r/Lasiksupport

seven months post op. people ask me how it went and i always say that if you're on the spectrum, do not get lasik.

the healing process, the constant irritation and the chance that you deal with HOA's will just change you forever and make your life hell.

now i'm coming into another realizatio. while dyslexia doesn't affect eyesight, it does make reading difficult. between my HOA's + light sensitivity causing severe overstimulation, i realized its made reading so much harder; if my vision is impaired and i'm alread having trouble processing what's in front of me, how am i supposed to read at all?

grieving immensely as i was finding a love for reading again before the surgery, a love i never had. it's been difficult since and i can only read a few pages at a time. my life has been altered by a clinic that did not give me the fullscope of how my life will change for the worse and instead told me that i will walk out of there with clean vision until its after the surgery and i dont. then it should be fine one month later. then three months later. then hopefully a year later. actually two. and then i'll have about 15 years of good vision before i'm 45 and need reading glasses.

i really hope no one gets this surgery.

I had PRK surgery 1 year ago and I'm not okay.

My vision is still blurry. Some days it's okay, other days it's terrible. I have constant dry eyes, starbursts at night, and I can't even drive after dark anymore. I still need glasses to read or use my phone. What was the point of this surgery?

Everyone told me "give it time" but it's been 1 year. I've lost hope.

I used to love going out at night with friends. Now I avoid it because the glare from headlights is unbearable. I spend most of my time at home feeling sorry for myself.

I cry sometimes thinking I ruined my eyes for nothing. I wish I never did this.

Has anyone actually recovered from this after 1 year ? I need real hope, not empty reassurance.

Any advice would mean a lot.

Hello everybody.
I decided to get Femto lasik surgery to get rid of my eyeglasses. It’s scheduled tomorrow but i am stressing. Now i am a high myope -6.5 R, -8 L. I have mild to moderate dryness. After consulting my doctor he suggested I go ahead with femto lasik. I asked about ICL, but the doctor told me it’s an invasive procedure and will require a long time to recover so femto Lasik is better for me. I am worried about the dryness and the visual acuity later on.
For those of you guys who are high myopes and had Lasik surgery done. Is it worth it for you guys or are the complications making it not worth the hassle? Also, what complications did you face and when did you grow out of them if they did subside eventually.

Hello :)

I am 50 years old

right eye -6 cyl 0.5 and +1 ,pachimetri 526 micron

left eye -7 cyl 0.75 and +1, pachimetric 511 micron

dr said right eye will be -1.75 he will do monovision and left eye will be zero.

treatment type: prk+pd wavefront optim

slow recovery.

what do you think?

Family of police officer who died by suicide after LASIK sues the LASIK provider, LasikPlus.

More patients are standing up to the doctors who destroyed their eyes/vision by suing for non complete informed consent, claiming the patient was a good candidate when they were not, damage caused during surgery, or dropping the patient when they had a bad outcome and the doctor doesn't want to continue care/refuses to acknowledge they caused the patient harm.

German below.

Hi everyone, I had my FEMTO LASIK surgery two days ago. I was nearsighted.
The day of the surgery was pretty rough (burning, itchy eyes, etc.), but it subsided. Yesterday, on Day 1, I was more than thrilled: I could watch TV without glasses, recognize faces from a distance, and see signs in the distance. My surgeon’s colleague also assured me of success: 100% visual acuity with a residual -0.5 diopters. So far, so good. Now, one day later —Day 2— my vision is comparatively worse! I can’t make out signs, text, or faces in the distance at all, or only very blurrily. Even the TV is blurry now, unlike yesterday. I’m even seeing worse up close, which I’ve never had a problem with (because I’m nearsighted).

I’m frustrated and feel like the surgery didn’t work and it was all for nothing.

I know none of you can help me from a distance or make a diagnosis. I’m going to ask my surgeon on Monday, but since it’s in three days I am Rather looking to share experiences. Has anyone had a similar experience (improvement at first, then worsening)?

