Pranika is a lovely vivacious person and is admired by everyone she interacts for her easy going and self-assured self. She used to wear glasses and was very comfortable with them. Even though her mother used to tell her to get rid of her glasses and get her Lasik done, she never felt the need to do so.
She was one of my regular patients who use to come once a year for her eye check-up and glass power assessment. During one of her visits, she discussed her lifelong desire to learn swimming. I was amazed given that she would normally do whatever she wanted to. So I enquired what stopped her from doing that. She confessed that she doesn’t feel very comfortable without her glasses in the pool and several attempts in the past had been unsuccessful. Smilingly, I gave her 2 options- use numbered swim goggles or get rid of your glasses once and for all by getting your Lasik done.
She again emphasized that she doesn’t have any problems with her glasses and she is very comfortable with them. I told her that is wonderful and in that case she can just go for numbered swim goggles. She decided to think about both the options!
A week later she came back and wanted to get herself evaluated for Lasik. To be honest, I was a little surprised with that change of heart! Nevertheless, we did the detailed pre-Lasik evaluation for her. All the tests like corneal topography, corneal tomography, aberrometry, pupil diameter, muscle balance, dry eye evaluation, contrast sensitivity and IOL master were all normal. She was suitable for the different types of Lasik like wave front Lasik, femto Lasik, PRK or Relex Smile. She had already researched online about the pros and cons of different types of Lasik, potential complications and recovery period after Lasik and knew exactly what she wanted. She chose to under Relex Smile and got back to her daily routines within 3-4 days.
Within a month she joined swimming classes. She used to practise extra hard and soon won a championship at a local club. She came back to me to show me her medal! I had tears of joy after I saw the medal and the happiness on her face.
To me learning to swim is the normal pleasure of life which surgery like Lasik allows but Pranika took it to another level. That day she informed me that she underwent Lasik so that she can win the championship!
Once people get their Lasik done, I see how so many simple pleasures of life become easily accessible which were earlier a big hassle-
- Learning to Swim
- Running Marathons
- Enjoying water sports
- Gym-ing regularly and getting to the new level of fitness
- Dressing up for special occasions
- Wearing eye makeup
Now these things may seem so simple and normal but for people who wear glasses these normal routine day to day activities become a big burden. People like Pranika even though they are very comfortable with their glasses can achieve so much more in their life by making these small improvements. So, yes, all the different types of Lasik like advanced surface ablation, femto Lasik, Relex smile and Lasik have the potential to bring back the simple pleasures of life back to us.