My Lasik Experience: A buyer's guide!

I

Impact Blue

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
It's been three days now after my intralase/wavefront/bladeless lasik procedure, and I thought now would be a good time to document my experience for you guys, in case anyone here has ever considered it, and are a candidate for (I'm praying) the first great investment to my game. In my case, contact lenses and glasses held me back from prolonged practice and enjoyment.

Again, I may not have much in the way of pool knowledge, so please consider this as my humble contribution to the pool world and AZbilliards, as many of us are not blessed with the greatest of eyes. So here's to another excuse that can be dismissed on our path of better pool!!

I'll highlight, IMO, the greater points of this lecture, for those of us that have ADD, or just skip to the list at the bottom! :wink:

(And anyone else who's had lasik, feel free to chime in!!)

----

Now I paid $3600, which includes post operative visits and prescription eye drop therapy. There are tiny 1mL steroid and antibiotic drops that cost $200 bucks each, and you will be asked to take them religiously on the hour for a few days, then 4x a day for weeks--ask for samples as often as you need them. My vision insurance covered 25% of the surgery prior to that, but not all do. Plus, I do not have prescription drug coverage, so having a doctor you can work with can save you in the long run.

My baseline vision is currently 20/25, but my visual acuity is poor, with haloed lights and vision like looking through wax paper. This is common, some for even weeks, but discomfort is minimal (or in my case, none at all). Having 20/25 vision, meaning: what the average human sees in perfect clarity at 25 feet, you can see at 20 feet, apparently is great compared to the 20/50, which is not uncommon. I was nearsighted at the -8.0, or worse, with astigmatism in both eyes.

Being over-analytical and impatient about the recovery time, knowing that everything will eventually stabilize, I understand that the wait doesn't matter so long as the resolve is better vision.

I hope this helps any of you considering it, but I did my research, went to multiple clinics, and had my choice price match to the lowest mall house. I went with the TLC "Tiger Woods" franchise, as apparently the equipment for intralase/wavefront/bladeless lasik is the same, and the "lifetime enhancement" is standard with their premium service nationwide. Good for person like me that moves a lot.

If any of you guys are still considering it, read below:

  1. The doctor is more important than the clinic. (duh) Mine graduated summa cum lade from Cornell, her doctorate at Harvard with rotations at John Hopkins, and hosts lectures for new ophthalmologists before starting their prospective practices. More importantly she was super chill in person, never placating my concerns or laically discussing the procedure, I full knowing she has done over 10,000 operations. KNOW your doctor. The laser may do much of the correction, but manipulating the corneal flap is one of the biggest things to the procedure. That is done by hand.

  2. Many doctors work at multiple clinics. And they aren't loyal to consumer policies, only to their equipment. Get the best one you have access to.

  3. The stronger the prescription, the more invasive the surgery, equalling (I'd assume) longer recovery time.

  4. You can get discounts for paying in cash, only you have to ask. Ask for the world! They're competing for the word of mouth business.

  5. The lifetime enhancement plans are huge. Even if you have to pay for it, DO IT--you can get touch ups if you need them without any out-of-pocket cost. LasikPlus, I believe, is an extra $400 bucks for this coverage, while many others only offer a discounted enhancement rate figured from the date of surgery, say 75% of the original cost the first year, descending respectively. You do the math.

  6. I had my first exam in a lesser rate, no name clinic that offered nothing post operatively, but the place I wanted price matched their invoice without hesitation, even being $1800 in variance. I've found this is common place when you mention are shopping around, so long as you forfeit their paperwork from the previous clinic. They are wanting to keep tabs on their surrounding market, which is unpublished information.

-sigh-

I can't offer any more advice at the moment I guess.
Any more feedback is welcomed at this point. If you remember your original prescription, that would be good to know for those of you posting your individual experiences, so we all have a baseline and commonality for those who are on the fence.

Thanks for reading everyone. Straight shooting!
 
Last edited:
Great post! I just wanted to chime in that I had my eyes done about 7
years ago the old fashioned way. I paid $ 1300 for both eyes. Yes, I
got a deal where you buy one eye, and get one eye free!:grin: Insurace
would not cover any of it by the way. I took eyedrops every hour for 2
weeks. They were covered by the way. I just got a bunch of sample
bottles from them. I went to a place called Clear Choice. My doctor had
about 6,000 surgeries under his belt and the time. I still have a slight
halo effect at night, but I'm so used to it that I dont even notice it any
more. Thats as bad as it gets. The pluses are everything else. I would do
it again in a second. Even for $ 3600. No glasses, no contacts, no grooves
on the side of my fat head.:grin:I recommend it to anyone that can afford
it. Freaking awesome! I'm 20/20 in my left eye, and 20/25 in my right by
the way.
 
