My father offered me Lasik as a gift for my 27th birthday. Not knowing where to go, I went to the clinic directly across the street from my workplace. It was advertised as $550 per eye at the time. I learned the only other clinic in town was doing customized, computerized, Z-lasik for a much higher price, so, not wanting to break my dad's wallet and being the thrifty guy I am chose to go to the former. The price seemed unusually low to me and played a role in my uneasiness but the story has a happy ending.
I stopped wearing my glasses about 2 years ago except to drive and watch movies. They've always given me terrible headaches despite trying 3 doctors. My prescription from 3 years ago was OD SP -1.25,OD CYL 0.75, OD AXIS 105, OS SPH -2.25, OS CYL 0, OS AXIS 0
After doing my homework, reading countless forums and blogs and giving myself a good scare, I scheduled myself a a consultation appointment for the following week and was told I could have same-day surgery if I wanted. They told me that I needed to take 2000mg of Vitamin C every day for a week prior. I researched this and found out that it helps with tissue healing. It seemed legitimate enough and could potentially benefit my health in other ways so I did it. (starting off at 500mg and increasing by 500 a day though).
It was a very slow day when I arrived around 11 and I was in and out in around 1hr 45min. The facility was setup like any ordinary opthamologists office but had a more commercial feel to it. Lasik has become very commoditized but then again so has the whole health industry. I was not in any way uncomfortable with the facility. After running a barrage of tests (dryness, pupil dilation, corneal thickness, astigmatism, vision, etc), I was greenlighted for Lasik.
I paid with my credit card $1100 total, and was then given a mild pain pill of some type and a Xanax.
Before I describe the surgery I'll provide some details on the procedure. The doctor does regular old, non-customized microkeratome Lasik. He's stated that he believes in this method because of its time-proven reliability and because it's been improved upon in the 2 decades it's existed. This is the main reason he charges such a low price. (and because his personal belief is that Lasik should be an accessible surgery.) Regular Lasik doesn't correct tiny surface abberations (which most people don't have anyway) and the prescription is dialed into the machine after being calculated by some software. (The much more expensive custom lasik actually makes a 3-D map of your corneas) The microkeratome is a physical blade which cuts the flap. The other option is having the flap cut by a laser. There are countless studies done which show very few differences between blade and bladeless flaps. Bladeless is the winner overall, but blade also has a very decent track record. I won't post additional details here but I read the studies and was confident enough to go through with microkeratome. If I had the money, I would've opted for custom lasik but alas I didn't.
So I was called into the surgery room soon after the Xanax was administered. I believe it didn't fully kick in until after surgery and it was my 1st time taking it :-) The room was full of very expensive machinery, co2 tanks, distilled water, and humidifiers. Scifi-esque. I laid down and the assistant gave me a few rounds of numbing drops. I do believe he was new and maybe didn't thoroughly apply them because the microkeratome flap cutting did actually hurt alot. Maybe a 6/10. It could've had alot to do with the suction device that holds your eye in place and my sensitivity to pain. I don't really want to scare anyone off because I'm glad I went through with it. Luckily, microkeratome cuts are very fast compared to bladeless so it was over quickly.
After pulling up the flap, the room becomes a blur and you stare into a bright red dot. The actual lasering of the eyeball only took 15 seconds or so. It varies based on the severity of your prescription. The coolest part was seeing the bright purple of the UV laser, the loud zapping noise, and the smell of the burning tissues. I'm not joking here :-). I told him that it blew my mind and he smiled.
After smoothing down the flap and repeating on the 2nd eye, they helped me up and basically sent me on my way out the door with prescriptions for eyedrops. Not a whole lot was mentioned on the recovery process. They made sure I had a ride home and that I was wearing sunglasses.
I remember eating pizza in the shopping center, going to Walgreens for icecream and my $100 antibiotic and steroid eyedrops, and the giggly blurry car ride. My eyes stung alot to say the least. Everything looked like it was under water but there was already a noticable visual clarity. I was amazed to say the least. The xanax made the memory hazy and helped me nap for 5 hours.
Most of the discomfort subsided by the evening. It was 90% better the following day. I had a next-day followup appointment which I was able to drive to myself. They said everything looked fine and scheduled me for a 3 month followup.
