My eyesight is no where near perfect. I've been wearing contacts now for about 10 years or so. Life is good and I don't mind my morning/evening ritual of inserting/removing my contacts. I forget that I even wear them most of the time. My optometrist informed me of a "good deal" on Lasik eye surgery. I can have both eyes done for $1200. The guy is qualified and has been in the business for 20 years or so. I'm unsure of his LASIK credentials but I'm working on finding that out. I don't believe he is performing the procedure in his basement or a van out by the river. :D Anyway, I guess I am asking for some advice. Do I fix something that isn't broken (you know what I mean) or do I take a chance and do the procedure? It would be nice to go to bed and wake up without dealing with my contacts but its not that big of a deal. I guess I'm afraid of the potential risks. Not a big risk taker. Hell, I think I'd still be on the fence if I was given this procedure for free. Am I over-reacting?
Not at all over reacting. I'm in the same boat. I've been contemplating it for awhile now. Like you said, not the end of the world dealing with contacts on a daily basis. But it sure would be nice to not have to either. Is the risk or fear of the unknown with the procedure worth the slight annoyance of dealing with contacts? I guess that's the question. One thing I will say...... I wouldnt'be shopping for the best "deal" when it comes to surgery on my eyes. I'd find the most reputable doctor around even if it cost me a little more.
I know what you mean about shopping around. When I first heard the $1200 figure I thought that was per eye but it is both. Only 10 people are getting this discounted rate. I'm not sure on the details as to why its discounted but I'm trying to find out why. Anyway, I'd still have the same concerns if it cost 3 times that amount. Isn't Lasik a fairly new procedure with no real understanding of the long term effects? After reading this article, I think I'll stick to contacts. Too risky for me. http://www.lasikcomplications.com/TopTenReasons.htm
Another article about lasik: http://www.salon.com/life/feature/2011/02/16/problems_with_lasik/index.html A much older article about lasik: http://www.salon.com/health/feature/2000/03/08/lasik
Interesting especially this: I'm going to go ahead and call off my consultation appointment scheduled for next week. LASIK might work 99% of the time for some but I don't want to take an unnecessary risk. Thanks for the links.
You seriously had to start this thread, huh? My wife and I just went this weekend (two hours away) to have a consultation for her. This guy is HIGHLY recommended, and he isn't cheap. Her mom had the surgery done here a few years ago, and all is well. Another friend of ours had the surgery a few years ago, and is doing great as well. In fact, the reason we went to this surgeon is a friend of her mom's (who also had her surgery done here) found out where he went to school, when he graduated, what his GPA was, contacted the school itself, etc. To put it bluntly, she did her homework on this guy.His package includes lifetime adjustments/post-op work if necessary. He also offers the inclusions of "plugs" that are inserted into the tear duct during surgery to prevent moisture loss post-op. With that being said, I'm starting to get second thoughts, and my wife is 100% for it, but she HATES, HATES her contacts. She has had her prescription screwed up twice in the past two sets of contacts, her eyes burn a lot, sometimes only a few hours of having them in, others times it's 8-10 hours. Her vision is not borderline like some, it's downright bad:D All of this is the driving factor toward why we are considering it. I suppose I could forward a few of these links to her.
I've had 3 close friends get LASIK and all of them said without a doubt it is the best money they've ever spent and they would've got the procedure done earlier if they could. Just like any procedure there is risks. I plan on getting the procedure done at Silverstein Institute in Kansas City.
When I met my wife she was basically blind without her contacts or glasses. She had the crud build up in her contacts all the time and they really started to irritate her eyes. She also became tired of the "morning ritual" as you called it. We had Lasik performed on both her eyes maybe 8-9 years ago. By the end of the day on which she had surgery, her eyes were near "perfect". She is extremely satisfied and the quality of her life improved.
I only have one friend that has had Lasik. She cannot drive at night because of the "starring". Every one should make up their own mind about this and, yes, it is safe most of the time but, if you are part of the group that has problems, there is no "cure".
I had it done around 10 years ago and can say I'm still very happy with the results but you do need to understand the risks. My right eye was a 9.50 and my left eye was a 9.75, at the time the worst they would try to correct was a 10. The day after my surgery I had 20/20 in my left eye and 20/30 in my right. They ended up touching up my right eye with a second procedure and got it to 20/15. Depending on your age you can expect your eye sight to drift over the years, just in the last year I've picked up some glasses to wear when I'm shooting. I do experience "staring" at night but no worse than I had before my procedure. I would recommend it to anyone that is severely near sighted, it does change how you live your life.
If I could get my eyes fixed for under 3K, I would be all over it like a hobo on a ham sandwich. I hate glasses, and contacts. Such an inconvience for a bowhunter. Or hunter period. I have an astigmatism, and they said it would run over 5K and no guarnatees. You sound like your the perfect canidate.
For me getting up a couple times in the middle of the night to take a piss is more of an inconvenience than dealing with my contacts! LOL!
I've heard too that the offices that do it for cheap will sometimes get you on the table then suddenly tell you that there is more damage than they thought and then tack on a $1000 conveniently giving you a brochure for 6-month interest free financing at the same time.
Matt- Sorry for the bad timing of this thread. I wouldn't let it discourage you or your wife from having the procedure even though the above posted links would scare anyone away. It sounds like her situation is a lot different than mine. I'm nearsighted and my eyes are 3.0. I don't have any issues with my contacts and really don't mind them. If I were in her situation, then I may be more apt to having it done. I'm sure the doc told you guys the risks during the consulation. If she was fine with it then, there shouldn't be any new info in this thread that would likely deter her. Good luck!
