LASIK/PRK through the military.

Not sure if these been discuss before, but how many of you have gone through the process of getting it done, or already have done it?

It's almost 4 years now since I got LASIK, through Tripler. 20/20 vision here and no side effects, such as halos or having sensitivity to bright light. Love not worrying about wearing glasses or contacts. Hated wearing those big a** birth control goggles in basic training.

Would highly recommend getting it done, if you qualify. I know there are horror stories on what could go wrong and what not. Technology, and the way they do the surgery have advance thought out the years, that its rarely that something's gonna go wrong.

 

I had PRK done about 7 years ago. Still have great vision, but it is not as crisp as it was. I would still recommend it to anyone who is interested.

 

Yah man, I remember couple weeks after the surgery my vision was like 15/20. It was pretty badass having such clear vision hahaha. But it eventually leveled out to 20/20.

 

Tricare wont pay for it though right? Just curious

 

100% if deemed necessary and you are a qualified (medical reasons) candidate. Three of my buddies have had it successfully.

 

I am reall considering getting it done. I have my evaluation next month then i can put in my request. Have been wearing contacts/glasses since i can remember so it will be an exciting experience to wake up and be able to see. Ill let you all know how it goes. A few friends i work with have had it done and are extremely happy with the results. Was pretty simple to process the request in their opinion.

 

I had PRK done 5 years ago. In the Air Force each job is given a cat code. This determines the priority. Or course flyers have top billing and everyone else falls behind that. If you are lucky to get a spot, I recommend it to anyone. Sure it feels like you have sand in your eyes, but it's worth it.

 

I'm in the Army Reserve, I got orders to go active back in 07-09, and that's when I got the LASIK done.

If you qualify, pretty much nothing comes out of your pocket.

No regrets, and love it not wearing glasses or contacts

 

Shoot me a PM if you are curious, pretty sure you would fall into the necessity category.

Had PRK from Tripler 2 years ago and had 15/20 in each eye last time they were checked. It was about that time I started buying GOOD sunglasses.

 

I'm in Aircrew but I'm not required to wear any corrective lenses while in the seat. But I legally have to wear corrective lenses while driving....

Wonder where I would fall haha

 

I'm either on a small boat or in an engine room and I got it no questions asked. Like I told Brian, shoot me a PM if you want help drafting the memo because it shouldn't be an issue. It's all about the wording/how busy that particular clinic is. Despite the hundreds of deploying personnel on Oahu I still got it within 3 months and that was only because I had to wait until I was 21.

 

I had PRK done, went from 20/400 to 20/15. I think my eyes are not as crisp as they were right after healing. Its been over a year since I've had it done. Need to schedule an eye exam to see where I am at...Still awesome though.

 

Only thing it costs us Navy folk here at Tinker is the drive or flight down to Lackland and our food/lodging expenses down there. They send us no-cost TDY but shit, I'd pay the approx $500 in expenses vs the several grand for the surgery.

 

Id reached the age I finally needed readers for fine work. Could stillread a book without glasses. However got tired of on/off/on/off with the glasses.
Also just tired of glasses and dirty lenses.

LAsik was an easy procedure. Next day my eyes were irritated a bit, but no biggie

My vision was dead perfect day 1, but slowly degraded in both eyes over the course of 2 weeks. As my eyes healed, the prescription changed.

Got both eyes re-done, an one stayed great. The other slipped a bit to the point it qualifies for a re-do.

However I'm keeping it as-is, because my near vision is better in that eye.

What they dont tell you:
you will need glasses for close up. They dont say what close up is exactly.
- shaving
- seeing your g/f's boobs
- even your TV to some extent (depends on placement)
- vehicle dashboard
- night vision is a lot blurrier than day after the procedure

you are trading your near vision to get good distance vision.
\Overall, I'm happy, esp. since I have some near vision back in one eye/

the procedure is not perfect. Everyone heals differently, and you may not end up with great results. Fortunately I don't have halos at night, or other artifacts.

so ..... think about this. If you are under 40 dont do it unless you wear coke bottles. Your prescription will change over time. Even then, consider what will change, and be prepared for different results than they describe in the marketing.

If i knew then what i know now , would I do it again? probably, but not absolutely.

 

had it done 15 years ago, best money ever spent. just dont expect your vision to be any better with your glasses on now, but you might get lucky and improve a little.

 

had mine done in mid 20s no problems, just go to a good surgeon.

 

im just waiting on my email to say im good to go. ive been waitin since oct when i turned my paperwork in but it didnt get filed until mar/apr. its normally a 6 month wait so hopefully soon

 

damn man, it's taking that long to just get some paperwork approved.

If I remember right the hardest part of the paperwork was getting my Commander to sign and approve it. I was in small company size unit so it was fairly easy to get it signed and approved.

As for turning it in to Tripler, it took a couple of days for them to look it over and approved it.

The longest part of the procedure is actually getting my eyes tested to see if it even qualifies for either PRK or LASIK. Setting up appointments and what not. Testing took about less then a week.

I did all this within a month. There was no waiting list or anything like that.

 

No gettin paperwork approved by my commander was quick. I think the eye clinic missed filed my paperwork for a few months :/

 

^^ oh I see.