German:

Hallo zusammen, ich hatte vor 2 Tagen meine FEMTO LASIK Operation. Ich war kurzsichtig.
Der Tag der OP war schon heftig (brennende, juckende Augen etc), aber es legte sich. Gestern, an Tag 1, war ich mehr als begeistert: ich konnte TV schauen ohne Brille, konnte Gesichter von weitem erkennen und Schilder in der Ferne sehen. Einen Erfolg versicherte mir auch der Kollege meines Operateurs: 100% Sehschärfe mit -0,5 Rest-Dioptrien. Soweit so gut. Nun ein Tag später, also Tag 2, sehe ich vergleichsweise schlechter! Schilder, Schriften oder Gesichter in der Ferne erkenne ich gar nicht oder nur sehr unscharf. Auch der TV ist jetzt unscharf im Gegensatz zu gestern. Ich sehe sogar in der Nöhe schlechter, womit ich nie Probleme hatte (weil kurzsichtig).

Ich bin frustriert und habe das Gefühl, die OP hat nicht geklappt und alles war umsonst.

Ich weiß, keiner von euch kann mir aus der Ferne helfen oder eine Diagnose stellen. Montag werde ich auch meinen Arzt kontaktieren. Vielmehr geht es mir bis dahin um einen (Erfahrungs-)Austausch. Hat wer ähnliche Erfahrungen gemacht (erst Verbesserung, dann Verschlechterung)?

It has been a little over two months since my procedure, and I have now entered the third month of recovery.
My vision is perfect, and I have no issues with visual clarity. However, my light sensitivity is extremely severe. From early morning until around midday, I struggle to keep my eyes open comfortably. After about 2 p.m., it becomes more manageable.
My doctor told me that the light sensitivity is due to dry eyes and that it will take time to improve. I was prescribed Cequa four times a day for three months after the procedure, along with lubricating eye drops for an unspecified duration. I noticed that Systane Ultra provides temporary relief, but the dryness and light sensitivity continue to be very frustrating.
I keep wondering whether my eyes will ever return to their normal state without dryness. The ongoing discomfort has made me regret getting LASIK, and I find myself feeling frustrated and worried about it every day.

Is it worth getting lasik or other eye correction procedure?
My power is sph: -2.25, cyl: -1.25 in both eyes

Female, 26 YO. I’m confused because my power is not really high, and is purely for cosmetic reasons.

Also, best doctors in india for the same?

I want to start by saying that this community played a meaningful role in my own research journey, even though I never had LASIK. Reading through the experiences shared here gave me perspective, direction, and a level of understanding about my own symptoms that I could not find anywhere else. I am posting now to give back and because I genuinely believe my story could help someone here find answers they have been searching for. To anyone in this community dealing with the aftermath of LASIK complications: I see you. The frustration of having made a decision to improve your vision and ending up with symptoms that feel worse than what you started with is something I cannot fully understand from the outside, but I watched enough of your stories unfold in these threads to know how real and how hard that experience is. I hope something in my story helps.

Before I get into it, I want to share two images from the OVITZ website that I think will resonate immediately with this community. These images communicate in seconds what would take paragraphs to describe.

Nighttime vision simulation with Higher Order Aberrations. Image courtesy of OVITZ (ovitz.us).

The same scene with Higher Order Aberrations corrected. Image courtesy of OVITZ (ovitz.us).If the first image looks familiar, if that is what headlights and streetlights look like to you at night, please keep reading.

Who I am and why I feel my story is relevant here

I never had LASIK. I have never had any eye surgery. But every single doctor I saw throughout my personal two year journey looking for answers to my worsening vision asked me immediately whether I had ever had LASIK, because my symptoms matched post-LASIK complications so closely. Even though I had a current contact and glasses prescription, I was experiencing significant starbursts, halos, intense glare, and eventually ghosting and blur on my computer screen. Each doctor was puzzled when I said no. What I eventually learned is that Higher Order Aberrations, the condition that causes these symptoms in so many post-LASIK patients, can also occur without any prior eye surgery. In my case I was diagnosed with Bilateral Irregular Astigmatism. The cause is different from yours, but the symptoms, the daily struggle, and most importantly the solution are relevant. I am posting here because if this solution worked for me without a LASIK history, I feel it can help you dealing with post-LASIK HOA complications. And from everything I read in this community during my own research, too many people here are still searching for answers that exist and are not being told about them.

