I am thinking of getting Lasik surgery, someone told me that if u get the procedure that u cant go swimming for quite a while and suggested that maybe I should wait till the end of the season. Is this true
I’m scheduled for Lasik two weeks from tomorrow at TLC. They said no exercising and swimming for one week in order to let your flap properly heal. Swimming pools and hot tubs are cespools for bacteria and infections. Others who have recently gotten Lasik were exercising within a few days. Probably depends on what your Dr./Optometrist says, but you likely wouldn’t be out for any kind of extended period.
when I had mine, they said 1 week. Heck, I often miss a week (or two) of swimming anyway! Best thing I’ve ever done…BTW. When it works as well as mine has, it’s great. I know it isn’t always perfect, and can be devastating…just go to someone with a stellar record and that has done at least a few thousand…
I had Lasik 3 years ago – was running & cycling within 3 days (you pretty much have to sleep for the weekend following surgery to let your eyes rest & heal). Stayed out of the pool for 10 days (see cesspool comment above – yuck!). But that was it… I HAVE found a huge training & racing benefit – no dealing with lost or damaged contacts during the race, esp. swim portion, & it improved my peripheral vision tremendously. Found I could better anticipate accidents-ready-to-happen on the bike (like off-leash dogs) and that my eyes didn’t fatigue so quickly throughout the day. The reduced fatigue doesn’t sound like much, except for at the end of IM when basically everything hurts… it’s one less thing to deal with!
Had it done 2.5 weeks ago. I was a the gym lifting weights the next day. No swimming for one week, and no open water for 3-4 months, which could be a problem for those that actually still do triathlon.
Money well spent. Get Wavefront if your cornea is thick enough.
Just did it 2.5 weeks ago. Dr. said swimming was OK after 5 days. I waited 6 and haven’t had any problem at all. The FDA says you need to wait 1-2 MONTHS, but that is apparently very old data.
My doctor wouldn’t let me swim for 2 weeks. However he said I could run the next day, which I did.
i was running and cycling two days after the surgery. the doc said to wait a week to swim just to be safe. during that week, i used the VASA trainer (simulates swimming) at the pool. it’s been great. i had it done about 2 years ago.
I road up Mt diablo in California 3 days after. Going up was fine but coming down my eyes got really dry from the wind and could not see very well for about 10 hours. Do not let your eyes dry out and carry your drops.
I don’t know about other alternatives. My father, who has worse eyes than me (I’m blind, I think I’m at a -7 or -7.25 diopter?) had Lasik a few years ago with good results and I didn’t consider anything else.
As far as how long you need to be in you glasses: I wear soft lenses (Accuvue 2) at the Dr’s request, I’ve been out of contacts for 4 days for an optometrist appt today (will do dialation, full vision check, etc) and I will need to be out of contacts 1 week prior to the surgery to let your cornea shape back to normal. I don’t think soft lenses do too much to shape your cornea, so a week out is pretty conservative in my estimates. It sucks swimming when you can’t see the clock or the workout sheet w/out being 2 inches away.
-6 here!!! (next year’s FSA will pay for Wavefront - provided my corneal thickness and whatever other ‘variables’ all fit the mold)
PS there is another alternative i read about somewhere called Intraocular Lens Technology (or something really close to that) where they stick a new lens in your eye - and it’s reversible.
I was -8.5 before Lasik – and had to spend a week ahead of the surgery in 3 inch thick glasses (slight exaggeration, maybe 1 1/2 inches). Bumping into furniture & a clear & present danger on the road. But ever so worth it! Lasik corrected to 20/40. The one week out of lenses was mandatory even with soft lenses to ensure the cornea was back to it’s real shape. Good luck!