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?

Had mine done 15 years ago. Still perfect vision. Had LASIK and was driving the next day. If you live far from the surgery I would recommend a hotel nearby as you'll probably need to go in the next day for a check up. Also, it starts to get uncomfortable after an hour, room service and a glass of wine is brilliant for post op

I had it done 20 years ago, along with DH, my dad and my brother. All problem free and highly recommend. I have hay fever and could never wear contact lenses in the summer and my eyes were too irritated. Game changer.

I had LASIK and I've been left with permanent damage and my eyesight will now always be affected (ghosting, glare, halos) I can't go to the cinema or drive at night, and need lots of lights on in the house after sunset.

It's great when it goes well but a small % are unlucky like me; I wish I hadn't risked it.

I had it done 10 years ago and wish I hadn't. I still have 20/20 vision but my eyes are extremely dry now, I have to put drops in literally every couple of hours. When I wake up in the morning my eyes feel like the Sahara desert. In hindsight the company knew I had underlying issues with dryness, but encouraged me to use eye drops every 30 mins in the days ahead of the surgery so that I would still qualify for it.

I think it’s like any surgery as pp’s have said, for some it will feel miraculous for others it will be a disaster. I’m fortunate in that I fell into the miraculous category along with my sister. I had it done well over 10 years ago, probably closer to 15. A couple of years ago on a routine eye test, my optician said he was extremely impressed with the results (worth mentioning was not the same company who performed the surgery) and said if everyone had it done and it turned out as well as mine they’d be out of a job.

I remember clearly opening my eyes (after extremely unpleasant feelings, like hot sand in my eyes) when it had settled down and seeing clearly for the first time, it was a bird in a tree a long way off, everything had a crisp outline. Knowing I didn’t have to faff about with glasses and contact lenses again. Even now, my eyes are great and very often I’m thankful for it.

It’s absolutely essential though that you go to an expert in the field, anything cheap run as fast as you can. Research the clinic thoroughly and read up on the procedure. I certainly didn’t enjoy it, you’re fully awake and you can smell the burning and afterwards it was painful but my life since has been transformed in the most positive way. Good luck whatever you decide.

I had lens replacement surgery last October as I was nearly 50 so laser is not suitable. I was long sighted, short sighted, poor middle vision and astigmatisms, plus both my parents have had cataract surgery.
I had tried contacts, but developed dry eye so could no longer wear them. Had tried regular varifocals - no good for doing my job, indoor varifocals made my nauseaous if I looked outside. I was spending large amounts of my days searching for my glasses as I had taken them off.
Lens replacement has been life changing even though I had posterior capsule thickened that had to be treated with yag laser. Now 6 months on it is so much better. Plus I will not develop cataracts in later life which would have required the identical surgery.
I do have haloing, but my astigmatism caused me to suffer horrible night glare and haloing is a million times better than that - not painful just there and improves the closer you get to the light.

I had mine 21 years ago, and it was great.

Couple of things...

As a few people have said, go to a highly-qualified surgeon to whom this is a very dull thing to do. When I had the assessment appointment, the surgeon inspected my eyes and I said, "What do you reckon? Can you do anything for me?"

He said, somewhat wryly, "Put it this way - you're not a challenge."

Which is great. If someone's going to burn a bit of your eyeball, what you want is for that person to think you represent a very mundane day at the office.

It doesn't hurt much, and the pain is not only bearable but brief. For me the problem was suppressing the understandable instinct to escape. Although I knew that this was something I'd signed up for, paid for and walked into of my own free will, when the bloke leaned over me with the machine, there was a very fundamental and animalistic part of my brain screaming, "He's after your eyes! Punch the fucker and run!" My fists were clenched throughout.

My eyes felt irritated and light-sensitive that evening, but all that was completely gone by the morning.

When I first talked to the surgeon about it, he said, "This is a very wonderful procedure with outstanding results, but it's not a miracle - it won't stop you aging. So you're not going to be free of glasses forever. Your eyes will still deteriorate."

He also said, "I can give you whatever kind of sight you want, perfectly, but not for all distances. For instance, if you're an archer, you might want great long-distance sight, but in a few years time you'll need glasses for reading. Or, if you work on computers a lot, I can give you the best sight for that, but in a few years time you'll need glasses to drive. So what do you want?"

Lastly, some people report that they get more glare at night, which I do. I'm not crazy about driving after dark.