While Lasik may be great for some, others really need lens implants. Make sure you know which is needed because some Dr's may only do Lasik and will push you in that direction.

By the way, I recently had lenser implants and think it is the best.
 
shamadam said:
Great post! I just wanted to chime in that I had my eyes done about 7
years ago the old fashioned way. I paid $ 1300 for both eyes. Yes, I
got a deal where you buy one eye, and get one eye free!:grin: Insurace
would not cover any of it by the way. I took eyedrops every hour for 2
weeks. They were covered by the way. I just got a bunch of sample
bottles from them. I went to a place called Clear Choice. My doctor had
about 6,000 surgeries under his belt and the time. I still have a slight
halo effect at night, but I'm so used to it that I dont even notice it any
more. Thats as bad as it gets. The pluses are everything else. I would do
it again in a second. Even for $ 3600. No glasses, no contacts, no grooves
on the side of my fat head.:grin:I recommend it to anyone that can afford
it. Freaking awesome! I'm 20/20 in my left eye, and 20/25 in my right by
the way.
Click to expand...


My experience was almost identical to this. I will state that I experienced typical recovery from my discussions from other lasik recipients.

Mind you I remember most of the details from back in 2000, so that tells you the experience was very good and momorable.

First day
I was quite light sensitive, had to wear ultra dark sunglasses. My eyes were quote watery at first, and I went home to sleep it off. When I woke up my eyes were very dry, requiring the usage of eye drops mentioned. It is worthy of saying I used the $7 droplets you can get from drug stores, of course the provided the first bottle with the surgery

I was going to college but home for the Christmas holiday, my dad was on a league - and I went with him the night it was done. I tried to play pool but the lights were just too much.

Second and Third Days

I could see well enough to drive but still quite light sensitive with the halo effect. Driving at night with oncoming lights was a frightening experience. I continued to need eye drops often.

Day 4 - Day 14

Pretty consistent improvement in sensitivity improvement and reduction in the need to use eye drops. By the 14th day I was 95+% recovered

Day 15+
The recovery was basically done but I saw my halos go completely away or I got used to them as stated previously.

Summary: One of the best experiences I will ever have, free from the smudges, damaged frames, steam, pressure on temples, and every other issue with glasses and without the annual cost of expensive contacts because I had astigmatism. For the record I also ended with 20/20 in one eye and 20/25 in the other for about $1500.

Sorry for the long post, but its easy to ramble on the good experiences in life.

Steve
 
I had my procedure done in 2000 by the doctor that did John Walsh from 'America's Most Wanted' TV show. I was so blind without corrective lenses, I had trouble telling gender from more than 25 feet. Now I'm 20/15 in my non-dominant left eye and 20/25 in my right. I would do it all over again if I had to. The procedure was over in 17 minutes total and I had no complications.
 
Yesterday and tonight has been extremely risky, so far as night driving goes. I almost got in to an accident trying to exit the freeway, being washed out by a driver's tail lights' halo.

Tonight, oncoming traffic look like giant balls of fire, and trying to cross lanes of traffic in to my block is terrifying. I sat foreverlong without any depth perception, against cars I could have easily made past in front of driving in to my neighborhood. Crap.

I've been told that this is incredibly common for the first couple of weeks. Only real problem is I work late nights.

I guess I'll just have to take the long way home.
 
I had my eyes done about 6 years ago by Dell, not Dell computers CEO, but his brother...who is in the medical field. I qualified for a new (German) Laser FDA study (Zeiss). So, I had a huge discount, and free follow up exams. This was just before the laser incision procedure was introduced to the market. So, the doctor cut my eyes with a blade. My vision is 20/15 in the left eye and 20/17 in the right eye. I used to have a real problem driving at night, before the laser surgery. And I never had any halo problems after the surgery. I think the problem nowadays, is people are installing super bright headlight lamps. I used to wear sunglasses at night or even close my eyes when the cars got near, but after the laser eye surgery, it wasn't so bad.
What I think is really cool, is at sunset and sunrise, everything looks like it is in HD. Everything is so crisp and clear, it's amazing.
 
okinawa77 said:
What I think is really cool, is at sunset and sunrise, everything looks like it is in HD. Everything is so crisp and clear, it's amazing.
Click to expand...

This is the sort of thing I hope the new, bladeless technology will take me. I'm praying for heightened visual acuity.

