This review is long overdue, but the week after I had surgery, I got very ill, which kept me down and out for over 40 days. I am finally feeling better, and catching up on things, so here is my story.
I have hated wearing glasses for a very long time. I got my first pair in the 5th grade (1985), and over the years I had plastic frames, wire frames, lenses that changed to sunglasses outdoors, and then contacts towards the end of high school as my eyes finally stopped changing drastically every year. I did not have much problem with my contacts over the years, but they were a hassle. I couldn't go swimming unless I took them out, and I couldn't see ANYTHING without them, not even my friends in the pool. I never knew when one would fall out or get dirty, so I always had to carry a kit with me with extra lenses and solution. Traveling involved even more extra pairs, because I'd be lost if I needed to replace more than one of each on a trip. All in all, I hated it.
In 2008, I had decided that I would have Lasik surgery. I went through all of the preliminary testing and even had my surgery date selected, but then as life does, things happened and it got put on the back burner indefinitely. I'm not even sure why I forgot about it so long, probably only that I then had a family to spend money on and not just me, so it was not a priority. I continued to wear contacts until I moved to Wyoming in 2013, and then I discovered the never ending wind that was really hard on my eyes. They were always dry and uncomfortable, so I stopped wearing contacts and went back to glasses. This was good financially, but had its own problems, because the sun is almost always glaring down on you here, I had to start wearing hats or squint all the time, which was not ideal.
I decided that the second my house in Virginia sold I would schedule an appointment for Lasik surgery. On December 1, 2016 the house sold, and I had an appointment for my first evaluation and testing before Christmas. Everything looked healthy, I really liked the facility and their staff, and my surgery was scheduled for January 26, 2017. The Eye Center of Northern Colorado in Loveland was fantastic. They went over the procedure, what to expect, costs and what was included. They made me appointments here in Laramie for some of my pre and post exams so that I did not have to drive two hours each way more than necessary.
On January 26th I drove to Fort Collins, Colorado and checked Georgia into her boarding facility, and then continued on to the Fairfield Inn and Suites in Loveland, which offered a discount to Laser Eye Center patients, and was quite close to both food and the surgery center. I had a quick lunch nearby, and then I got an Uber from the hotel to the surgery center, arriving quite early, but I didn't want to risk being late. I checked in and paid my fee, and they asked what kind of music I liked. I requested country, and if an artist pick was possible, Keith Urban. The ladies were so calm and comforting while I waited, and they keep a nice selection of drinks and snacks for you while you wait. They were constantly checking on me to make sure I was comfortable, and answer any questions.
As the patient before me went in, I was instructed to take my Valium and then they took me back to a massage chair in a dark and quiet room. When it was my turn, Dr Foster met me in the surgery suite, where I was quite pleased that Keith was practically blaring from the sound system. After I had my eyes examined, I got on the bed. They went over everything as it was happening, and I would say that I was done in less than ten minutes. Each eye's procedure takes only seconds, but it felt longer. One eye was more uncomfortable than the other, but nothing was ever actually painful. When it was done they helped me sit up, and I could see! It was a bit foggy, but I could see the faces of everyone, and I had not been able to do that in so very long. Dr Foster checked my eyes again and then I went to another room where Peggy went over my instructions and put my eye shields on for me. At that point I was ready to go, but since I had to get my Uber, she helped me with my phone and then had me sit and wait the six minutes until it arrived. I could see so much, and it was a big overwhelming, but with the eye shields on it was a little hard to focus on my phone, so they walked me out to the car and sent me on my way.
Riding back to the hotel was sort of like an out of body experience. The driver was really nice and asked what I'd had done, because clearly I looked like a bug monster at this point, with my eye shields taped on and sunglasses over them. Even with my required sunglasses over my shields, it was very bright, and a bit overwhelming that I could see so much. The driver kept asking me if I could read this or read that as we drove, and that really helped distract me, which was good. I got checked into the hotel and went up to sleep, which is what the doctor ordered. I woke up several hours later, and was famished. I was not allowed to drive the rest of the day, so I walked across the parking lot to the IHOP for a sandwich. I got a few stares when people saw me in my eye shields, but I did not care.
Friday morning I got up early and drove back to the surgery center for my 7:30am appointment. When it was my turn, Dr Foster did his exam, and I said everything looked great. I had 20/15 vision. Amazing. I went from about 20/400 to 20/15 in seconds.
For the first week I had to sleep in my eye shields to make sure that I didn't accidentally rub my eyes, which was a big no no until they'd healed. I had eye drops to use four times a day and moisturizing drops to use as often as I needed, which was about once an hour while I was awake. At home I was fine, but the first few days at work I wore my sunglasses inside, as the fluorescent lighting was harsh and dazzled me quite a bit. On day seven I had a check up with Dr Poteet here in Laramie and everything looked goo. I also had a 30 day check up, and this week I go to Dr Foster for my two month check up.
My eyes have continued to do well, and I only occasionally have to use the moisturizing drops. Sometimes at the end of the day I think to myself "I really need to take out my contacts" because they are feeling a little dry, and then I remember that I don't have contacts, and I put in some drops and everything is alright again.
A big part of me wishes that I'd had this surgery years ago, but another part of me is glad that I waited until now, because the technology has come so far, and I have benefited from that. The end result has been incredible, and I am just thankful that I was able to have the procedure done. To anyone that is scared or worried, just do it. I look forward to my trips this year where I only need to take my moisturizing drops, not the myriad bottles and supplies I had before. I look forward to going to Hawaii next year and being able to snorkel and swim. I look forward to not having my glasses fog up in the cold or have rain completely obscure my vision when caught in a storm. I am so happy for having had this surgery, and I am so grateful for the wonderful care I got from the team, especially Peggy, who was assigned to me at my first introductory meeting and was there with me before and after my procedure.
