Lasik eye surgery for a not-so-young person
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free skin care · Fri Apr 23, 2010 6:30 pm

I have some money accumulating in an HSA and I'm thinking about using it on Lasik surgery. I'll be 50 in May, and I would like to hear from anyone who has had the surgery that late in life. I wonder if it's too late to reap the benefits, but I'm seriously tired of contacts and glasses.

Thanks.

free skin care · Fri Apr 23, 2010 7:39 pm

Skippie, I had lasik surgery at 52. That was four years ago and I have 20/20 vision. It's wonderful to be free of glasses and I couldn't wear contacts anymore. The procedure has improved and they can achieve a more precise outcome now.

I advise you to not go with the least expensive clinic though. Make sure whoever performs your surgery comes highly recommended.
My opthamologist referred me to the Dr. who did mine.

Your first app't will be to determine if you're a good candidate and gives you the opportunity to ask questions. I also did a lot of reading about it beforehand and talked to other people who had it done. In other words, do your homework.

The woman who did my surgery was a retinal specialist and she said lasik surgery was safer than wearing contact lenses and gave me a 98% chance of success. So for me it was a no brainer. Anyways, I am so glad I went ahead with it.

Oh, another thing is to make sure that the clinic has the latest equipment.

free skin care · Sat Apr 24, 2010 3:50 am

Thanks brierrose. That's exactly the kind of information I needed to hear. I appreciate it.

Sat Apr 24, 2010 5:54 am

Hi, Skippie...

I had a consultation for lasix last month and found out that I am not a candidate, but only because I am near-sighted. I need my glasses for distance sight but have to take them off to read, use the pc, etc. My issue is "maturing myopia." Basically, I'm getting old. :P

Good luck, hopefully you'll be a good candidate. My 81 yo father had it done and is loving life, so it's not necessarily an age thing, it just depends on what your requirements are.

free skin care · Sat Apr 24, 2010 7:01 am

I didn't have Lasik later in life, rather I had it probably 12+ years ago now. Just remember that while your distance vision will be perfect (or near perfect) you will still have age related eye changes and will need the reading glasses eventually. They did my eyes where one was better for distance and one was better for close up. It took me quite a while to adjust to that and not feel off balance, but it has kept me from needing reading glasses until this year.

free skin care · Sat Apr 24, 2010 1:24 pm

LBoz wrote:

Hi, Skippie...

I had a consultation for lasix last month and found out that I am not a candidate, but only because I am near-sighted. I need my glasses for distance sight but have to take them off to read, use the pc, etc. My issue is "maturing myopia." Basically, I'm getting old. :P

Good luck, hopefully you'll be a good candidate. My 81 yo father had it done and is loving life, so it's not necessarily an age thing, it just depends on what your requirements are.

Oh dear. I take off my glasses, too, to read, but it's been that way my whole life. I hope that won't disqualify me.

rileygirl wrote:

]I didn't have Lasik later in life, rather I had it probably 12+ years ago now. Just remember that while your distance vision will be perfect (or near perfect) you will still have age related eye changes and will need the reading glasses eventually. They did my eyes where one was better for distance and one was better for close up. It took me quite a while to adjust to that and not feel off balance, but it has kept me from needing reading glasses until this year.

I actually don't need reading glasses yet either, but I can tell I will eventually.

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I definitely think I'm going for a consultation, but it helps to know what questions to ask. Someone mentioned dry eyes, too, so I will be sure to ask about that potential problem.

free skin care · Sat Apr 24, 2010 1:47 pm

Here's hoping that you're a good candidate Skippie! Be sure to let us know! Smile

free skin care · Sat Apr 24, 2010 3:00 pm

Skippie wrote:

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I definitely think I'm going for a consultation, but it helps to know what questions to ask. Someone mentioned dry eyes, too, so I will be sure to ask about that potential problem.

Good luck, Skippie. I have very dry eyes and after Lasik I had to have these little rice pellet looking things applied directly in my tear duct opening for the dryness. I still have to use drops for dry eyes.

free skin care · Sat Apr 24, 2010 3:49 pm

I had Lasik done about two years ago, and I will be 50 yrs old next month. Prior to the surgery, I needed glasses for far vision, but was starting to put my glasses on top of my head for closeup work. When I started looking all over the house for my glasses, only to realize they were on top of my head, I opted for Lasik.

Like rileygirl, I now have monovision - one eye adjusted for close up, the other adjusted for distance. One eye is 20/20, the other 20/15. It took some time to adjust, but I'm very pleased with the results.

The doctor recommended "driving" glasses for night-time driving, when I have a bit of a halo effect. It's not bad enough to motivate me to buy the glasses.

