Lasik really is a ten minute procedure that’s done with outcomes that are immediate and miraculous.
My name is Emily Colorado, I’m 33 and I’m getting Lasik eye surgery done today.
I’m nearsighted, so I can’t see far.
And I also have an astigmatism, which means that the curvature of my cornea is a little bit off.
I have been wearing glasses since about junior high.
I’m an emergency room nurse.
I work 12 plus hours each shift, so wearing contacts if I’m at work definitely is a strain on my eyes.
They’re definitely more dry at the end of the day.
I have been considering Lasik for a very long time.
I just didn’t really look into it initially just because of the fear of having surgery.
Having the surgery done, I don’t have to worry about the stress of wearing contacts or glasses.
My name is Neda Shamie.
I’m an ophthalmologist
at the Maloney Shamie Vision Institute in Los Angeles.
I’ve done more than 6,000 vision correction surgeries.
Hi.
Come right this way with me.
There’s no turning back.
We go through the process of checking the vision.
We then do some measurements to make sure that there’s enough thickness for us to be able to remodel
or reshape or sculpt the cornea to be able to correct the vision.
I’m super nervous.
You good?
Any questions?
I’m still letting the valium dissolve.
We’re almost there.
You’re gonna calm down a little bit and relax.
Are you okay?
Yeah.
I’m good, I feel great.
The fact of knowing I was going to be awake, I think that definitely made me more anxious and more
nervous going into the procedure.
The patient is escorted to the laser suite.
Scoot back down.
And scoot up towards me please.
We then prep the eye.
I place a suction ring or stabilization ring onto the eye.
I rotate the bed and the patients eye under the femtosecond laser, which is an ultraprecise
laser used to create the Lasik flap.
She will then feel a slight bit of pressure during this step of the surgery.
For the second part of the surgery,
I place a speculum to keep the eyelids open while we are reshaping the cornea.
I then fold the flap back onto the corneal surface.
Almost done sweety.
Emily will hear clicking sounds while the laser reshaping is occurring.
The laser tracks the pupil in a three-dimensional fashion.
Any sudden movements or large movements actually shuts down the laser, or shuts down the treatment.
And then dry the edges to ensure that, in fact, the flap is well positioned back in place.
Ah!
It’s going to be like looking through old contact lenses.
That was a little scary.
This is such a big deal for me right here.
I can see the time from my bed.
I was never able to see that.
It’s not really that far, and it doesn’t seem like a big deal, but I can actually see that!
It’s so cool.
No glasses, looking at the time from my bed.
So it’s been five days since I’ve had the Lasik eye surgery and I’m so glad I did it.
I’m wondering why I didn’t do it sooner, just like everybody else says.
I definitely don’t regret it at all.
I was shocked at how quick it was.
I mean each eye is done one at a time, of course.
And I was like, “What? We’re done with the first eye?”
So after the procedure, my vision was still a little blurry, which is totally normal.
It’s expected that your eyes are still trying to get into focus.
They have you wear these goggles after.
They’re kind of funny looking.
It’s just to prevent you from touching your eyes at night, and that so you don’t rub them.
These are pretty stylish.
They are stylish.
Patients can go back to work, they can drive.
They can really get back to their life with excellent vision.
With Emily, her vision was 20/20 the next day and she was happy as can be.
She did share that her eyes felt a little dry which is quite typical the next day after surgery,
and tends to resolve over in about a week.
It’s so nice and refreshing to not have to worry about,
for one, waking up in the morning and putting your contacts on.
The fact that I’m 33 now, I'm able to see like normal people.
And it’s been, what, over 20 years that I’ve been dealing with poor vision.
The fact that I’m here now and able to see normal and clear, it’s amazing.
I’m so glad that I did this procedure.
I don’t even know what it’s like...I’m like, “What is it like to see normal?”
The truth of the matter is, Lasik is one of the safest procedures done in medicine.
So I would say, if you want to get out of your glasses or contact lenses, consider Lasik
and go into a consultation with an expert.
My favorite part about my job is the human connections that I make with my patients.
It is a privilege and I’m happy that they trust their care to me.
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