ask me about eyes

[slim]

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Hey slim,

I'm 35 years old now and have been wearing glasses since the 5th grade. I'm just now considering laser eye surgery. I've been wearing glasses for so long now that they don't really faze me. However the thought of being able to see without wearing them is also appealing.

My main apprehension has nothing to do with fear of potential side effects and everything to do with expectation. I don't want to go through the procedure if I'm going to have to wear glasses for distance again in a few years (I accept that I will need glasses for reading).
My eyes are not that bad but just bad enough that I don't function well without glasses - -2.5 and -2.75 with a mild astygmatism - no significant history.

What would you say to a patient with my history and concerns?


BTW Thanks for taking the time to to do this "ask me" thread. It has been interesting and informative.

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If you are not worried about complications, I would say you are an ideal candidate. However the goal of laser eye surgery is to REDUCE the dependancy on glasses/contacts. So if you are going to be unhappy with a prescription of -0.50 in which case you might want to wear glasses for night driving only, then you need to really think about whether you really want the surgery.I can tell you that for your prescription, the chances of you seeing 20/20 after surgery without glasses is over 95%. Any residual prescription can always be re treated.