Laser eye surgery - experiences/thoughts/risks?

[MumofCandR]

I'm considering having laser eye surgery done. I have strong myopia and have done since I was 12 I'm now mid 40s. I have worn glasses all my life and am not considering this for aesthetic reasons, but for me the absolute bonus would be the feeling of freedom, being able to see in the shower, in the sea. Glasses not steaming up when wearing a mask, etc. Have you had laser eye surgery and what has been your experience/ would you recommend? My concern would be the small risk of complications and regretting not sticking with glasses as being able to see is so precious. AIBU to consider? What do I need to think about?

I had it done when I was 21, it was brilliant but sadly for me it hasn’t lasted and I am short sighted again and back to contacts- I’m 34 now so it lasted about 7 years. I don’t regret it as it made such a difference. I’m not sure why it’s regressed but apparently it can happen (I think it’s rare!) but it was absolutely fine.

I had it done 12ish years ago. Had astigmatism and -6. I have better than 20/20 vision. I do have some night vision issues - halos but eye drops can help with this. Most of my night night driving is in London and the light contrast isn't enough to cause problems.

In the first year watching a movie in a very dark room was a problem with some haloing.

I did have some pain after the surgery- I was glad I had codeine tablets with me.

I have never regretted it once. It is amazing as I had bad vision from the age of 8 years.

Always wondered about this. How do they do it? Are you awake? Doesn’t it hurt?

I had mine done privately about 15 years ago, I was -4.50 and -4.25. Best thing I’ve ever done. Small things like not having to reach for your glasses when you wake, not worrying about sand going behind the contact lenses on the beach, and just seeing everything differently.

No real pain after, but I knew straight away one eye wasn’t ‘perfect’, it ended up being -1, but they redid it for free, although I had to wait 3 months for it to heal. That procedure was more risky but all worked out fine!

Someone told me before I had it done that when they laser the eye it smells of burning hair, which it did, and I’m glad I knew about it so didn’t panic!

@bubble2000

Please please don't have this surgery

lasikcomplications.com

Absolutely no way on God's green earth I would, not after seeing my friend have complications and being told 6 month healing time was completely normal - that and a seeing a waiting room full of people with similar issues.

The risk is too high for me. Janet Porter has double vision from it now doesn't she?

I'm in a similar position to you but after a free consultation, decided not to go ahead.
I would need reading glasses in the next few years, so for me I don't think it would be worth it.
Probably should have done it decades ago but wanted to wait to see what if any long -term side effects would be.

I had mine done in 2012 aged 26. It has been completely liberating to have a decade without glasses. I do sometimes wonder whether I might regret it in the future but it’s been great so far. Sight is still pretty good, one eye healed with an astigmatism so has slightly less good sight overall. I think the weirdest thing for my brain was getting used to two eyes that don’t quite see to the same standard (which is perfectly normal of course, most people have slightly different prescriptions in each eye, just the correction is to 20/20).

I think it very much depends on your prescription.

There are a lot of people saying their surgery was very successful and they had a high prescription, but everything is relative. My pre surgery prescription was -20 and -22. I had Lasik 20 years ago but at those prescriptions the result is somewhat unpredictable. It achieved what I wanted, which was to get my vision into a more normal range, but it's far from perfect and I'm now left with corneas that are very strangely shaped. Further surgery is out of the question as so much had to be removed in the first place. It also means that as I get older and eventually need cataract surgery it will be more difficult.

On balance it was the right decision at the time, but now that lens replacement surgery is better developed I would strongly advise investigating it instead. This can correct your vision while leaving the corneas intact, thereby avoiding the issues I now face.

I have recently started running and am really struggling with glasses.

I've an appointment with my optician's tomorrow to try contacts. I have had the same optician for 42years (I'm 46yr) and he said due to being shortsighted -6.25, having astigmatism and needing prisms - the contacts will be classed as "complex".....

With all those issues.... plus l avoid driving at night as l struggle to see.... l wonder if laser surgery wouldn't be successful for me?

www.fox2detroit.com/news/in-her-own-words-jessica-starr-detailed-struggles-after-eye-surgery-in-video-journals.amp

www.today.com/health/smile-surgery-husband-meteorologist-who-took-her-own-life-speaks-t151062

I understand there is greater risks if pupils are large

Celebrate your glasses contactlenses

Enjoy life without constant pain/ dry eyes / no night vision / Starbursts or halos

Do not have this.

www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-6497495/amp/The-laser-eye-surgery-patients-driven-suicide.html

nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/what-happens-when-your-lasik-surgery-goes-bad-think-nightmare-123386

I don't understand what eye conditions it's suitable for ... how do I figure that out?

Everyone I know who had it is near-sighted.

My eyesight is blurry up close & far away, but ok in middle. It's age-related deterioration in vision. can any kind of laser surgery help someone like me (?)

thanks to anyone who has time to respond

Do your research.... make ypur choice ....