The symptoms

Christmas season 2024. Driving at night, while wearing my "accurately" corrected soft contacts, every light source exploding into starbursts and halos. Headlights, streetlights, holiday decorations, all of it blooming and scattering in ways that made nighttime driving feel genuinely unsafe. A few months later in Spring 2025, I experienced overwhelming daytime glare at the beach. By late 2025, ghosting and blur on my computer screen were affecting my work in real and measurable ways.I was concerned enough to quietly research cataracts and Fuchs dystrophy for weeks. I talked to friends about it, researched obsessively, and for a long time felt like I was losing ground with no clear path forward. I saw multiple doctors over the course of nearly a year before getting real answers.

The ophthalmologist at my local in-network practice was genuinely thorough, definitively ruling out the serious conditions and introducing me to the concept of HOAs. He tried a pupil-restricting medication in hopes of reducing my symptoms, which was well-intentioned but not right for me. After taking it, I could not see well for approximately two hours. That experience pushed me to seek a second opinion. Through my own research I found a corneal specialist who performed a fluorescein dye test and identified that my tear ducts were not functioning properly. New diagnosis: dry eyes, likely from years of soft contact lens wear and heavy screen use, worsening my HOAs. And a referral to a specialty contact lens practice.What followed was months of dry eye self-treatment that got me nowhere. It was during this period that I found patient communities, including this one, that finally started pointing me in the right direction.

What I eventually found and why it is relevant to post-LASIK patients

Higher Order Aberrations are microscopic imperfections in the way light travels through the eye that standard glasses and soft contacts simply cannot correct. They are extremely well documented in post-LASIK patients, but they occur in others too. Standard eye exams do not test for them. Most doctors are not equipped to diagnose or treat them properly. The solution that exists is called wavefront-guided HOA correction, delivered through specialty scleral contact lenses. The technology I used is called OVITZ (there are other vendors out there like this too). An important thing to understand about the process: a stable scleral lens fit is a required foundation before OVITZ correction can be added. The scleral lens has to come first and it has to be right before the HOA correction can be accurately measured and incorporated. I hesitated for months before pursuing it. The costs were significant, potentially several thousand dollars out of pocket. The practice required a commute of 75 to 90 minutes from my home. Insurance coverage was going to be a battle. And from everything I was hearing, OVITZ does not appear to be covered by insurance anywhere currently. I eventually ran out of reasons to delay and made the call.

I also want to be honest about something hat I feel is key in my story and that I feel leads to many of us not finding the proper solutions. I went in-network first. I spent nearly a year at a vision insurance in-network provider before being formally referred to a specialty practice. That in-network provider was genuinely trying to help but did not have the specialized equipment my condition required. Going in-network first does not mean your condition can be fully treated in-network. Ask specifically whether your provider has the specialized equipment your condition requires.

The Scleral fitting process

My first appointment with the Scleral specialist was late December 2025. The initial exam was nearly two hours of focused one-on-one time, unlike anything I had experienced in eye care. I was scanned with the OVITZ xwave aberrometer at that very first appointment. My initial HOA readings came in roughly in the .5 to .8 range depending on the measurement and the trial lenses being evaluated.Over several visits and fitting revisions, my doctor worked to minimize the HOA readings before any OVITZ correction was added. After that iterative process, we reached a stable scleral fit with readings settling in the .5 range. The sclerals alone made a meaningful difference, as nighttime starbursts and halos reduced significantly and daytime glare improved considerably. But residual starbursts remained and the computer ghosting persisted. My doctor set my expectations honestly throughout, including noting that the first OVITZ corrected pair would likely need further adjustment. She was right. The first pair came back needing additional corrections. A new pair was made and when it arrived the results were transformative.Night vision completely changed. Daytime glare gone. Computer ghosting entirely gone. There is also a real acclimation period as your brain adjusts to the new visual input, my vision continued to improve over the first one to three weeks. My latest scan showed HOAs under .20, testing at 20/15, the best vision of my life. One important note on testing: some light sources produce halos and starbursts for most people, particularly those with any degree of astigmatism. Test across many different lighting situations before drawing conclusions on new lenses.

