Lasik surgery.. two eyes for only $49!
Before any of my thousands hundreds dozens three readers email me asking where you, too, can get your eyes mutilated for such a modest fee, I have to admit that the best deal I've actually seen (if you'll pardon the pun) is $299 per eye.
The price I quoted was listed in one of the ever present online banner ads that appear everywhere (but not on my blog, thankyouverymuch). And yet, I have to wonder who would respond to an ad like that in the first place. It reminds me of a story told of John Glenn, the first American to go into orbit. A questioner asked him what went through his mind while he was crouched in the rocket nose-cone, awaiting blastoff. He wryly replied "I was thinking that the rocket had twenty thousand components, and each was made by the lowest bidder." I personally wouldn't trust my eyes to a doctor who needs to undercut the competition in order to get by.
But I would also want to explain that I am not now, nor ever have been looking for deals on corrective vision surgery. I started wearing contacts many years ago in college, and my optometrist, a very eccentric semi-retired gentleman, set me up with extended wear contacts. He insisted that I could train my eyes to tolerate them for weeks of continuous use, which I did. For the past 8 or more years, I've been wearing AcuVue disposable contacts, which are intended to be used for 1 to 2 weeks, worn during waking hours and removed at night. But, like my previous extended wear lenses, I have no trouble wearing them 24/7 for weeks at a time. In fact, the pair I'm currently using have been in my eyes since the holiday season... about 7 weeks straight.
As it is, I can now buy a 6-pack of disposable contacts for each eye at a total cost of about $40. That pack will last about a year. And honestly, I'd pay a lot more than $40 a year to avoid having someone deliberately use a laser on my corneas. Compare that to the current bargain rate of $600 for lasik surgery on both eyes, and it would take 15 years for the cost of the surgery to be even with what I'm paying for contacts.
Most people are shocked when I mention my philsophy regarding contacts, and assume that I'm gradually destroying my eyes. Ironically, the opposite is true. During my last eye exam, the optometrist mentioned that my vision had improved... a rarity for someone quickly approaching his 40th birthday. He asked if I wore my contacts for long periods of time, and I mentioned that I frequently left them in for days on end; understating my normal usage, if only to avoid a lecture. He nodded his head and said he figured that was the case. Apparently it's not unheard of for contact lens users with habits similar to mine to have improvements in their vision.
My vision is currently 20/10 with my contacts. With no change during the evening. My night vision has never been better in my life. And I have a wacky old eye doctor to thank. And come to think of it, I went to see him because he had an ad in the local newspaper promising extended wear contacts for only $99 a pair... an unheard of price at the time.
The price I quoted was listed in one of the ever present online banner ads that appear everywhere (but not on my blog, thankyouverymuch). And yet, I have to wonder who would respond to an ad like that in the first place. It reminds me of a story told of John Glenn, the first American to go into orbit. A questioner asked him what went through his mind while he was crouched in the rocket nose-cone, awaiting blastoff. He wryly replied "I was thinking that the rocket had twenty thousand components, and each was made by the lowest bidder." I personally wouldn't trust my eyes to a doctor who needs to undercut the competition in order to get by.
But I would also want to explain that I am not now, nor ever have been looking for deals on corrective vision surgery. I started wearing contacts many years ago in college, and my optometrist, a very eccentric semi-retired gentleman, set me up with extended wear contacts. He insisted that I could train my eyes to tolerate them for weeks of continuous use, which I did. For the past 8 or more years, I've been wearing AcuVue disposable contacts, which are intended to be used for 1 to 2 weeks, worn during waking hours and removed at night. But, like my previous extended wear lenses, I have no trouble wearing them 24/7 for weeks at a time. In fact, the pair I'm currently using have been in my eyes since the holiday season... about 7 weeks straight.
As it is, I can now buy a 6-pack of disposable contacts for each eye at a total cost of about $40. That pack will last about a year. And honestly, I'd pay a lot more than $40 a year to avoid having someone deliberately use a laser on my corneas. Compare that to the current bargain rate of $600 for lasik surgery on both eyes, and it would take 15 years for the cost of the surgery to be even with what I'm paying for contacts.
Most people are shocked when I mention my philsophy regarding contacts, and assume that I'm gradually destroying my eyes. Ironically, the opposite is true. During my last eye exam, the optometrist mentioned that my vision had improved... a rarity for someone quickly approaching his 40th birthday. He asked if I wore my contacts for long periods of time, and I mentioned that I frequently left them in for days on end; understating my normal usage, if only to avoid a lecture. He nodded his head and said he figured that was the case. Apparently it's not unheard of for contact lens users with habits similar to mine to have improvements in their vision.
My vision is currently 20/10 with my contacts. With no change during the evening. My night vision has never been better in my life. And I have a wacky old eye doctor to thank. And come to think of it, I went to see him because he had an ad in the local newspaper promising extended wear contacts for only $99 a pair... an unheard of price at the time.
posted by JoeFriday at 2:29 PM
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