Matthew Ehrlich - How to See Like a Hawk When You're Blind As a Bat: A Patients' Guide to Lasik Laser Vision Correction

Pros: Great vision, no more glasses.
Cons: A few post surgery side effects that lasted a few weeks.

Lasik eye surgery was a dream come true for me. I had vision so poor, if the soap was not in the soap dish in the shower, I had to put my glasses on just to find it. Contacts were not an option for me. I tried several different brands, and had the...

Pros: great results, a new lease on life
Cons: expensive, full results can take a while

If Lasik laser eye surgery had a poster child, I very well could be it. Most of life was spent with vision that even bats pitied. For starters, my contact lenses were maxed out like credit cards—a minus 10 each. Then came the glasses, which I actually...

Pros: can finally be free of pesky contacts
Cons: eyes more sensitive, cant see when get tired, still have dry eyes

Ever witness an entire lift line down on their knees, looking for your missing contact lens? Know what it's like to re-insert that same dried, crispy lens without a mirror in 25 mile-per-hour freezing wind? How about trying to ski an...

Pros: uninvasive, cost-effective, short recovery-time, immediate rewards
Cons: untested, may cause photosensitivity to worsen, may increase blurring in visual fields

Being the son of one of the optical physicists who designed the laser technology used in Lasik eye surgery and also a licensed surgical nurse, I consider myself fairly knowledgeable on the subject. Past vision-correction procedures are quickly falling...

Pros: No more glasses!
Cons: Slight discomfort, vision varies

<===== 6 month update ======>
I went back for an enhancement, as they call it. In other words, they repeated the procedure to fine tune my vision. This time, I just had a 0.5 correction in each eye, which amounted to about 5 seconds under...

Pros: I can see!
Cons: cost, some docs are inexperienced with the surgery

I had LASIK performed in April, 1999. Like the others, I was able to see better as soon as I sat up, and drove through the fast-food drive-through that evening. My eyes are more dry now, and on days when the pollen count is high, it feels like sand is in...

Pros: Great vision
Cons: No eye makeup for 2 weeks

I was a contact lens and glasses for 20 years. My prescription was a -7.00. My husband is also the same , but he decided to give me the gift of sight trough the LASIK surgery! My total time under the laser was 39 seconds for one eye and 44 for the other....

Pros: I can see 20/20 with no Glasses or Contacts
Cons: The side effects

Since there isn't a place to write about Lasik Surgery yet, I will explain myself in a place which co-exsists with the theories and explainations of Lasik Surgery.

I recieved my Surgery on June 23rd, 2000. Almost 1 week ago this Friday. I...

Pros: Quick, virtually painless
Cons: no make up for two weeks after your surgery

I work as a surgical assistant in ophthamology and have been assisting for nearly ten years. Over the past ten years I have seen the growth of refractive surgery and the benefits of such surgeries as RK, PRK, and Lasik.
I've worn glasses and...

Pros: Best site of my life! Bye bye contacts.
Cons: NONE

After wearing glasses for 15 years and contacts for another 12, I guess I began to "dry up" because I could no longer wear the contacts. Well, it was back to the glasses and, boy, I sure didn't miss them. I researched all over the place about...

Pros: Perfect sight without glasses/contacts
Cons: Cost and 1 day of discomfort

I've been looking into laser vision correction for several years but the money factor and fear factor held me back. My insurance coverage at work recently changed to cover 20% of the procedure. Then I broke my glasses playing basketball. Well it all...

Pros: Seeing without aids.
Cons: None, maybe cost.

I am involved with pre-hospital care as a Paramedic and I waited until long term data was available before I had my surgery. I researched ever journal article I could get my hands on, I researched ever website and I almost cancelled my surgery. This was...

Pros: Easy, virtually painless surgery
Cons: Not covered by most medical plans

Here i am, two weeks after Lasik Lazer surgery and I am without glasses, except for readers, which are required due to my "advanced years".(62) Point out a sign across the street and i will gladly read it for you.

I had my surgery...