John

Vision: Perfect! I have gone to 0, and the clarity, ability to focus, and night vision are all incredibly good. I feel fine hiking/climbing/driving without any restriction even at night. Recovery: Recovery was ok. I didn’t have any complaints but I also had no complications. Appointments/tests: I would say it has been positive. I think the main hesitation in getting lasik is fear of a medical procedure. It may be helpful to offer more information about the day of the surgery as well as more broader general information about the history of lasik, the clinic, the optometrists and Dr. Gartry.
I found a lot of the information online, but I also found a lot of mis-information online and it is difficult to distinguish between the two. While the info that you have–the pdf online–is helpful I would be OK with a more technical and detailed discussion of Lasik even if I could only understand part of it. While researching I still found it difficult to differentiate between providers based on patient success, laser accuracy or the clinics ability to embrace the best technology and ultimately ended up choosing based on reputation and the doctor I felt comfortable with.

Surgery: My surgery did not go as planned and took two days rather than one day as expected. After completing one eye Dr. Gartry called the procedure off as I was unable to fully relax my eye muscles. This, at the time, was incredibly exasperating. While I respect and appreciate his decision, there may have been some steps along the way that could have prevented it and allowed it to be better. The first thing I mentioned to the optometrist was that I was very nervous, and it was the first thing I mentioned when entering the operating room. It is a very strange and uncomfortable setting–giant machines and everyone in sterile scrubs–which when combined with the serious nature of the procedure make relaxing very difficult. A pre-screen for nervous patients could help identify patients like me who may have trouble getting through the procedure in one go.

If I had been planning to do one eye at a time, had been given Vicodin, or had been able to acclimate to the operating room/procedure more slowly it may have been a more peaceful experience. While the surgery was ultimately successful it was a very complicated and emotionally trying weekend. Dr.Gartry to his credit was able to fit me in on Monday rather than waiting the full week and I am grateful for his efforts.

Costs: I found it difficult to choose between places based on the costs. A breakdown of where the cost of lasik goes would be incredibly helpful to the average person researching LASEK and trying to differentiate between the costs of different clinics. Everything else was great! Lasik has greatly improved my quality of life and I am very thankful for the clinic.