On LASIK

I am just under 3 weeks after having LASIK done and it was one of the best decisions I have ever made. 
At the end of March I made a decision, that was pushed a bit by my boss, to finally get a consultation to find out if I was a good candidate for LASIK. I consulted facebook and was referred by a friend to the Pacific Vision Institute in San Francisco. I had my consultation on a Thursday morning, found out that I was a good candidate for LASIK and scheduled my procedure for the following Wednesday morning. To prepare for the procedure, you are not allowed to wear your contacts because your contacts have an effect on the shape of your eye. So, I stopped wearing my contacts and rocked my glasses for a week - an easy thing to do in the name of LASIK.
I scheduled a pre-op appointment for the day before the procedure where they take all of your eye measurements and send you on your way to buy some prescription drops (why you have to buy the drops on top of paying for the whole thing is beyond me, but oh well). I stopped at the pharmacy and bought the drops and headed into work.
On Wednesday, procedure day, they told me to arrive about 30 minutes early to my appointment. When I arrived they handed me a relaxing drug and brought me into the exam room to pump 350 million drops into my eye, one (or a combination of a few) is to numb your eye. They have you sit in the room with your eyes closed, take some more measurements and then put more drops in your eye and then bring you into the operating operating room. The first room is where they cut the flap open to expose your cornea. Here is where the most discomfort, for me, was felt. There seemed to be a lot of pressure on my eye, but there was no pain. This lasts for about 30 seconds on each eye. After this the doctor has you close your eyes and then you are walked into a second operating room where they actually perform the reshapping of the cornea. This lasts for under 10 seconds per eye and then you can see. You have to look directly at the laser, which can be hard, but it isn't uncomfortable. 
When the doctor was done with both eyes I looked up at her and said: "I can't believe I just did that." And then was moved into the waiting room for my mom to pick me up and take me home. You aren't allowed to drive because of the medication they give you to relax. While you wait, they put these eye guards to cover your eyes and give you dark sunglasses and you are required to keep your eyes closed for 4 hours. My mom picked me up and took me back to her house where I had my eyes closed and rested. 

4 hours later, I had to have my mom help me take the eye guards off because they tape them to your face - removing those was more painful than the actual LASIK procedure! Anyway, you take off the protective wear and have to put drops in your eyes, before you put the drops in, you have to get your eyes open, which is also very hard because your eyelashes will be glued shut - and you aren't allowed to get water or sweat in your eyes for the first week and you're not allowed to rub your eyes for the first month after the procedure. You then have to wear the eye protectors for a week (give or take) after the procedure while you sleep, which is also very painful because you have to tape them to your face, it is also sticky. ha
After the first time I opened my eyes after the 4 hour period, I could see. It was absolutely unreal. The day after the procedure I had a post-op appointment where they take a look to make sure everything is healing properly and they do an eye exam - I was seeing 20/15 the day after my procedure. Better than 20/20 within 24 hours. It was amazing.
Now just under three weeks later, I am happier than ever. The vain part of me is having a hard time though because I haven't worn eye makeup since the procedure. Which is hard because I feel like I look like I am 14 years old. It is required to not wear makeup for a week after the procedure, so I could wear it, but I am not allowed to rub my eyes for a month after the procedure and so I don't know how I would get mascara off! So, I figure I won't bother with it. It is pretty interesting to go on dates and not be wearing makeup...ha!
Anyway, moral of this freaking long post: if you have been considering LASIK put on your big kid pants and do it! It has truly changed my life for the better! And if you go to the Pacific Vision Institute, mention that I referred you and you will get a referral discount and I will get a referral bonus! ;-)