My mum had it done over 20 years ago at the same time as havng cataracts removed.

Her field vision is now atrocious, she fails the test every time. She has two different sorts of eye drops to take daily. One sort is a sort of gel that really hurts and makes her vision blurry.

But she only needs reading glasses...

My prescription was about -7 in both eyes and I had it done about 14 years ago. Quite simply the best thing I have ever done. A complete life changer.

I haven’t had it done but suffered with severe dry eye problems and am in various online groups with other sufferers whose problems have resulted from lasik.
I think lens replacement sounds a better option and understand your vision can be corrected for near/far and medium distance all at once.

@Confrontayshunme

I worked for a Consultant who is the former head of the Royal College, and he wouldn't have it done. He advised others and performed them but decided he didn't feel it was worth the risks when glasses and contacts have very little adverse affects. That made the decision for me.

I remember the ads when this surgery was first available, & the doctors in them always wore glasses...

@bubble2000 says the person quoting the daily mail! 😂😂😂

My husband had his eyes done 12 years ago. He was around -5 and it's been life changing. I would strongly suggest looking at going somewhere reputable, meeting surgeons and checking credentials. My husband went to London Moorfields eye hospital. If anyone is offering it cheap, run the other way.

@MumofCandR

Thank you all for your insights and experiences they really help. CrabbyCat - interesting points, I think I do have large pupils and prescription is -5.0 so the nihgt vision problems might be an issue for me. Bubble2000 thank you for the links - do you have direct experience of issues? Complications are what concerns me but it seems the majority of people have good experience? Of course you never know if you're going to be the unlucky one. Lots of things to consider.

I don't know why, but it's a consideration if you get cataracts and need surgery later on. Maybe ask about that?

I had LASIK 16 years ago, got some minor complications including dry eyes for about a year and, at one point, a dislodged corneal flap when my toddler hit me i in the eye. Had a reaction to some of the drops. Had some halo-ing at night but tbh I used to get that with contacts and it didn't bother me at all - I don't get it any more. The eye surgery was still one of the best decisions of my life. For years I used to give silent thanks to the surgeon every morning. I still often think of him, and actually contacted his office last year to say thanks.
I'm a health researcher now, though I wasn't then. I have kept an 'eye' on safety research and it's impressive. I know that many eye surgeons have had their own eyes fixed, as have many other healthcare professionals.
I'd suggest:

• Go for a consultation with a specialist clinic or two, to get their realistic assessment of likely results for you as an individual. They know what they're talking about. You can't expect a general optician to be an expert in this.
• Look at experience and outcome stats for eyes in your prescription range. Clinics should publish stats by category. The surgeon's experience won't necessarily correlate with how impressive his job title is. Someone who is a consultant at an eye hospital specialising in eg trauma, cataracts, rare forms of blindness, may be brilliant in those areas but less experienced at laser vision correction than a surgeon who is not yet a consultant, but specialises in this. My surgeon had done over 10,000 LASIK procedures when he did mine. Last time I checked he was at 80,000 plus!!
• Once you're on the mailing list for a private clinic you may get offers when they have spare capacity. I got this from Optimax.

Age - I had mine done in my mid 30s & was told repeatedly that I would need reading glasses in my 40s. Well, I'm just turning 50 and I don't yet.
You may be advised to consider implantable contacts. A friend had these recently & was advised that anyone 50+ should go for them routinely.

• Don't wait forever "to see what the long term results are" - this has been around for years and there's plenty of data. A friend of mine had vision correction surgery in the 1980s. I was looking into it for about 5 years and my optician kept saying "oh, wait a few years, see what happens", and after 5 years I realised those goalposts were always moving. By the way, when I went to that optician for an independent check up 2 years after my surgery, she said she couldn't see any scarring or any sign that I'd had surgery, even on her highest magnification examination.

Go for a consultation and see how you feel

Had mine done Aug 2020, was so excited to finally be free of glasses but they've not been right at all since day 1.
I had them done as short sighted so couldn't see distance well. After having them done initially, I had double vision. I had to go back after a week as my close vision was totally blurred, apparantly my eyes had become too lazy/ dependent on glasses so had to do pen to nose exercises to strengthen the muscles. Had NEVER had a problem with near vision before...
18 months on & I feel like I need glasses as distance is blurred too (although I can read stuff I wouldn't have seen without my glasses b4 but totally blurred) but apparantly I've got 20/20 vision. I also now have reading glasses.
I spent the 1st year going back to the clinic every month to be checked out with instructions to use eye drops/ warm compresses/ eye exercises.
Apparantly I've got severe dry eye over the front of my lens so it's like 'a fingerprint on a contact lense' this was never picked up in the consultation & my eyes never 'feel' dry.
Waste of money for me as I know I will have to go back to glasses again only this time it'll be 2 bloody sets for near & distance.