That’s awesome, dude. I’m happy for you. Was it a one and done thing? A session for each eye so you still had one to work with? I’m blind as a bat and petrified of the thought of lasers in my eyes because I’m a big baby, but I certainly remember that feeling when I went from glasses to contacts and it’s life-changing having perfect vision WITH peripheral vision and accurate depth perception since you’re not looking through glasses.
This was the entire process from start to finish:
-1 in-person consultation where they do some tests on your eyes (the same ones they do at the optometrist). This is to determine if you're able to have any form of laser eye surgery (there are others beyond LASIK)
-1 virtual consultation where they will tell you more about the procedure.
-The appointment itself was about 2 hours long. The first hour was them doing more tests/measurements (to make sure they measured you correctly the first time). They also spoke about what you can/can't do, the eyedrops you need to put it after, and the recovery period
-Next, they give you valium. I am not a drug user (or even a drinker), so I had no idea what this would do to me. To be honest, it had 0 effect on me. After about 15-20 minutes, the doctor performing the surgery came in and looked at my eyes and asked how I was feeling. I said I was nervous, so he gave me another half tablet of valium - it still didn't make me feel any different, although I noticed my movements were more lethargic. Maybe it prevented me from getting more freaked out, but it certainly didn't make me as happy as he suggested it would.
-Eventually, they brought me near the rooms where the procedure is done. I would have paid here if I didn't pay in advance, and they also booked my follow-up appointment. Then I waited and watched someone else get the procedure done (but I couldn't see anything).
-Finally, it was my turn and they took me to one room where they apply a freezing eye drop to you. They use these suction cups on your eyes, but you can't really see what's going on. There's a lot of pressure on the eye, and then they move onto the other eye. For whatever reason, my left eye was more challenging than my right, but they started with my right eye. This whole process took under 5 minutes.
-They transferred me to another room, where I waited about 5 minutes for the doctor to come back (there were 2 assistants with me the entire time). I'll spare you the gory details, but this is where they essentially create your current prescription. They told me that this step would be easier than the first, but I found this one harder. The problem is keeping your eye open. It's not painful, but it's certainly uncomfortable.
-When they're done, they have you sit in a dimly-lit room for about 10 minutes, then they check your eyes quickly, and then you're good to go.
The appointment probably could have been shorter than 2 hours, but they took me slightly late, and there were several steps that involved waiting. The two parts of the procedure probably take about 10 minutes total.
I still play at least 4 times a week, but I limit my sessions to no more than 30 minutes a day, which has been pretty free of side-effects.
