I’m writing this just over 3 weeks removed from getting LASIK surgery. I’m not going to discuss the procedure because, honestly, I’ve spent more time trying to figure out how to explain its quickness, than the surgery takes.
No, what’s more interesting, at least for me, is what it’s like to live after the surgery. And let me say, it’s very very different. Having spent almost 20 years having to wear glasses every day, you get used to certain facts of life. Your vision has a very scoped range. While I never had any true blind spots, I had areas that were always going to be blurry since they were outside my lenses. And there were other things that were always going to be blurry. The world when I woke up or went to bed was never clear, always cloudy. These were accepted facts.
And now, well, the world is clear. All the time.
The thing about corrective lenses (and I say this having only discussed this with contacts wearers) is that you get used to their near omni-presence. You notice the tasks you do with only your naked eyes than you notice the time you have the lenses on. Mainly because you have them on for extended periods of time.
What’s now very weird is that I have my old “glasses” vision, but I don’t have the glasses themselves. This definitely takes getting used to. Especially when I’m tired and start to just fall back into habits. Whenever I do things like wake up, or go to take a shower, I still find myself instinctively reaching for my glasses. Other times, when I forget I don’t need my glasses, I reach for them so I can do some other task, like use a computer. In both of these instances, I am immediately jolted into remembering the rather pleasant fact that I no longer need glasses.
The other really interesting thing is how different I feel after the surgery. The DVD I got from my Lasik center had all these testimonials about people who suddenly felt different. They all used the phrase, “more confident” in this very weird, cultish kind of way. Yet, as much as it pains me to say this, there’s definitely some truth to the matter. I wouldn’t say I ever felt like a dork because of my glasses, but I definitely caught myself thinking, “I feel like so much less of a dork now.” This is completely absurd, as I don’t look at people with glasses and immediately think, “dork.” Yet still, I look in the mirror and just FEEL better about myself.
Mind you, looking in the mirror has taken a bit of getting used to. I spent 20 years looking into the mirror seeing a man in glasses. Yes, there were times I didn’t have glasses on and looked in the mirror (you know, every time I showered/shaved) but that man never felt like me. He felt kind of like a stranger since he wasn’t what I was used to seeing in the mirror and in pictures. Now, that man is the only one who looks back at me. Now, that man is me. The man in the mirror is both a different person, and the same guy that I now see in most of my (now outdated) pictures. And this has taken a bit of getting used to.
All in all, I’m a big fan of getting LASIK. I’ve recommended looking into it to every person who asked me about the procedure. Whether they’re thinking about getting it or not, I suggest looking into it. I’m seriously this happy with my results.
Life and Times
