I had RK surgery (15 cuts in each eye) 20 years ago. I don?t remember the exact month or date. I was so excited: Life without my thick glasses or hard lenses! I was highly myopic (-13) and the thought that I could live life without my glasses or lenses was too good to be true. I was very young (19 yrs old) and extremely naive. I believed every word the doctor told me. I don?t even remember if I signed a consent form.

The surgery was done on my right eye first and within the next couple of
days my left eye. When my left eye was done the doctor had a observer in the operating room. I remember at one point the Doctor abruptly stop the procedure and quickly covered my eye. He told me to see him the next day (something he didn?t do with my right eye). The next day I went to his office and he took off the bandage and I was able to read the eye chart - the doctor looked relieved (much later I learned that my cornea was perforated). I?m not sure what my vision was right after RK, but literally within 2 weeks, it regressed almost back to what it was before the surgery. I still needed contacts and glasses. I no longer saw the doctor that performed the surgery on me - I was delegated to an associate in the practice. To this day, I still get sick to my stomach when I think of the disrespect I received in that office, i.e., squirting saline solution in my eye and making light of my problems. They told me that after RK I probably would not be able to wear contacts anymore - something they failed to mention before the surgery. I was devastated to say the least. Here I was: 19 years old - highly myopic and now I had deformed corneas on top of it. After one particularly humiliating visit, I left that office and never returned.

Fast forward 20 years. I have been to so many doctors I?ve lost count. I have run the gamut of solutions: contact lenses, eye drops, glasses and have spent a fortune in the process. My vision is ruined. I have chronic problems with my left eye. I suffer from irregular astigmatism, horrendous night vision, fluctuating vision, ghosting, dry eye, photophobia, glare, pain in both eyes, pressure, headaches, and have been through bouts of depression wondering when my eyes will just give up. I have had doctors advise me to have more RK surgery (an enhancement), verbally berated, and a few actually said to me: "I feel sorry for you".

It has been such a blessing to find this website and to share our experiences and knowledge.

I hope one day we will all find some relief from our suffering.