LASIK... what it's really like

Sun, 04 Mar 2007 01:48:30 GMT

I can SEE! This past Wednesday, I decided to finally get LASIK eye surgury after many years of procrastinating. As you may know, one of the best things about working at Microsoft is the benefits package. This year, Microsoft announced that it would subsidize $500 for the LASIK procedure, and that's in addition to discounted list prices. So I decided that now was the right time to go under the knife... and the laser.

Contrary to what people told me before the procedure, it was NOT a simple and painless 5 minute procedure. Here is how mine went. If you get queasy, you may not want to read this post.

1. I lay down and they put a patch over my left eye, and a drop of anesthetic into my right.

2. The nurse then pulls open the top and bottom parts of my eye and tapes down my lashes so that I can't blink (a la Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange) The doc jokes that I should let him know if my eye is ripping, but I don't find that funny b/c I feel like my eye is ripping at that moment.

3. A device is placed on top of my right eye with a suction that literally sucks the cornea a few millimeters from my eye... for a brief moment, I'm blind. Also, the doc had a tough time finding an instrument that would fit on my eye... yes, I'm asian and have smaller eyes so he had to try several before one would work. (This is about where my buddies would insert their jokes and laugh incessantly for about 10 minutes about my small eyes)

4. Next comes the slicer. A blade is then used to slice a small section of my cornea so that it can be pulled away like a flap. (I know... this is the grossest part)

5. Once the doc pulls the flap away, they tell me to sit still. I am, but they keep telling me to sit more still, which makes me nervous. Although the machine is designed to stop shooting lasers into my eye if I move, I'd rather not risk anything since the margin of error is not zero.

6. As I stare at a red dot, the laser begins to shoot into my eye from all sides. I can see lots of white flashes. I notice that someone is grilling some dried fish (in korean, there is a dish called Geepo with a very distinct smell) next door but I realize that the smell is actually coming from MY EYE! (okay, maybe that was the grossest part)

7. Once the lasers have stopped, the doc begins to close my flap, using what looks like a Q-tip like instrument. He uses this ultraviolet ray to "mend" the flap to the rest of my cornea. The nurse begins to countdown starting from 2 minutes and the doc asks to extend it once, before he is done.

8. Next comes my left eye. Same process, except for with this eye, I have this sneaking suspicion that the anesthetic isn't working b/c I can literally feel what they are doing in my eye. This time, I can feel the laser poking at my eye. I tell the doc but he says its probably b/c I've experienced it once before and so I'm more sensitive to what they are doing. Regardless, I don't like feeling lasers shoot into my eye.

9. Once the lasers stop, the doc begins to close my flap, except this time, it appears that he's encountering some unexpected delays. He asks the nurse to reset the countdown about 4 times! Considering that something which was supposed to take 2 minutes is now taking almost 10 minutes, I start worrying.

10. Finally, they're done. I look around and realize that I can see, although everything looks very hazy. The nurse tells me its from the milky drops they put in my eyes.

The doc tells me that my cornea on my left eye was thinner than expected so he had to do some extra work to get it closed. I was then sent home and asked to keep my eyes closed for about 24 hours.

Its been about 3 days since the procedure and I'm happy to say that I can actually SEE! I do get halos at night when I see oncoming headlights but I'm told that goes away... or that you just get used to them and don't notice anymore. The blood vessels in both eyes popped (from the suction- which is normal) so I look pretty scary, but I'm told that should go away in a week.

All in all, I'm glad I went through with it. Its a wonderful feeling waking up in the morning and actually being able to see. I still habitually reach to take my glasses off before I go to bed and I smile every time I realize I can see without my specs. I don't think I would have been so nervous during the procedure had I known that there would be some discomfort involved.

Well, now you know exactly what to expect! Ping me if you're in the SF area and are looking for a good LASIK doc. I recommend it!

Talking about Hunting : Gathering ; Xbox : Shopping

Mon, 23 May 2005 23:01:40 GMT

...another blog by my officemate. I actually read a book that posits the exact same theory called the Red Queen. Here is an excerpt from the book.

"Men and women have different minds - says Matt Ridley in one of the central chapters of his book-. The differences are the direct result of evolution. Women's minds (and bodies, as he states in a previous pharagraph) evolved to suit the demands of beraring and rearing children and of gathering plant and food. Men's minds (and bodies) evolved to suit the demands of rising in a male hierarchy, fighting over women and providing meat to a family".

Quote

Hunting : Gathering ; Xbox : Shopping

So my collagues Denise and Ziya told me I would be crucified for posting this so I may have to pull it if people feel it's offensive but I think it's a fairly innocuous line of thinking.
Saturday my wife Wendy spent many hours shopping with her friend Ilknur and when she returned, I noticed Wendy had a clear sense of happiness and fulfillment as a direct result of her clothing purchases.
At the same time, I spent many hours playing Splinter Cell Chaos Theory and also had a clear sense of happiness and fulfilment as a result of killing lots of bad guys on Xbox.
At this point, Wendy showing me all her new Banana Republic outfits and me saving progress at the Lucerna Bank in Splinter Cell, I thought to myself why is it that I hate going shopping and Wendy has no interest in playing Xbox.
Here's my hypothesis: way back in the prehistoric times in Asia, there were hunters and there were gatherers. Today, we have Xbox players and shoppers. Somehow, that prehistoric DNA has continued on through the generations and now the gatherers gather in places like Pacific Place mall and the hunters hunt on Xbox Live.
Another data point I have is that when I can convince Wendy to play Xbox, she is most interested in games like Resident Evil where you gather clues and run away from rats and rodents which I think is also consistent with my theory.
See, that wasn't too controversial was it?

Richard's Reveries and Rantings: Health and wellness

LASIK... what it's really like

Talking about Hunting : Gathering ; Xbox : Shopping