Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5
Over a week ago, I promised that I would write a few entries about my recent laser eye surgery (LASIK) in the hopes that recounting my experiences might help others considering a similar operation.
I will begin by saying that, overall, I would consider the operation to have been a success. The procedure had a few minor complications (more about those later), but it has been nearly eight months since I underwent the procedure, and most times I completely forget that I ever wore glasses. Having near-perfect uncorrected vision just seems so natural to me now.
I have been encumbered by glasses since I was twelve and have always felt self-conscious about my appearance with them. In addition, I did not want to spend the rest of my life saddled with the annoyance of cleaning them, making sure I don’t break them, not being able to see the television from bed, worrying about them when engaged in athletic activity, et cetera. I had tried contacts a couple of times (rigid gas permeable and soft disposable); however, because of the discomfort and inconvenience, I even found them to be inferior to glasses.
I had been following advances in eye surgery for about fifteen years but had neither the money nor enough confidence in the level of technology until recently. As a graphic designer and programmer, my eyes are my life. If I was to risk my sight on what was essentially a vanity, I was going to be sure to minimize that risk as much as possible. I had been reading the horror stories on the Surgical Eyes web site for a couple of years and did not want to add any of my own.
One disclaimer before I continue — not everyone is a good candidate for LASIK. If you are a bad candidate, and the doctor is disreputable enough to still perform the surgery on you, the results can be devastating.
My choice of doctors was key. There was no way that I was going to trust my vision to some $500-an-eye strip mall butcher, even if it was going to cost me close to five thousand dollars. I finally decided upon Dr. Joseph Dello Russo for a number of key reasons:
- He is one of the best-known LASIK surgeons in the New York City area.
- At the time he was the only surgeon in the area to offer three key technologies: the Flying Spot Laser, All-Laser LASIK, and Custom Cornea.
- Satisfaction was guaranteed. The procedure could be performed again for free if I was not completely happy with the results.
I went for a consultation in late fall of 2003. Thankfully, I was an excellent candidate. I chose January 16, 2004, as the big day.
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