Thanks for sharing your experience!
 
this is a great, informative post. i would like to note that eye doctors who prescribe and sell contact lenses and glasses are changing their ways thanks to the success of lasik. in other words, you get treated a lot better at the average eye doctor now because they know what's at stake (ie losing a potential client forever). as a result, the last 2 years ive been getting more comfortable contact lenses as a result of the doctor giving me more trial pairs to experiment with etc. the benefits are almost endless as my doctor takes her time to answer all my questions and treats me really well.



Impact Blue said:
It's been three days now after my intralase/wavefront/bladeless lasik procedure, and I thought now would be a good time to document my experience for you guys, in case anyone here has ever considered it, and are a candidate for (I'm praying) the first great investment to my game. In my case, contact lenses and glasses held me back from prolonged practice and enjoyment.

Again, I may not have much in the way of pool knowledge, so please consider this as my humble contribution to the pool world and AZbilliards, as many of us are not blessed with the greatest of eyes. So here's to another excuse that can be dismissed on our path of better pool!!

I'll highlight, IMO, the greater points of this lecture, for those of us that have ADD, or just skip to the list at the bottom! :wink:

(And anyone else who's had lasik, feel free to chime in!!)

----

Now I paid $3600, which includes post operative visits and prescription eye drop therapy. There are tiny 1mL steroid and antibiotic drops that cost $200 bucks each, and you will be asked to take them religiously on the hour for a few days, then 4x a day for weeks--ask for samples as often as you need them. My vision insurance covered 25% of the surgery prior to that, but not all do. Plus, I do not have prescription drug coverage, so having a doctor you can work with can save you in the long run.

My baseline vision is currently 20/25, but my visual acuity is poor, with haloed lights and vision like looking through wax paper. This is common, some for even weeks, but discomfort is minimal (or in my case, none at all). Having 20/25 vision, meaning: what the average human sees in perfect clarity at 25 feet, you can see at 20 feet, apparently is great compared to the 20/50, which is not uncommon. I was nearsighted at the -8.0, or worse, with astigmatism in both eyes.

Being over-analytical and impatient about the recovery time, knowing that everything will eventually stabilize, I understand that the wait doesn't matter so long as the resolve is better vision.

I hope this helps any of you considering it, but I did my research, went to multiple clinics, and had my choice price match to the lowest mall house. I went with the TLC "Tiger Woods" franchise, as apparently the equipment for intralase/wavefront/bladeless lasik is the same, and the "lifetime enhancement" is standard with their premium service nationwide. Good for person like me that moves a lot.

If any of you guys are still considering it, read below:

  1. The doctor is more important than the clinic. (duh) Mine graduated summa cum lade from Cornell, her doctorate at Harvard with rotations at John Hopkins, and hosts lectures for new ophthalmologists before starting their prospective practices. More importantly she was super chill in person, never placating my concerns or laically discussing the procedure, I full knowing she has done over 10,000 operations. KNOW your doctor. The laser may do much of the correction, but manipulating the corneal flap is one of the biggest things to the procedure. That is done by hand.

  2. Many doctors work at multiple clinics. And they aren't loyal to consumer policies, only to their equipment. Get the best one you have access to.

  3. The stronger the prescription, the more invasive the surgery, equalling (I'd assume) longer recovery time.

  4. You can get discounts for paying in cash, only you have to ask. Ask for the world! They're competing for the word of mouth business.

  5. The lifetime enhancement plans are huge. Even if you have to pay for it, DO IT--you can get touch ups if you need them without any out-of-pocket cost. LasikPlus, I believe, is an extra $400 bucks for this coverage, while many others only offer a discounted enhancement rate figured from the date of surgery, say 75% of the original cost the first year, descending respectively. You do the math.

  6. I had my first exam in a lesser rate, no name clinic that offered nothing post operatively, but the place I wanted price matched their invoice without hesitation, even being $1800 in variance. I've found this is common place when you mention are shopping around, so long as you forfeit their paperwork from the previous clinic. They are wanting to keep tabs on their surrounding market, which is unpublished information.

-sigh-

I can't offer any more advice at the moment I guess.
Any more feedback is welcomed at this point. If you remember your original prescription, that would be good to know for those of you posting your individual experiences, so we all have a baseline and commonality for those who are on the fence.

Thanks for reading everyone. Straight shooting!
Click to expand...
 
I wear contacts, my eyes are very bad, the prescription is -8.50/-9.00. I was told I could not do Lasik with that prescription.
 
I had Presby Lasik in May of this year. It was an "eye opening" experience. I can easily read the smallest line of text on the eye test card for reading vision. I have 20/20 in my right eye and 20/30 in my left eye. My left eye still has some small swelling in it and and has been steadily improving since the surgery therefore I can't have the touchup to make it 20/20 just yet (your vision must be stable says my doctor). My procedure corrected both my distance an reading vision with out having to have one eye for distance and one eye for reading. According to my doctor I won't have to get reading glasses as I get older because of the presby lasik.

