# Ask the guy who just had LASIK surgery **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 2, 2004, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-just-had-lasik-surgery/227237 "2004-02-02T22:45:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-just-had-lasik-surgery/227237/21 "2004-02-03T23:39:28Z")
> [@](#): > > OK, let’s assume I can handle that. It’s a big assumption for a chicken like me, but we’ll take it. Now what I want to know is, how do you not jerk away when they’re _urk_ doing it? What if you forget and you do follow the red light if it moves? My head was clamped into place. But there is really no reason to jerk because you can’t feel anything with the cutting or whatever. For some reason, the squeezing sensation didn’t cause me to want to react by moving my head, I guess because it was omnidirectional. I suppose my brain did not consider that turning this way or that would be an effective defense. As far as moving the eyes themselves and following the light, we asked about that up-front. The doctor explained that the machine could follow slight movements with no problem, but a significant movement would cause it to shut down and abort automatically. It would not continue to fire. ---
**Author:** ![DirkGntly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d9b06d/32.png) [@DirkGntly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DirkGntly)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-just-had-lasik-surgery/227237/22 "2004-02-04T02:16:25Z")
I had my eyeballs zapped about 2 years ago, or so…I love the results. The Dr. tested and tested and re-tested me. I don’t remember what my prescription was, but I was very nearsighted, with a -9 diopteres in one eye, and a greater than -10 diopteres in the other eye. Couldn’t see more than about an inch in front of me w/out my glasses. Also, there was a concern about “halos” because my pupils are exceptionally large, and in dim light, my pupil would expand beyond the rim of the corrected “lens” that would be made in my cornea. Fortunately, they delayed my procedure because the Dr. had learned of a new procedure that could be programmed into the laser machine that would help eliminate the halo effect for patients with my type of pupils. This technique basically involved “feathering” the edge of the “lens” so there was no hard ring to create a halo effect. I have to say that it seems to have worked wonders. My procedure, from entering the OR to exit, lasted less than 10 minutes. After numbing the eye, they insert a cutter devices that literally slices the cornea with a sharp blade - it’s all mechanical and all automatic. After the cut is made, the laser comes on, does its thing for a few seconds, and then the flap made by the cutter is laid back down. All told, less than 1 minute per eye. What was cool, was getting up and immediately being able to tell the time on the analog clock on the wall - not such a big deal, except that when I went in, I was so blind that I didn’t even know there WAS a clock on the wall! Anyway, long story short: I followed the Dr.'s orders, kept drops in my eyes as appropriate during healing (I still need them on rare occasions, and then only when I’m tiring my eyes by reading a lot during the day or somesuch), and I now have 20/15 vision in both eyes…an amazing lifestyle change, I can tell you…no more reaching for glasses in the night to go to the bathroom…having to clean my glasses every day…etc., etc., etc… ---
**Author:** ![Kinthalis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kinthalis/32/16084_2.png) [@Kinthalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinthalis)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-just-had-lasik-surgery/227237/23 "2004-02-04T02:48:43Z")
Question **Lib** , what about astigmatism? Can Lasik be done to correct astigmatism? I’ve got really bad eyesight on both my eyes (I don’t really know my prescription, I looked at my lense case and it said 8.4/1.4 What does that mean?), and on my right eye I also have some astigmatism. Can I be saved from this life of helpless misery? ---