I had to put in the 2 types of prescription drops 3 times daily for 4 days afterwards. They made a nasty gooey crust in my eyeballs and trickled down my sinuses, but it was for the cause.
I downloaded and printed out a Snellen visual chart for my house and obsessively checked and compared my vision for the next week or so. I was thrilled to read street signs and everything in between. I discovered a new love for voyeurism in grocery stores with my new superhuman sight :-)
Something was wrong though. Despite my newfound vision, I was only reading around 20/30 at best on the Snellen chart. The full moon looked great, but it was still blurry and double. I convinced myself after reading many forums (usaeyes) that my eyes would heal to 20/20 in time. The majority of lasik patients reported 20/20 within 1 or 2 days post surgery but I held out for those 2 people who took 4 months to heal.
I noticed that when I squinted REALLY hard, I could read the 20/25 line. This indicated to me that I probably was either swollen or still myopic. I adjusted to my post-lasik life for the next 3 months just fine. I got fancy sunglasses for the light-sensitivity and spent alot of time outside appreciating the beautiful outdoors. Driving was fine although my depth perception was bad and night driving was sometimes a little scary. (nothing I wasn't used to driving without glasses regularly) I noticed that my mind was still adjusting psychologically to the vision changes. Focusing sometimes took a little longer while my brain figured out its new corneal parameters.
Things didn't really improve much for 3 months. A small tapering occured and crispness increased, but I remained at 20/30 or 20/50 even. It depended alot on my hydration I noticed. I experienced dry eyes like most people but it wasn't severe. I was applying drops hourly for the 1st month or so but was able to get by with a few times a day afterward. This was mostly in part due to the A/C on full blast at work.
3 month enhancement
Fast forward 3 months later and I went to my followup appointment. As predicted, the doctor reported -0.25, 1.25 x100, -0.75, 0.50 x26 myopic astigmatic eyesight. His explanation was "I have no idea why that happened, but it happens from time to time". Apparently all eyes respond differently to corrections. I was disappointed and terrified to say the least. I tried hard not to have personal sentiment toward the doctor but it was hard. I looked for things to blame. I wanted to blame the non-customized procedure itself. In the end I'll never know.
Alas, I was scheduled for a free enhancement procedure for the next week. Free enhancements are guaranteed for up to 1 year at my lasik clinic.
I began my Vit. C regimen again and started taking algae oil Omega 3 pills this time to assist in dry eye recovery. Winter was approaching and I feared for my eyes.
I brought a notebook with me and attempted to ask the doctor some questions on the day of the procedure. I failed miserably, just looking like a nervous wreck who scared himself with the internet. His response was to recommend Xanax again. Not having a whole lot of options, I agreed and waited my turn.
Enhancement procedure literally took less than 5 minutes. I laid down and was properly dosed with numbing drops this time. My flaps were lifted with incredible ease and the laser zapped away for only about 3 seconds this time. He smoothed them back down, reported success and sent me on my way.
Flap lifting was completely pain-free but the pain was way worse when the drops wore off this time. I took a taxi home and writhed in bed for awhile moaning. Hazily getting up to read my chart, I immediately noticed I could read 20/25 in the dark, and .... the 20/20 line was visible! I eventually fell asleep with a cannabis-chocolate and stayed in bed on through the night.
There was no next-day followup. I found that the irritation was still present the but not as bad. Left eye really hurt for some reason but the steroid drops helped alot. This didn't stop me from driving 200miles to see my family for Thanksgiving!
Oh, and looking at my Snellen chart, holy shit! I was reading 20/20!!!!!!!! SUCCESS?!?!
This was 2 days ago. I'm still seeing very well. I can only sit and appreciate the beauty of streetlights and streetsigns. I drove back 200miles at night on the interstate with complete ease. I don't want to declare early success but I believe I'm on the right path.
I will say that if you get lasik in the winter time you should invest in a humidifier. Maybe even a radiant oil-filled space heater so you can turn your central heat down and avoid drying your eyes out to a crisp. (this is wonderful for sinuses and power bills too).
Thanks for reading my blog and I hope to keep you updated through the years on my progress.