Also, I noticed that when I'm in meetings at work where a projector is used and the lights turned down, I need to sit closer to the front of the room.

free skin care · Sat Apr 24, 2010 6:43 pm

nadjazz wrote:

I had Lasik done about two years ago, and I will be 50 yrs old next month. Prior to the surgery, I needed glasses for far vision, but was starting to put my glasses on top of my head for closeup work. When I started looking all over the house for my glasses, only to realize they were on top of my head, I opted for Lasik.

Like rileygirl, I now have monovision - one eye adjusted for close up, the other adjusted for distance. One eye is 20/20, the other 20/15. It took some time to adjust, but I'm very pleased with the results.

The doctor recommended "driving" glasses for night-time driving, when I have a bit of a halo effect. It's not bad enough to motivate me to buy the glasses.

Also, I noticed that when I'm in meetings at work where a projector is used and the lights turned down, I need to sit closer to the front of the room.

Thanks, nadjazz. One of the reasons I would like Lasik is because of the problem of never being able to find my glasses when I need them. Happy birthday to you - I'm also going to be 50 next month. Hope you're doing something fun to celebrate.

free skin care · Sat Apr 24, 2010 8:51 pm

Skippie, Happy Birthday to you as well! I am jumping the gun on mine, though...it's not until June! I guess I was planning ahead because this board has got my wish list started!

Rolling Eyes

free skin care · Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:11 am

I think it's great that you're anticipating your 50th, nadjazz. I had my crisis birthday at 35, when I panicked about the fact that I hadn't done anything worthwhile with my life - not in a career or educational sense but in the sense that if I died, I wouldn't have done anything to make the world a better place. This year, I'm finally getting around to doing that. In January, I donated a kidney to someone who needed one very badly, so my 50th birthday is definitely going to be my best ever.

free skin care · Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:53 am

Wow, Skippie, that's great! I know what you mean about about doing something worthwhile. I'm still searching myself! I've actually considered donating a kidney. Good for you, getting it done before your 50th!

Sun Apr 25, 2010 1:46 pm

I good consult with your eye doctor will tell you what to expect in terms of outcome. I am 55 y.o. and recently asked my eye doctor about it, and decided not to do it for myself. The surgery would fix vision for certain distances, and they can even do each eye differently (which was mentioned above). But the downside is that, at least in my case, different sets of glasses would be needed for other distances, which gets real confusing fast. Near vision (reading), intermediate (computer, piano), distance (driving), and lots of things in-between.

Best of luck to you. I hope that it works out but make sure your expectations are aligned with what is possible to do.

free skin care · Sat May 08, 2010 12:19 pm

I work in the eye care field and see lasik patients on a daily basis. What I can tell you is firstly... do your research on the lasik centres!! DO NOT go for the cheapest route, instead talk to your optometrist to give you some recommendations. Remember... you get what you pay for. Don't cheap out when it comes to your vision. I've seen many patients in my line of work that have gone to "cheap lasik centres" and have not been happy. The patients that spend more money on finding a really good office are more satisfied with the outcomes. As a 50 yr old getting lasik...the best route would be "mono vision". That means that they will correct your eyes differently. One eye will be corrected for vision, the other eye will be corrected for reading. This may be difficult to adjust to.. so before doing it, go to your optometrist and try out contact lenses for a while to see if your brain can adjust to having one eye corrected for distance and one eye corrected for near. You can also get lasik done to correct your distance vision to 20/20, but at your age where close up vision is deteriating, you need to wear reading glasses for the close up work (reading, computer)

free skin care · Sat May 08, 2010 5:47 pm

BCgirl wrote:

I work in the eye care field and see lasik patients on a daily basis. What I can tell you is firstly... do your research on the lasik centres!! DO NOT go for the cheapest route, instead talk to your optometrist to give you some recommendations. Remember... you get what you pay for. Don't cheap out when it comes to your vision. I've seen many patients in my line of work that have gone to "cheap lasik centres" and have not been happy. The patients that spend more money on finding a really good office are more satisfied with the outcomes. As a 50 yr old getting lasik...the best route would be "mono vision". That means that they will correct your eyes differently. One eye will be corrected for vision, the other eye will be corrected for reading. This may be difficult to adjust to.. so before doing it, go to your optometrist and try out contact lenses for a while to see if your brain can adjust to having one eye corrected for distance and one eye corrected for near. You can also get lasik done to correct your distance vision to 20/20, but at your age where close up vision is deteriating, you need to wear reading glasses for the close up work (reading, computer)

I had my evaluation this week and "monovision" was exactly what was recommended to me. The good news is that my reading vision is close to 20/20 anyway, so I wouldn't need to have that eye done right now. I'm actually in the process of wearing only one of my contacts to see if I can adjust. I do like the idea of not having to wear reading glasses.

Thanks so much everyone for your input. I'm getting pretty excited about having the surgery.

Sun May 09, 2010 2:46 pm

Skippie - that's great; best of luck with it. I have a question, though, to enhance my own understanding.

