DH had it. He was warned ahead of time that he would still need reading glasses and he was fine with that.

However, one of the most common side effects is dry eye, which he did develop. He now has to put artificial tears in his eyes numerous times a day. Even with that, he is still glad he did it because his vision was so bad.

I've been debating for a few years now. Aside from other vision issues, I'm near sighted, so can see up close (applying makeup) just fine. But my eye doctor has cautioned me that although lasik would correct my distance vision, I would then need a magnifying mirror for tasks like applying makeup & reading glasses for paperwork, etc. Catch-22 for me it seems. One of my younger relatives (in their thirties) with long term vision correction had it done, they're completely happy.

I decided against a few years back because I figured I'd be trading one pair of glasses for another. I could see just fine close up without glasses, but needed them for distance. With Lasik, I would not need them for distance but would need reading glasses. Just as well I didn't do it because I had to have cataract surgery not so long ago. I am not sure how having Lasik done affects cataract surgery later.

If I really wanted lasik, I would have no hesitation about the procedure as long as you have the best possible doc. I had very good insurance and Lasik would not have been covered.

I had it six years ago and it was nothing short of a miracle. My issue was presbyopia so I had what seemed like hundreds of readers around the house, in the car, and in my purse and could never find a pair when I needed them!

Anyway, I think finding he right doctor/clinic is key. I love the clinic I had it done at and continue to go there for annual exams. My vision isn't quite as good as it was when I first had it done (the aging process continues, darn it!) but I'm still happy, and I can get an adjustment when the time comes.

The doctors I go to stay current on (and are excited about) all the latest technology and it advances quickly. I would encourage him to look into it and definitely get more than one opinion. I think he'll know the right doctor(s) when he meets them.

My husband had it done 20 years ago when it was still in the trial stages. We saved for several years to be able to afford it. He was legally blind without his glasses. His vision went from 20/250 to 20/30 in one eye and 20/25 in the other. It was miraculous! He has a little trouble with glare from other headlights while driving at night but it is nothing that would prevent him from driving. He is starting to need some reading glasses but given his age, (48) he would need those regardless. (I need them now too). He is SO GLAD that he had his surgery. It is done so frequently now that I would think it is much more safe than when my husband had it done. If I were him I would go for it.

I had Lasik about 11 years ago.

I'd always had far sightedness plus astigmatism. Before I got Lasik, my distance prescription had gotten to a little over +4 for farsightedness (+2 more for the reading prescription) and around -2.5 for astigmatism plus about. About the only thing I did without glasses was take a shower.

It was getting hard to get glasses. Contacts didn't work well for that much farsightedness and I wasn't able to wear them any more.

Because my amount of correction was unusually high and at the edge of what Lasik could do at the time, the head of department at the local UC Med Center agreed to do my surgery.

It has worked out wonderfully. My uncorrected distance vision for years after Lasik was better than my pre-Lasik corrected vision.

For some years afterwards, I only needed glasses for reading. Off the shelf drug store readers were fine for the correction I needed. And in decent light I could even read without glasses - so if I forgot them I could read an ingredients label in the grocery store without glasses.

My eyes finally changed to the point where I need a distance correction for farsightedness and a tiny bit for astigmatism. Two years ago I got my first prescription glasses since the surgery. But the prescription is much milder than the old one. If something happened to my glasses on a trip, I'd be able to make do with off the shelf ones until I got home.

I'm glad I got the surgery.

Thank you for all the replies. We will probably have to wait until flex account kicks over for next year, but that he is actually considering it is good. Cloudswift, you seem very similar in the magnitude of your vision issues other than I think he is -4 for nearsightedness.

Near sightedness is easier to correct with Lasik and they have been doing it for much longer than far sightedness so that is in his favor. Correcting 4 diopters of near is much easier than 4 diopters of far.

Think about the cornea surface as a gently curved hill. For a near sighted eye, the hill is too curved - it is too high in the center so they mainly just have to take a bit off the top of the hill. For a far sighted eye, the hill is to flat - they have to work on a much larger area around the whole edge of the hill to make it steeper.

Lasik can correct near sightedness to around 10 diopters but it can correct far sightedness to only 4 diopters. At over 4 diopters, the worst curvature of my eye was over that, but the limit applies to the average curvature of the eye and my astigmatism meant that the average curvature was under 4 diopters. At 4 diopters of near sightedness, your husband's prescription is well within the range that can be corrected.

Most eye surgeons don't charge for the initial evaluation or they charge a nominal fee. Some people aren't good candidates for Lasik. They check things like cornea thickness and dilated pupil size.

Therefore, it would be smart to get the evaluation done now to see if Lasik is possible for him and find out the cost. That way you don't set up a contribution for the flex account just to find out that you can't use it if he turns out to not be a good candidate.

Just curious if the OP (gsciencechick) has an update as to whether her DH decided to have the surgery. I am having my evaluation next month and am hoping to read more accounts from those who have had Lasik.

I am having my evaluation next month and am hoping to read more accounts from those who have had Lasik.

I had it done over a dozen years ago. I was -6.5 in both eyes. After the surgery, I was 20/15 in both eyes.

Pros
Did I mention 20/15 in both eyes?
No glasses or contacts since then.

Cons
After the anesthetic wore off, hurt like heck for about four hours, like someone poked me really freakin' hard in the eye.
There was a haze that sloooooowly wore off (one to two years) that caused pinpoints of light to bloom—think headlights at night.
One eye felt dry for about three months after the surgery; artificial tears helped greatly.
My right eye went slightly nearsighted, but nowhere near where I was.
My left eye developed age-related farsightedness.

Bottom Line
I still don't need glasses, readers or otherwise.
I would do it again in a heartbeat.

No, he hasn't done it. He just got progressive lenses (glasses) and hates them. He'll wear the soft contacts if we go out somewhere, but his up close small print reading is not great because he couldn't get a good enough correction with the multifocal contacts. I wish he would but he doesn't want to risk any complications. He feels in his occupation if he has vision loss, he's done.

Wow, Joe that is great. DH is -5.0 in both eyes. My dept chair is -7.0 and has the same concerns as DH.

I had it done ~7-8 years ago when in early 50's Was very nearsighted (wore contacts since college) and wore readers for the computer. Was 20/15 afterward, and needed stronger readers for computer and close up. Missed not wearing anything to see very clearly really close up. My distance vision has started to decrease over the past year, but not to the point of needing correction. I'm told at some point I'll need cataract surgery in both eyes. No clue what that will do. It's tough getting old!

As far as the actual surgery, no problems at all. Wish I had done it long before I did.

Thanks for all the first-person accounts on LASIK. I had my consultation and I am a candidate (nearsightedness with some astigmatism, my corneas are thick enough).

I am going to schedule it for November (for various reasons). I have to wear no contacts, all glasses all the time for a week prior, which would be hard for me in bright, sunny weather.

I am also going to see if I can pay half of it with this year's flex spend and half of it when I get my 2019 flex spend dollars. I figure every little bit of tax savings helps.