The procedure for both eyes required about an hour and I was allowed to leave -- but I was told to keep my eyes closed as much as possible for a number of hours afterwards, which I did.
For the first two years or so after the surgery, after dark, fine points of light like stars and headlights weren't points, they were blobs of light with radial extensions. I knew the reason -- it's caused by the irregular seam created during the surgery. Over a longer period of time (many years) that seam smoothed out and now I see stars as stars again.
Do remember that, as you get older, Presbyopia (a gradual stiffening of the eye's lens) will require you to wear one or another kind of corrective lens, probably for close vision, and Lasik can only allow you to choose which default correction you want to have (I chose distant vision).
Before Lasik I had to wear glasses for absolutely everything, now I wear glasses only for close work (I'm in my 60s).
So I have to say that, for me, Lasik was an unqualified success, and I would do it again -- no regrets. Also, I have no connection with the business, I'm just a recipient of the procedure.
I had always had good vision, better than 20/20, since childhood. But I am 38 now, and my vision is deteriorating -- not unusually for my age, but enough that I can tell the difference.
I went to an eye doctor, and during the exam while they hooked me up to that weird device with dozens of lenses, and one of them let me see perfectly again. "This one!" I shouted excitedly, but in the end they told me that my vision was still too good to make glasses for.
Still, my wife's experience gives me hope that as I get even older and my vision gets even worse, they might be able to do something for me. Previously I had just been hoping I might live long enough to get some Neuromancer-style Zeiss-Ikon implants.
With 20/30 vision, yeah, you can function and drive without glasses. But things are just not quite sharp.
Then, of course, they tell you that once you hit 40 years old, you will start losing your close-up vision. And yep, that happened. Now I have readers as well, which I need to use for reading really small print.
In the end, I went from wearing glasses 100% of the day, to wearing them 70% of the day. Not the improvement I was looking for. If I could do it over again, I wouldn't bother.
Good luck, though.
The procedure itself was quite simple: after applying anesthetic to the eyes, the doctor performs an incision in your retina, then a fancy laser machine cuts the retina based on the data collected in the examination.
The sensation during the operation was a bit surreal - as the effect of the procedure is apparent immediately once it's done: I could see everything clearly after years of having to wear eyeglasses. After the surgery they gave me a pair of translucent goggles, which I had to wear for a couple of days, and some eyedrops against infection.
I came back for an examination a few days later and it turned out I had better than 20/20 vision. I hadn't had any examination since, but I still have very sharp vision, better than most people I know. The only downside I can tell is that my eyes seem to be more sensitive to bright sunlight than most people.
The day of, I had my wife come with me and take care of the trip home. You'll be out of it, so make sure you have assistance. I think most clinics won't even do it unless you have someone else to help you.
The surgery was relatively quick and painless. You can see better immediately, but it is still a bit blurry. You'll be out of commission for at least 2 days. No screens, reading etc. Your eyes itch like crazy but you can sleep through it. My recommendation is to grab some audiobooks to listen to as you'll get bored quickly.
My night vision was terrible for about 5-6 months after so driving at night was risky. I avoided it for about 3 months until it was at the point that I could see safely. Halos around lights will be distracting for awhile.
For pain I was prescribed Ativan. I'm not a pill-person, I typically avoid tylenol, but I thought it would be fun. It was.
As I suggested, I grabbed a bunch of audio-books, threw on the funky sunglasses they give you and sat in the park for hours laughing my ass of to John Hodgeman. I'm pretty sure passerby thought I was out of my mind.
Possibly one of the best days of my life. ;) Good luck!
It was completely worth it for me, wearing glasses from age 10 did a number on my self-esteem that getting rid of them improved dramatically. Also, glasses style (or my own sense of it) also improved dramatically. I think I look decent in my current glasses.
Surgery part wasn't bad - felt a little ill during the process, but it was over quickly. Could read street signs on the way home which made my wife cry. The goggles were uncomfortable but not bad for the next day or so. Didn't need pills for pain - have had dryness off and on for at times since.
Again, absolutely best thing ever - have done rock climbing, martial arts, swimming, etc - things that were difficult with glasses (ie, they don't fall off your face anymore...)
Good luck - you'll love it...
See also this older thread: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1970554.
I'll likely watch the YouTube series at some point, but I don't have > 1hr to devote to this today so a summary would be very helpful.
I'm curious because I'm a poor candidate for Lasik - my vision is poor, -9 and -7.5 with an astigmatism and the shape is somewhat flat. (I'm told that I simply don't have enough tissue to remove for Lasik.)