On my conservative treatment approach

I know many people in this community are weighing further surgical options after LASIK complications. I want to offer a perspective: I am genuinely glad I took a conservative route. The daily commitment of specialty contact lenses is real, but there was no risky irreversible procedure involved. The lenses can be updated and improved as the technology continues to advance. After a few months of wearing these lenses, they've become second nature to me. They are easy to put in and they are extremely comfortable. For those of you facing that decision, that tradeoff is worth thinking carefully about.

The insurance reality

My vision insurance was through Superior Vision, underwritten by MetLife. I submitted a complete claim with a formal Letter of Medical Necessity for Bilateral Irregular Astigmatism. Superior Vision denied virtually everything. After a formal internal appeal they offered $200 toward the total claim. I did not cash that check. I filed a BBB complaint, a complaint with the South Carolina Department of Insurance, and notified my employer's benefits team.I have heard VSP is more supportive of medically necessary contact lenses than some other carriers, worth researching at your next open enrollment. From what I have heard, OVITZ correction is not covered by insurance anywhere currently. I hope that can change. Plan for scleral lenses to be an ongoing annual replacement cost of approximately $1,000 or more. Do not let cost be the reason you continue to suffer. The quality of life on the other side of this treatment is worth it. And the more of us who pursue it, share our stories, and push back on insurance companies, the harder it becomes for those companies to ignore the reality that this is a legitimate medical need that deserves real coverage.

What I want you to take away

• Higher Order Aberrations are extremely well documented in post-LASIK patients, and the solution that exists for you is the same one that worked for me
• Standard eye exams do not test for HOAs; a wavefront aberrometer is needed, not just a corneal topographer
• A stable scleral lens fit is a required foundation before wavefront HOA correction can be added
• Scleral lenses alone can help significantly, but if residual symptoms remain after a stable fit, ask specifically about wavefront-guided HOA correction
• Expect that the first OVITZ corrected pair may need adjustment; find a doctor who has done this before and communicates candidly
• There is a real acclimation period; vision often continues improving over the first one to three weeks
• Going in-network first does not mean your condition can be fully treated in-network; ask specifically whether your provider has the specialized equipment your condition requires
• Be your own advocate; get second opinions, trust your symptoms, and do not accept this is as good as it gets
• The financial and logistical barriers are real but worth pushing through
• Test your vision across many different lighting situations before drawing conclusions on new lenses
• The OVITZ website has a striking before and after visual on their homepage that shows exactly what HOA vision distortion looks like, worth sharing with anyone who does not understand what you are experiencing

Reddit, across multiple communities including this one, played a meaningful role in helping me find my way to a solution. I hope this post does the same for someone here.

If any part of this resonates with you, whether the symptoms, the diagnostic journey, the fitting process, the insurance fight, or the technology, please feel free to DM me or drop a comment below. I am genuinely happy to share more detail and help however I can.

I am a 24 female and had lasik done around 3 years ago. Everything was clear except a bit of my left eye which I managed to accept. My nighttime vision was great too with minimal glare and ghosting but over the past years, my vision in low light settings quickly progressed to starbursts,smudging ,and glare. I have always noticed after doing the surgery that I could feel my eyes focusing and defocusing to look at smth but I assumed that was my eyes getting used to the new focus point of my cornea. But now in low lighting, even indoors, my eyes would get strained trying to focus in low lighting. If I didn't manually focus my eyes it would be extremely blurry. I assumed it was dry eyes as everyone said dry eyes led to trouble focusing but I went to several eye doctors and they all said my eye has minimal dry eye symptoms and wouldn't recommend IPL. I read about a lot of possibilities but does anyone know of my specific scenario where I can strain my eyes to focus and everything would be clear? Bright lights would also make things clear and I wouldn't have to manually focus my eyes. Is this fixable? Post lasik depression is getting to my head... I would also not like any more lasik touch ups as I also have suspicion of having corneal neuralgia (dry eye pain with no stain).