If one eye is left alone to do reading, and the other eye is "lasiked" to give far distance vision, how do you see things at distances in-between. Does the "reading eye" still work well enough to accommodate intermediate vision? It would have to because the "lasiked" eye is now fixed to handle far distances. Please explain if you can. Thanks.

free skin care · Sun May 09, 2010 5:37 pm

Skippie wrote:

I had my evaluation this week and "monovision" was exactly what was recommended to me. The good news is that my reading vision is close to 20/20 anyway, so I wouldn't need to have that eye done right now. I'm actually in the process of wearing only one of my contacts to see if I can adjust. I do like the idea of not having to wear reading glasses.

Thanks so much everyone for your input. I'm getting pretty excited about having the surgery.

I'm really glad you're trying the one contact thing. My dad had no problem and went ahead and had lasik and was very happy with the results!

My mom, on the other hand, couldn't get used to the monovision option so after trying for some time with the contact she decided against the lasik.

Good luck!

free skin care · Sun May 09, 2010 5:46 pm

Lasik is not an option for me but I have had my contacts set for mono vision for 15 years and I love it. I am considering having lens replacement to a mono vision.

free skin care · Sun May 09, 2010 6:54 pm

Josee wrote:

My mom, on the other hand, couldn't get used to the monovision option so after trying for some time with the contact she decided against the lasik.

Good luck!

It took me many months to get used to it and not feel off balance. Even 10+ years later, I still have times where it affects me.

free skin care · Wed May 12, 2010 5:36 am

ReillyD wrote:

Skippie - that's great; best of luck with it. I have a question, though, to enhance my own understanding.

If one eye is left alone to do reading, and the other eye is "lasiked" to give far distance vision, how do you see things at distances in-between. Does the "reading eye" still work well enough to accommodate intermediate vision? It would have to because the "lasiked" eye is now fixed to handle far distances. Please explain if you can. Thanks.

This isn't anything I discussed during my evaluation but in looking for sources on how long it takes to adjust to monovision, I found this:

Quote:

Q: If you do monovision correction and make one eye 20/20 for distance and the other 20/60 or something for reading, what happens to midrange vision? For example, three to ten feet away, reading someone's name tag or looking at books on a shelf in a bookstore?

A: It depends on exactly how much residual myopia the patient's near eye is left with, how much presbyopia they have, how small the print is that they are looking at and how well their brain adapts to monovision. In any case, the midrange vision would be better with monovision than without it. — Gary Kawesch, MD, Laser Eye Center of Silicon Valley, San Jose, Calif.

I was told it would take at least three days to adjust but I've also seen weeks and months as possibilities. My problem with adjusting to one contact is that I keep taking it out when I work outside and putting it back in when I go somewhere, so I don't give my eyes and brain time to adjust.

Speaking of intermediate vision, I have to say that my experiment with monovision is the best anti-aging treatment I've found. When I look in the mirror, I see no wrinkles. Cool

free skin care · Wed May 12, 2010 4:33 pm

Skippie wrote:

Speaking of intermediate vision, I have to say that my experiment with monovision is the best anti-aging treatment I've found. When I look in the mirror, I see no wrinkles. Cool

I had a similar experience! I wondered if I looked better because I just look better without glasses, or because I couldn't see the facial imperfections. Rolling Eyes

free skin care · Wed May 12, 2010 5:57 pm

Having very successfully adjusted to monovision it still took about two weeks of constant wear of the contacts. Also there had to be some tweaking of the contact power.....but once it was corrected I felt like my vision was next to perfect and I felt balanced in my brain. I have glasses that are suppose to provide perfect vision but they don't....I would take my monovision contacts any day!!!I hope you adjust Skippie Wink

free skin care · Thu May 13, 2010 5:03 am

nadjazz wrote:

Skippie wrote:

Speaking of intermediate vision, I have to say that my experiment with monovision is the best anti-aging treatment I've found. When I look in the mirror, I see no wrinkles. Cool

I had a similar experience! I wondered if I looked better because I just look better without glasses, or because I couldn't see the facial imperfections. Rolling Eyes

Well for me, nadjazz, I'm 100% sure it's because it can't see the wrinkles. And what I can't see doesn't worry me. Laughing

free skin care · Thu May 13, 2010 5:05 am

Toby wrote:

Having very successfully adjusted to monovision it still took about two weeks of constant wear of the contacts. Also there had to be some tweaking of the contact power.....but once it was corrected I felt like my vision was next to perfect and I felt balanced in my brain. I have glasses that are suppose to provide perfect vision but they don't....I would take my monovision contacts any day!!!I hope you adjust Skippie Wink

Thanks Toby. My surgery is scheduled for next week so I'm anxious to see how I adjust afterwards. What I like about having only one eye done is that I can have the other done later if I find that I can't adjust or if I like it but my other eye eventually needs to be corrected for reading distance. I feel like I'm leaving my options open with the one-eye surgery.

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