Lasik eye surgery

Any climbers out there who've had lasik? Especially the kind where they adjust one eye for distance and the other for close-in? This is what they are recommending to me.....

Had it 3 years ago, same adjustment for both eyes. I had PRK however apposed to normal lasik. I also wrestle so the idea of having a flap on my eyeball just didn't work for me.
Three years later i've had zero problems and have 20/15 vision, so i have no complaints and would def recommend lasik to anyone considering it. Friend of mine had it done a year ago too, also with no complications and we both climb together. Besides the cost i really can't think of a downside.

Doing 1 eye at first and waiting a few years to do the other eye was recommended by many docs because there are no long term studies. Better something goes wrong with 1 eye than both.

I had lasik done on both eyes and would highly recommend it for anyone! However, my eyes are a little more sensitive to light. I find myself wearing sunglasses a lot more.

I had lasik more than a decade ago.

Just about the best decision I ever made.

Have had better than 20/20 vision ever since. No bad effects at all. The technology is a lot better now than when I did it.

Personally, I think getting one eye for close, and the other for distance is a dumb idea. It will screw up your depth perception. If you're worried about some day losing your close up vision, get a pair of reading glasses.

For the record, I'm 46, and can see close and far. Can thread a fish hook no problem. At some point, age will catch up with me, and I will lose close-up vision like everyone else, but I'd rather deal with that with reading glasses than have my eyes have mis-matched in terms of sight.

I agree that you shouldn't even consider cost when deciding who to go to. I got my eyes done by the same doctor that did several of the Denver Broncos, and who developed a number of the cutting edge techniques. He cost more, but I didn't care.

I had PRK 10 years ago from the Army. I see 20/15; only problem is that I see halos around lights at night, no other issues. Very worth getting. The military uses PRK over Lasik due to potential issues with the flap. My friend had Lasik and it worked for him.

I would recommend doing a trial of monovision with contact lenses before doing it with a laser if at all possible. Some people love it, others not so much.

Had LASIK 12 yrs ago. I have "monovision" (vernacular for one eye focus set a little closer) and have really liked it, especially for climbing. WAY more convenient than reading glasses. It may take a few weeks to get totally used to it, but a contact lens trial is a good idea.
I run a laser center, PM me if you have specific questions.

It is extremely important to get them to tell you if there will be enough cornea left over to make corrections down the road if necessary. I know many people who have had successful Lasik, but I also know of 3 who lost their 20/20 and also were told that they don't have enough cornea left to make the corrections.

Mike Lane wrote:It is extremely important to get them to tell you if there will be enough cornea left over to make corrections down the road if necessary. I know many people who have had successful Lasik, but I also know of 3 who lost their 20/20 and also were told that they don't have enough cornea left to make the corrections.

I heard that from one eye doctor I went to. The one who did my eyes was of the opinion that if the surgery was done correctly, that making corrections were unnecessary.

I am almost legally blind and have been urged by my op. to do it. After a lot of research I will not be doing it any time soon.

After about a year of researching and mainly talking with people who've had it done, I've decided it's not for me. I've heard a lot of great stories but also a lot of people telling me that they are still wearing corrective lenses a lot of the time and they feel that they were mislead and basically wasted their money.

I guess what I'm saying is this: Don't rush into it and talk to a lot of people first. And if you decide to do it, don't go cheap. At least a few of the people with bad experiences that I know did it cheap.

J. Nickel wrote:I would recommend doing a trial of monovision with contact lenses before doing it with a laser if at all possible. Some people love it, others not so much.

This is a great idea. Both my parents wear contacts, and one swears by monovision and the other hates it.

Read up on the difference between PRK and Lasik. They are very different procedures, but where ever you go will most likely offer both.

I had PRK about a year ago and the only major negative is the revcovery time, which went in this order. 1 ok day 3 bad days 4 semi bad days and then about a week until I was really feeling good.

Ryan Williams wrote:And if you decide to do it, don't go cheap. At least a few of the people with bad experiences that I know did it cheap.

+1 I did a good bit of research which suggested this is very true, most recommendations is to stay away from the 'discount tire' outfits that crank people through. This is your eyes, it would really suck to screw up just to save a few bucks.

The place I got mine done gave me a pair of contacts to simulate 'monovision'. After trying it for a week I didn't like it, some people do. I use reading glasses for really small print, most text is still readable but I realize it's only a matter of time before I'll need reading glasses for all text, I'm 48. Other than that vision is fantastic and would do it again in a heart beat.

As for dry eyes, hard to say if I'm just more conscious of dry eyes or they're really more often dry. We keep artificial tears in the car, on our desk, packs, etc. I would rather trade glasses or contacts for putting in artificial tears.

I had lasik done several years ago and love it. I was really nearsighted (contact prescription was -9.75 diopters) and now have 20/15 vision. No problems at all. The major reason I did it was that I had been on a couple extended trips into the backcountry where I ended up with an major eye infection due to dealing with contacts without good sanitation (despite best efforts). I also didn't like being completely dependent on contacts/glasses - if they had gotten lost or broken on one of these trips, I wouldn't be able to see at all. I don't have much cornea thickness left, so if my prescription changes, I probably won't be able to have lasik again, but at least I should be able to see something 3 feet in front of my face without glasses.

+10 I don't want to repeat what everyone said, but yes it's awesome and yes I went to the best doctor I could find.

Only negatives were sensitivity to bright lights especially at night, which I already had and dryness. I had my tear ducts plugged to help alleviate that.

i am looking to do it next year possibly.

which dr do you denver/boulder people go to?

Kai Huang wrote:i am looking to do it next year possibly. which dr do you denver/boulder people go to?

Dr. Dishler.

dishler.com/

Hey everyone thanks for all the feedback.

I've had two consultations now and have gotten completely different opinions from both. The expensive eye surgeons spent about 30 min. max looking at my eyes and recommended regular lasik with a distance only correction (reading glasses most likely needed)while the half-priced guys looked at my eyes for almost three hours and recommended PRK with the monocular correction. So I'm not sure what to think yet.

So I guess I'll try to get more opinions. It would be fantastic to get rid of the glasses!

my best friend had it done by one of the best doctors in LA and it is the biggest regret of their life. My friend's vision is better than it was (terrible), but they still have poor vision (20/40 i think), poor night vision, dry eyes, they were stressed out, may not be able to wear contacts or may require less comfortable/ more expensive contacts, waste of money. Obviously it works for a lot of folks, but realize that there are risks of 'failure'.

Kai Larson wrote: I heard that from one eye doctor I went to. The one who did my eyes was of the opinion that if the surgery was done correctly, that making corrections were unnecessary.

IF is a terrible word IF theY F&^K up.

I would like to hear from more mono vision folks as I wear one contact for reading and close up work. I tried wearing bi focal contacts on both eyes but like wearing one contact on one eye better. My only problem is how confused the eye gets in busy stores like home depot type stores.

Ic Denver Lyons eye center.
I had Orkut done by doctor levinson in Denver at rose and like him. But now that I know how amazing university docs are I'd say you can't get much better then the ones who teach and research on it all the time.

Good luck