “eye opener” out of my eye. That was really it.

Once they were done with the eye drops, the whole thing was over in 5 minutes. Some discomfort, but if you relax, there was no pain.

The next day I went back and they took out the contact and my incision was healed. That was only 22 hours later. I am supposed to put drops in for 7 days and wear sunglasses outside for the next month. SUNGLASSES YEAH! I have had glasses since I was 6-9 months old. I am getting me some OAKLEYS!!!!

My eye is still a little dilated so no clear results yet, but I am hoping it will clear up later today. Tuesday is the other eye. I will take questions and try to help answer if I can.

Good luck - hope you come out better than 20/20.

 

[JLW]

If you are nearsighted, you might want to consider just having the one eye done. This way you can have the benefits of the Lasik and still not need reading glasses. Many doctors recommend this as an option to consider.

 

[u12armresl]

Thanks for the reply Donovan.

I just can't stand to see items related to surgery, machines, masks, whatever it is. The 9 surgeries I have had, I asked for versed before I went in and got it. Can't remember anything but it kicking in. Really nice feature of versed, the amnesia part.