**Author:** ![Edlyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8797f3/32.png) [@Edlyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edlyn)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-just-had-lasik-surgery/227237/24 "2004-02-04T03:15:05Z")
> [@LifeOnWry](#): > > Ye gads, eyeball squeezing. **taking deep breaths** > > OK, let’s assume I can handle that. It’s a big assumption for a chicken like me, but we’ll take it. Now what I want to know is, how do you not jerk away when they’re **urk** doing it? What if you forget and you do follow the red light if it moves? I didn’t find that the suction part of the procedure to be painful, but it was a bit uncomfortable because it is not something you’ve done to your eye before. It only lasts for probably less than 20 seconds. As far as following the red light, the light doesn’t move from its position. The only time the red light disappeared, briefly, was during suction and when the flap was moved. In those instances, we were told not to look for the red light, but just keep looking in the same direction. It was easy to do, very quick, and I have not had any pain at all. Considering the 40 plus seconds on each eye that was required for my correction, I’m very pleased about that. Oh, one more comment for **Reader99**. I was just discussing dry eyes with a co-worker yesterday who wears glasses. I had to stop wearing contacts because of that problem myself. My co-worker’s corneas became so dry that her eye doctor put her on drops for two weeks to get them healthy again. Her vision improved because of it. The common reason of our dryness is because we stare too long at the computer screen and do not blink normally like we should. I’ve made a conscious effort to stop staring and blink normally. ---
**Author:** ![Edlyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8797f3/32.png) [@Edlyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edlyn)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-just-had-lasik-surgery/227237/25 "2004-02-04T03:19:55Z")
> [@Kinthalis](#): > > Question **Lib** , what about astigmatism? Can Lasik be done to correct astigmatism? I’ve got really bad eyesight on both my eyes (I don’t really know my prescription, I looked at my lense case and it said 8.4/1.4 What does that mean?), and on my right eye I also have some astigmatism. Can I be saved from this life of helpless misery? I had it too in both eyes. Answer: Yes! I don’t know what those numbers mean, but I gathered over the years that my astigmatism was bad. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-just-had-lasik-surgery/227237/26 "2004-02-04T06:57:22Z")
> [@Kinthalis](#): > > Question **Lib** , what about astigmatism? Can Lasik be done to correct astigmatism? I’ve got really bad eyesight on both my eyes (I don’t really know my prescription, I looked at my lense case and it said 8.4/1.4 What does that mean?), and on my right eye I also have some astigmatism. Can I be saved from this life of helpless misery? I don’t have astigmatism myself, but my doctor says they can fix just about any degree of astigmatism these days. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-just-had-lasik-surgery/227237/27 "2004-02-04T12:09:58Z")
> [@Kinthalis](#): > > Question **Lib** , what about astigmatism? Can Lasik be done to correct astigmatism? I’ve got really bad eyesight on both my eyes (I don’t really know my prescription, I looked at my lense case and it said 8.4/1.4 What does that mean?), and on my right eye I also have some astigmatism. Can I be saved from this life of helpless misery? Another confirmation. Our doctor said that LASIK can fix astigmatism. ---
**Author:** ![Kinthalis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kinthalis/32/16084_2.png) [@Kinthalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinthalis)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-just-had-lasik-surgery/227237/28 "2004-02-04T12:37:25Z")
Woo hoo! Time to save those pennies 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Archergal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Archergal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Archergal)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-just-had-lasik-surgery/227237/29 "2004-02-04T16:23:43Z")
> [@Libertarian](#): > > I’m 48. I don’t need bifocals, but I do need reading glasses now. > > When we first met with him, the doc asked us whether we took off our glasses to read. We said yes — we could see close up without them, but not at a distance. He explained that what he was going to do was put our prescription for our glasses in our eyes and that when we looked at reading material, it would look like it used to with our glasses on: blurry. > > He explained that there is a condition called presbyopia that hits most people around age 40. Their lenses loose the ability to change focus between closeness and distance. LASIK does not cure presbyopia. Since we no longer would have glasses to take off, we would need reading glasses. This is why I wouldn’t have LASIK done. I’ve taken off my glasses to read and to look at things up close ALL MY LIFE. If I had to put ON glasses to read, it would just drive me absolutely berserk. My whole world would be turned upside down.\* YMMV, of course. \*I know, my reaction is a little extreme, but it’s how I feel, drat it! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-guy-who-just-had-lasik-surgery/227237.md?page=1)