If you insist, try not to get more than a little bit of water in your mask. After swimming, go to the hotel, restaurant, or somewhere and take off your contacts for a few minutes if possible. Your tears may disperse the parasites away from your eyes. Rinse your contacts with the contact lens solution.

As I said, most people do not become blind from swimming in their contacts but the risk is definitely higher.

just want to wish Monica well. I was 20/350 for 35 yrs until I had LASIK 2 yrs ago. It changed my life overnight, literally. I know there are those w/complications, but I went to the doctor that did MY Dr's eyes, it went great and I thank God every day for this amazing surgery.

OK all you Lasik fans, I have a question: I have coke-bottle prescription (I think the number is 6.5) and have thought about it. However, as I am now 45 (that hurts to type) I am beginning to require reading glasses. Yet I am still nearsighted. Will lasik correct both or will I still need my readers? (And don't bother to scold me about getting eye advice from fellow Fodorites - my doctor doesn't like Lasik unless you CAN'T wear contacts.) Doesn't seem worth it unless I can throw away ALL my glasses. Thanks!

Sorry Joan, but you will still need the reading glasses. The Lasik surgery doesn't help with that problem. :(

Yes, laser eye surgery can correct nearsightedness and astigmatism because the laser reshapes the corneal surface. As far as I know, it cannot correct farsightedness. And it definitely cannot do anything about the aging process of the lens within your eyes, which becomes less elastic with age. That's why you need reading glasses.

BTW, my prescription was minus 11 before surgery, with lots of astigmatism to boot. A little pair of reading glasses just doesn't seem like a big deal now, lol.

Another plug for LASIX!!! It changed my life as well. In order to compensate for difficulties reading as one ages, some eye physicians will leave one eye slightly undercorrected during the LASIX procedure so that you still may be able to read without reading glasses.

uh...Kennedy....Lasix is a diuretic! LASIK is laser surgery.Unless you're a race horse,it might not change your life, LOL. I had monovision done, and it bought me a few years in reading glasses. (one eye is 20/35) I'm 48 and not yet needing reading glasses.

I was 20/400 with a diopter of -7.75 when I had PRK (forerunnerof Lasik) done in 1997 - I am about 20/40 now, only wear glasses for night driving, and drugstore reading glasses for close work/fine print. I am a staunch supporter of the new laser eye vision correction surgeries. Funny thing - my eyes were constantly dry in glasses or contacts - now they are never dry or itchy!

lun, I had PRK as well, had to go to Cananda to have it done, as the FDA had not yet approved the procedure for anyone with a diopter above -10 (at least that was the case back in 1997).

No more red eyes, no more contact solutions, no more glasses, no more struggling to see......this surgery really is life changing.

Make that "Canada" lol.

Wow! thanks for all the encouraging replies...I'm going to show this thread to my husband...maybe we can do it together!

Always swim in my contacts, I wear those little goggles that cover just the eyes, so the contacts don't float away and I can get splashed like anyone else. I try to purchase those that are tinted like sunglasses, this reduces the glare off the water too. And the goggle then serve 2 purposes.

Answering Joan's question about Lasik and reading glasses. Joan says she is nearsighted. This actually delays the need for reading glasses. Get Lasik and she will immediately need reading glasses. If she doesn't know this ahead of time, she may be very mad after it's done!

If she delays Lasik until she needs reading glasses, she will still need readers after the Lasik but will not be so dissatisfied like the above. It's just a matter of perception and change.

Joan should consider Lasek which is what I would have if I wanter laser vision correction. Post if you want more details and the reasons.l

I would also have only 1 eye done at a time for safety. A few doctors do this and most will probably do so if you ask for it. An infection in both eyes is not fun. An infection in one eye is better because the other eye can see while you recover from the sick eye.

Readers of this post: This thread is progressively straying from the subject. It is not meant to dispense medical advice. There is still nothing wrong with glasses or contact lenses; in fact contact lenses have improved markedly over the years and I personally would worry more about drowning, sharks, jellyfish, coral cuts, sunburn, urchins, and lightning while snorkeling than acanthamoeba. Keep the water out of your eyes regardless and ask your ophthalmologist. Surgery is an alternative that may or may not be the best option for an individual based on both physical and personal needs. Lasik can be used to correct moderate amounts of farsightedness in addition to other refractive error, and eyes often feel more dry after surgery for at least a few weeks to months. What works for one patient may not work for another. Also, talk to your ophthalmologist about corneal power measurements necessary when you inevitably develop cataract over the years. These are necessary to compute the power for implant lenses and can be difficult to accurately obtain after corneal refractive surgery. It is wise to have a record of your preoperative corneal measurements and your postoperative refraction on file as you may need this information if you need cataract surgery in the future.

Hi Joan...I had lasik surgery done 3 months..I can only say great things about it. It IS life changing. However, you must understand that you will most likely need your reading glasses, especially being in your 40s already. My surgeon made it clear that once I hit my 40s, it might be necessary for me to wear reading glasses.
But what's a pair of reading glasses, for being able to swim with no contacts? or wakeup in the morning and being able to see right away? or just seeing PERIOD!? I LOVE it.
Just please make sure you do your research on the eye surgeon you pick. You only want the best for your eyes. It took me a year to make up my mind. I went to one of the best eye surgeons in the country and he had done the surgery on several of my co-workers and family members (all extremely satisfied customers).
Check with your insurance company too. Some of them have begun to pick up some of the expense (mine picked up 25% of the cost..better than nothing!).
There are actually 2 types of lasik surgery now. There's the traditional one that will just fix your problem (astigmatism or near-sightedness or far-sightedness).
And the new one is called "custom cornea". "custom cornea" is based on the idea that there are oher imperfections of the cornea (other than astigmatism, near-sightedness or far-sightedness). Those other imperfections can't be fixed by traditional laser treatment. so "custom cornea" would be able to fix those other problems (like glare, haloes, starbursts and others). Obviously, that procedure is a bit more expensive. I ended up doing the "custom cornea". It was $500 per eye more.
I'm VERY happy with the procedure. My husband plans to do it next year.
The most important piece of advice I can give you is to make sure you research your doctor. Good luck!