verwhelming happiness and satisfaction are only two of the emotions that I felt on the day I underwent LASIK surgery. The following day when I went to see Dr. Jacobs for my post op visit, I was able to see "E V O T ", in other words, I was reading the 20/20 line. I felt completely comfortable from the moment that the surgery procedure was explained to me. Dr. Gary Jacobs won me over with his patience and professionalism. He was very clear in his explanations and answered every question I had. My life has changed in such a fantastic way that I can?t believe I ever went through the hardship of wearing glasses and contact lenses. I can see the chalkboard at school and can sip a cup of coffee without worrying about my glasses getting fogged up. I don?t have any trouble with running in the rain and no more rubbing out those hard-to-see streaks in my glasses. I don?t have to bother with carrying extra bottles of artificial tears to soothe my eyes from the daily use of contacts. I wake up and can see everything! I am truly happy that I had this surgery and given the opportunity, I would do it again. Many people can benefit from this amazing procedure. What are you waiting for?

-Monica P. -

or me, the hardest part of undergoing LASIK corrective eye surgery was deciding if I felt safe and confident in having a relatively new--and not altogether necessary--surgery performed on that most precious part of my life: my eyes. This kind of elective procedure is not something I would normally have chosen for myself. But having poor vision--myopia complicated with blurring from astigmatism--has been an ongoing source of frustration and difficulty since I was a child. When I heard that more and more people were opting for the surgery every year, I decided to look in to it.

I am a very active person, participating in such varied pursuits as bicycle commuting, rough water swimming, backpacking, mountaineering, and the martial arts. Contact lenses for my prescription were very expensive and I kept losing them when they popped out during my activities or when I was handling them during extended hikes in the wilderness. Glasses became fogged or rain-spattered, couldn?t be worn when I swam, and once caused me facial disfigurement when they bent and impaled the bridge of my nose during a bicycle accident.

I was very weary of corrective lenses, and had spent the past few years preferring to face the world with poor vision than with either contacts or glasses. I figured I was an excellent candidate for LASIK, because the surgery could improve the quality of my life tremendously, if only I could feel secure about the risks.

The thing that stands out as most significant in my entire experience of LASIK with Dr. Gary Jacobs is the level of confidence and security he and his staff inspired in me throughout. I had a lot of carefully-considered questions about his skill as a surgeon and his past success with the procedure, and in addition to his standard practice of providing pre-operative education about the procedure, he took the time to carefully and honestly answer my tough questions.

Even as he told me of the risks, and of the wide margin of possible outcomes to the procedure, his experience with LASIK and other forms of eye surgery, his extensive training in advanced ophthamological procedures, and his attitude and professionalism convinced me that he could achieve a very successful outcome in my case with little risk to me. I felt fully confident in placing my eyes in his care.

During the surgery, Dr. Jacobs and his staff made me feel so comfortable and secure. He talked me through the entire procedure, telling me what to expect and encouraging me along the way. When one of his assistants at the surgery center took my hand and held it throughout the entire procedure, I knew I was definitely in the right place. I was amazed at how relaxed I was able to be, confident that I was literally in good hands.

The surgery itself was only slightly uncomfortable when Dr. Jacobs stretched open my eyes with a speculum to allow room to perform the procedure. And the recovery time was amazingly short. It has been almost two months since I had LASIK, and the world I now behold still inspires me with awe. Of the potential negative effects of the procedure, such as halos at night and dry eyes, I have experienced none. My vision is now just slightly better than 20/20, but the numbers mean nothing compared to the joy of seeing feathers on hawks? wings and reading distant traffic signs when I drive. For the amount of benefit I have derived from this procedure, it seems amazing that both the level of discomfort endured and the cost could be so low. I am so grateful to be looking toward a bright, clear future of vision without the burden of corrective lenses.

- Valerie H.-