Hey! So, since I last posted, I got new eyes! On Thursday of last week, I had LASIK surgery and now I can see!!

Unfortunately, they are still a bit scary. But let me assure you, this is at almost a week post-op and things are MUCH improved now. My left eye is particularly red, because they had some trouble with the suction ring and had to apply it three times before they got it to work, leaving significant “hickeys” on my eyeballs. Thankfully, it’s not painful, just ugly. Fisher said I looked like an “evil dead zombie” (i’m pretty sure that was supposed to be a compliment).
I thought it might be helpful to share my experience with anyone thinking about having the procedure done…
First, I’ll share why I decided to go ahead and do it. I used to wear disposable contacts most of the time, but since having Tate I can no longer tolerate wearing them – even for very short periods of time. I have had! quite poor vision, so I was stuck wearing my glasses ALL THE TIME. Essentially, if my eyes were open I was wearing them (unless I left them somewhere other than the bedside table, in which case I was stumbling around the house trying to find them). Anyway, I was frustrated that I couldn’t wear sunglasses on sunny days (I refused to buy prescription sunglasses b/c I knew they’d get lost or broken). The most annoying thing was having to wear them while swimming. Especially if I was in a lake or somewhere I couldn’t afford to have them fall off. Plus, wet glasses? Annoying.
So, I began to talk about wanting to have it done, but was concerned about the money (about $4k). Scott really encouraged me to go ahead and do it. I normally try to make big decisions based on how likely I am to regret or not regret doing something, and since everyone I knew who had it done said it was the best thing they ever did, it seemed like a pretty safe bet.
I ended up selecting the doctor recommended by my own eye doctor. I know he’s got a deal with them, but he let them do HIS eyes, so I figured that was good enough of a recommendation for me! I had a pre-op examination by my own doctor, and then another done at the LASIK center two days before the surgery. I liked this approach, as they were able to verify that what they were seeing matched up with my own doc’s records.
I’m not going to go into the details of the procedure. Here’s what I would say were the highlights of the experience for me:
- Most places I’ve heard of give Valium as a standard pre-op medication. My place did not do that. They would give Xanax on request, but I was assured that the procedure was a breeze and that I really shouldn’t need it.
- I wish I’d taken the Xanax.
The first portion of the procedure, when they cut the flap, is a little more uncomfortable and intense than I expected. Having them do it three times on my left eye before getting it just right set my adrenaline going like crazy and I was shaking like mad by the time it was over.
- That said, the procedure is amazingly fast. From the time I went into the “operating” room until the time I walked out was probably no more than 10 minutes, and that’s with my added complication. From the time I walked into the door of the office until I walked out was less than an hour.
- Immediately after the procedure my vision was clear, but sort of cloudy/milky/hazy. When I woke up from my mandatory 4 hour nap, my vision was almost completely clear. That evening I went to see This American Life live. Felt mostly ok, had to close my eyes occasionally due to irritation/dryness, but no pain or anything.
- The next morning I woke up and everything was clear! Like, super duper clear! Clearer than I was seeing with glasses! Bionic Woman clear!
At almost a week post-op, I’m feeling good. Still some dryness, but I understand that is to be expected for quite some time – possibly months. My eyes do seem to feel more tired – especially at night. I have a bit of irritation here and there where I feel like I need to use the eye drops more frequently, but overall I think my recovery is going well. It’s incredible to be able to wake up at night and see the alarm clock! And I can wear sunglasses again!
Best of all, I won’t ever have to stumble around the house looking for my lost glasses ever again! Yay!!