PRK Make Sure You Really Understand the Risks - New York, NY

I had PRK done in both eyes four months ago for a very slight correction (-1.25 and -1.50 + slight astigmatism). I had sharp vision when corrected with glasses, but had a hard time with contacts. I decided to have the surgery after finding out my husbands company would pay 100 % of the cost. I'm a very active person and also in my 40s so I thought I would go through with it so I could I avoid bifocals in the future. I had canceled the surgery once then, rescheduled after I was told because my correction was so slight, I would have an easy recovery and most of the scary complications wouldn't apply to me. I believed it and now I regret it every day.
I'm one of the lucky ones. My complications just affect my quality of vision. I have 20/15 in one eye and 20/30 in another (it regressed, which is extremely rare with such a small correction). I then reacted very atypically to the steroid drops given to prevent post op haze and, I developed a droopy eyelid and dilated pupil in the regressed eye (should clear up in time but is very annoying). I can drive at night, and have almost no halos but, in low light I can't see much detail. Also, since vision changes daily, you never know if you are going to have a good day or bad. I never worried about my vision, but now I think out it all day.
That said, I believe I was misled regarding recovery and quality of vision.
My advice to all is if you are able to be corrected to a high quality vision with glasses or contacts, the inconvenience and stress of PRK recovery is not worth it. If I could go back in time, I would not do the surgery and advise anyone who is thinking about it to really think about not how great it would be if it is a perfect outcome, but, how would they be able to function if they were part of the 2% that have bad outcomes. When you are part of that 2%, you are 100% affected.

It's been 5 months post surgery and I still think it was a bad decision. Finally, the droopy eye and dilated pupil have resolved but, the quality of vision is still poor.

I went to another doctor for a second opinion and though my vision is almost 20/20, I have a new prescription for my nearsightedness. So, in the end, with all the uncertainty, pain and dry eye, I will be back in glasses in a year. The bonus is at least my near vision is back without headaches. If I had to choose, I would much rather be nearsighted than far sighted, especially how often I'm on my electronic devices.

So, was it worth it? NO. Again, my result is considered a surgical success: corrected to within -.5 of perfect vision with minimal halos and manageable dry eye. But, the risk and the recovery was not worth it. I will gladly embrace my current situation and move forward learning a very valuable lesson...if it isn't broken, don't fix it.