Afraid of Lasik

[d_j]

Hi all,

I am 25 and was told be an optometrist to wait until I was about 30 to get Lasik because the eye changes rapidly until then. Was he telling me the truth? I am only asking this because a lot of the people around my age have had it done already. I don't wear contacts because I am afraid of putting things in my eyes (just got glasses 2 years a go). For obvious reasons I don't want to wear glasses, so I was wondering what the surgery is like and if anyone had bad experiences?

Any advice would help.

Thanks.

[ScionTC05]

hope not. im 23, and i know people who had it done around 18-19 yrs old too...but my eyes had been at the same prescription for years...so i should be ok.

[Hating glasses]

d_j,
My knowledge of the surgery is that the doctors like to wait until a patient is either 18 or 21 before they will do the procedure because of the changes that occur in the eye as we grow till one of those ages. I can't remember which for sure. You should be ok but, a Lasik Specialist would be better suited to tell you. As for the fear of having it done, when it first came out I said, "No way! Never me!" due to my own fear of having anyone mess with my eyes...particularly my eyelids. But, I actually psyched myself out of that fear. Not to say I was a little freaked out before my procedure (which was 2 weeks and 3 days ago). But, the fear you have is actually way worse than the procedure. It is a sinch and if you are a candidate, which only a Lasik doctor can tell you, I wouldn't hesitate. Trust me, I used to get the worst case of the willies just thinking about anyone touching my eyes. Have no fear. I don't want to discourage you from listening to your doctor but, all of my eye doctors for the past 5 years told me that I was not a candidate for the surgery. Turns out, not only was I a candidate but, 2 days post-op I was seeing 20/15. In case you are not familiar with the 20/20 chart, 20/15 is better than 20/20 and my doc has informed me that with my prescription the way that it was, I should not be seeing as well as I am already. Get the exam from a reputable Lasik doctor. I really believe that my regular eye doctors told me I wasn't a candidate because they knew that they would stop making money off of me if I was told otherwise.

Good luck and have no fear! It is honestly the best thing I have ever done for myself!

[3yesightonline]

for more info on lasik you can go to here:

www.eyesightonline.com

I would go to the FAQ, it might answer some of your questions.
The testimonial section has a few descriptions of what the surgery is like.

All you need is to be over 18 (and you are) and to have stable vision for at least 2 years. If you've had stable vision for 2 years, then I wouldn't wait untill you 30. Not to mention, you'de save money on the glasses and contacts you'de buy for 5 years, by throwing them all away and having lasik.

[Texstar]

Hi "Afraid",

I'm 67 years young, but I thought I'd share my vision experience with you to help you overcome your fear. I started wearing glasses when I was in college, but later, I transitioned to hard contacts when I began my career in the aerospace world. After a few years, I started having to wear reading glasses in addition to my normal vision glasses. Needless to say, this became a real nuisance!
However, as the field of vision correction became more advanced, I chose to have radial keratotomy performed by a well-known doctor in Glendale California. If you are not familiar with this "old" technology, it involves cutting the cornea with a micro-thin roller blade held within a micrometer-type instrument. Radial cuts on the surface of the cornea reshapes the eye's cornea "lens". After the first "surgery", my vision was so improved in the one eye I had done that I went back to have both eyes done. The doctor performed Monovision surgery on both eyes (one eye for near vision and the other eye for far vision. This was done in 1977, and was the greatest solution for my vision problems for the next eighteen years.

Then, my vision started to deteriorate again, and I starting checking into LASIK. I found a remarkable doctor who had treated a lot of professional atheletes, celebrities, and others, and subsequently had him perform the same type of LASIK vision correction on both my eyes (Monovision-one eye for reading and the other for distance). This procedure was done about 1995, and my vision is just now starting to show signs of gradual degradation again. I have recently started to wear reading glasses again.

As to your being "afraid of LASIK', I would offer two pieces of advice; first, my own experience provides an excellent example of what can be achieved by proper use of medical advances in vision care, BUT, as my second piece of advice, I caution you to make sure you select the Doctor and the FACILITY/EQUIPMENT CAREFULLY!! Your doctor should use the 4000 tracks/second auto tracking feature which automates the laser cutting activity. DO NOT GO TO ONE OF THE LOW PRICED "PRODUCTION MILLS" FOR THIS TYPE SURGERY. Good Luck!