Please note that my vision is -5 in my right eye and -4 in my left, and that the surgery is not absolutely necessary, This procedure is only required for military officer applications in my country
But to be honest I am not very interested in the military field.

(Knowing that I have consulted a doctor who confirmed that I am fully fit for the procedure.)

Hello,
I had lasik in my 20s getting correction to about 20/25.
I’m now 53 and have worn progressive lenses for about five years. My distance Vision is still decent so I mostly wear glasses bc I am constantly reading.

The problem is terrible ghosting/haloing which occurs for both reading and distance. I think it occurs for all objects but is most noticeable with print. I think it’s getting worse over time.

I’ve had haloing around lights since getting Lasik, but the shape of the halo has changed. A street light for example now takes the shape of a stick figure. It’s really weird. Driving at night is becoming difficult.

I decided to try contacts again since progressive contacts are now available. Unfortunately, I think the halos/ ghosting even worse with contacts. My optometrist spent an exorbitant amount of time trying different lenses out with me, but there were no standouts and I gave up, returning to glasses.

Is there any hope for me to see normally again? Any more specialized diagnostics or lenses (either glasses or contacts) that wouldn’t be available at a regular optometrist practice? Would an ophthalmologist offer anything beyond what I’ve already tried?

Any insights would be so appreciated!

I mean like really ruin it. This is hell.

Just scheduled my PRK surgery today in Jersey I am getting it done by one of the ophthalmologist for the New York Jets actually and he is well known and referred to by my ophthalmologist and my physician and my psychiatrist and they all said that I should go ahead with it. Just seeing the horror stories though can throw me off a little bit because I’ve seen a lot of bad Reddit posts so really looking for tips or honest opinions.

I went for a consultation where I was dilated, and he looked at my numbers. He said they’re good also with the tear duct test he said both of my eyes were very good at producing tears and he’s not worried about that. He said that it will cure my astigmatism and myopia. Overall, after looking at my numbers and the tests he recommended PRK he would not go with Lasik under any circumstances, but overall he said PRK would be the best.

Again, any tips on how to ease the tension or anxiety or honest opinions about those specific feelings before this specific surgery would really help

I think I’ve come to the conclusion that I won’t be getting any type of surgery done. The only “good” option was partial lasik but it’s pointless risking my vision to not even get fully corrected vision then down the line risk it again for an enhancement. I think I’ll stick to wearing contacts everyday sadly. Has anyone else had the same experience?

Hey y'all. Please help me out with this one. Has anyone here gotten the ICL eye surgery to remove your specs?? My doc has prescribed me the ICL surgery over lasik and I have a few questions to ask from the ones who have already done it. Please answer honestly.

1. Can you physically "feel the lens" in your eyes? Do you feel any difference in how your eyes felt before the surgery and then after the surgery??

2. Do your eyes now feel a bit heavier becuz of the addition of lens? Like does it feel as if you're carrying something extra in your eye? Do you feel some extra weight due to the lens?

Please answer honestly and asap becuz right now I'm stuck in a dilemma and I'm not really able to decide whether I should go forward with it or not. Your reviews and help will mean a lot to me. Thanks

I’m considering PRK and would love to hear from people who have been in a similar situation.

My current prescription is:
Right eye: -9.00
Left eye: -7.50

My corneal thickness is around 490 microns.
The surgeon says they do not recommend correcting me all the way to 0 because that would require removing too much corneal tissue. Instead, they are suggesting a more conservative treatment that would leave me with approximately -2 to -3 D of myopia.

I am not interested in ICL and would prefer PRK if I go ahead with surgery.

For those who had PRK and were intentionally left with some residual myopia:

Were you happy with the outcome?

How functional is vision at -2 to -3 D without glasses?
Do you still wear glasses most of the time?

Looking back, would you do it again?

Also, does this recommendation sound reasonable given my prescription and corneal thickness?

I’d appreciate any experiences, advice, or things I should ask my surgeon before making a decision.