My pool game has improved since I had the surgery. I have a much more clear image of the balls as the lasik removed a stigmatisim I had prior.

My procedure was pricey @ $5,000 but so far I think it was worth it.

It has enabled me to enjoy playing pool more than I did prior to the procedure.

The technology has changed so much in the last 5-10 years. Even if you have been told that you weren't a good candidate for Lasik 5 or 10 years ago maybe a new trip for a free consultation is in order now. Best of luck to everyone. Good vision is a great assett to have if you're a pool player.
 
PKM said:
I wear contacts, my eyes are very bad, the prescription is -8.50/-9.00. I was told I could not do Lasik with that prescription.
Click to expand...

My prescription was near that ballpark too friend. But corneal thickness is one of the biggest determining factors in having lasik correction. And the only person that can determine that is an ophthalmologist, not usually just the neighborhood eye doc.

Tiger Woods had a -11.00, in 1999, before having it done. Just a thought.

And consultations are usually free, including an ocular health exam. I would just check to see if you are a candidate, if not for the peace of mind of knowing what your options are ahead of you.
 
ive wanted lasik for a long time heard alot of great things but insurance wont cover it....

which you would think with having it done. That its cheaper in the long run having to buy glasses and contacts
 
phenom said:
ive wanted lasik for a long time heard alot of great things but insurance wont cover it....

which you would think with having it done. That its cheaper in the long run having to buy glasses and contacts
Click to expand...

Health insurance won't, but my vision insurance did. I have VSP coverage through my employer, and their lasik coverage varies from clinic to clinic. And as long as lasik companies are competing for your business, you can always have the lowest priced spot matched to the clinic of your choice! Just be sure to have documentation of the fact after the consult, and the tenacity to walk away if you do not feel comfortable with the price, or the physician, or -insert whatever-.

Really though, I think the second smartest thing I did about all of this, even before deciding upon the procedure, is just getting the free consultation. They quote you a price after all is said and done, from there you can make your decision any time you feel it works for you.

Payment is collected on the surgery date, absolutely NO credit card or financial commitment is made after the multiple examinations, so when you are comparison shopping and your test results are stable for a 6 month period--only in that duration do you have to decide on a date for surgery, given your physical and ocular health checks fine, before having to retest on the various topography and dilation & retinal/corneal exams.

AND thanks for all the good rep guys! I hope this dialogue has helped any of you with anything. Feel free to PM as well.

Update:
I can see that the halos are subsiding slightly, but morning dry eye persists. After the coffee and eggs, eye drops and all, my vision gets substantially better throughout the day. Not great, but I do look forward to my 1-week exam. Feeling 20/20 (or close) by then, I'm sure! :cool:
 
Just a forward:

Would those of you that have had lasik (and feel comfortable doing so) list the year, franchise, price paid, and prescriptions of the before-and-after.

I guess it's mostly for myself, but I appreciate the statistics. One thing good to know is that most having done it say they wish they did it sooner.

Turning 26 (quarter-life crisis) this year, I guess I'm just taking ownership of this whole adulthood/pool nonsense. :eek:
 
heard great things on lasik unfortunately insurance dont cover it thats the ruff part
 
I'm leaning more towards having the Implanted Collamer Lenses (ICL) over the Lasik. For those of you that had the option of choosing either one, which did you pick and why? From my research, the ONLY advantage with the LASIK is the cost.

Ryan
 
That's right....corneal thickness is the main reason some people cannot have laser eye surgery.
When laser eye surgery first came out, I decided to wait until the surgeons got plenty of practice and refined the process. The statistics for success are very high, now.
I think if you wait awhile, they may come up with corneal transplants, someday.
 
Implants? Are you talking about the implants for bi-focals?
When I had my surgery, they mentioned these small implants that are like bi-focals, but at that time they were very new (still in R&D) and were mainly focused on older folks. They recommended cataract and lasik eye surgery before doing the implants.
 
okinawa77 said:
That's right....corneal thickness is the main reason some people cannot have laser eye surgery.
When laser eye surgery first came out, I decided to wait until the surgeons got plenty of practice and refined the process. The statistics for success are very high, now.
I think if you wait awhile, they may come up with corneal transplants, someday.
Click to expand...

I was just watching Minority Report, we should be able to buy some eyeballs on the street soon. Also in the future, for some reason hard drives become smaller, so they revert to some kind of plastic disks to store data.
 
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