Price for zymaxid

Warning: Text wall.
I found this sub really informative and helpful when I was researching Lasik, so I wanted to contribute to the collection of experiences found here.
I'm a 29F who has been wearing glasses or contacts for 21 years. Starting at age 13, I wore (almost) exclusively contacts, and starting age 20 I wore the day and night contacts for as long as allowed (generally thirty days). My prescription was pretty steady for the last 6 years or so, right around a -3.00 in my right eye and a -3.50 in my left eye. I had an astigmatism in my left eye.
For years, even though I had an astigmatism the doctor allowed me to go without a toric lens (giving me the choice because he said it wasn't that bad). Two years ago, a new doctor said that my astigmatism was worse than I thought and put me in a toric lens. I HATED my toric lenses and so for the last two years, I've been switching between contacts and glasses about 50/50. I had been considering lasik on and off for about 8 years at this point, so the toric lens was what I needed to get me in gear.
I shopped around my area (Dallas, Texas) for a Lasik doctor that I liked/trusted. Honestly, I was looking for the best mix of price and experience/quality that I could find...I had friends that went super swanky and expensive, and others that went cattle-call and cheap, and all of them said I should take the plunge. After a TON of research, I landed on Dr. Robert Smith at LasikPlus in Dallas (well, really, it's in Plano). I was hesitant about a chain, but he had rave reviews and had started his refractive surgery practice on fighter pilots in the air force, so I felt comfortable with him. There ended up being some added benefits with going with a chain (notably, I get a "lifetime" guarantee on my lasik, and because they're in basically every state no matter where I move I'll be covered if I need an enhancement).
I ended up paying $3,000 for both eyes after a 15% discount for having vision insurance, a $300/eye discount for a beginning of the year promotion and a $250 discount for booking through their call center, so I got a VERY good price (ended up being cheaper than the cattle-call quotes I received, actually, although I thought it would be more when I booked it).
My initial consultation took about an hour and a half and revealed that I was a good candidate for Lasik. My surgery was scheduled for 10 days after my initial consultation. I had the custom bladeless Lasik procedure. Before surgery, I was asked to get Zymaxid and Pred Forte. I paid out of pocket for these drops...the total cost would have been around $210 out of pocket, but I used goodrx.com to find the best discounts, and ended up getting them at Wal-Mart for a grand total of $48.
My appointment for the surgery was for 3:30 on a Friday, but I got there closer to 4 (unexpected traffic). After the battery of last minute tests and the paperwork (and the popping of a single 5mg Valium), I was taken back to a little room with recliners and had my first round of numbing eye drops put in around 4:45. At 4:50 the doctor came to speak with me and walked me through what I needed to do at each stage of the game. By 5:00, we were walking into the surgery room. There the doctor gave me another round of numbing eye drops and I laid down.
The first machine was the suction machine where the corneal flap is actually cut. This was the only portion of the entire surgery where I felt what might be considered "pain." It was definitely more than pressure. I would consider it to be right on the edge of wincing in pain. But it was only with the first eye. By the second it wasn't nearly as bad.
From there I got up and walked two steps over to a different laser machine (being helped by the sweet nurse). This machine was the laser that reshapes the cornea. I was told to stare at the green light, and they taped my eyelashes up, spread my eyelids with what I'm calling an eye-speculum, and then went to work. It was really easy to keep looking at the green light, and they kept my eye steady and moist enough that I didn't even try to blink against the eye-speculum.
A few quick pew-pews later, and I was all done. They tamped down the flap with what felt like a little foam shovel thing (my boyfriend said that it looked the weirdest out of the whole surgery, but it actually felt pretty good), removed the tape, put the Ray Charles sunglasses on me, and walked me into a post-op exam room. The doctor then checked my eyes and told me I was good to go! He suggested that I try falling asleep for a nap once I got home and that I wake up in 3-4 hours to put in my first round of drops. I was out of the surgery center and on my way home by 5:25.
This is where it got uncomfortable again. Because he wanted me to wake back up, I decided not to take the ambien my GP had given me for post-surgery. I thought the Valium would be enough to help me nap. I was wrong. We got into the car, stopped at the gas station to fill up, had to go back to the surgery center (because I forgot my bag with the drops...my boyfriend had ONE JOB), and then we headed home (about 10 minutes from our surgery center). I forced my BF to stop at the pharmacy nearest our house to grab me some nose spray, since I was recovering from a cold/sinus infection and the drops and surgery caused massive nose blockage and drainage. I'm pretty sure this hugely contributed to my misery. The first 7 or 8 minutes of the drive were perfectly fine, but after that it felt like I had some sandy acid in my eyes, but I couldn't open them.
I got home, got into bed, and closed my eyes. I tried willing myself to sleep, but no dice. So I just gritted my teeth and got through the next few hours. A cold compress over the glasses and my forehead helped a little. My doctor called a few hours after I got home to check on me, and suggested keeping my eyes closed a little longer and taking a pain reliever. Aleve helped a lot.
After about four hours (so, around 9:30PM), the pain/discomfort significantly subsided, and I was able to open my eyes, take my drops, and eat some dinner. I could already see the clock radio across the room, and it was CRAZY!
The next morning I woke up and my BF drove me to my post-op appointment. I could see very clearly and had only minor discomfort (sliiiiight "grittiness") in my left eye. I had 20/20 at my 10:00 AM post-op appointment with both eyes open and in my right eye. My left was a little blurrier than that, but the doctor said that was okay because of my astigmatism in that eye, and that he anticipated it would get better over the next several days/weeks.
My eyes weren't significantly red after my surgery, and I was able to go to a party that night for a friend who is deploying soon. I have been careful about the drops (the one that stings and tastes horrible, and the one that clouds up the vision, and the artificial tears). I have been good about protecting my eyes from debris (I cleaned my fan, for example, but wore my goggles). I have been especially cognizant of the artificial tear usage, and end up using them about every half hour while awake, since my eyes were a little dry prior to Lasik anyway. I bought the refresh preservative-free single use vials in boxes of 100 from Costco for about $20/box.
I've definitely noticed my vision getting sharper over the last few days. I've got minor halo-ing at night, but nothing major or uncomfortable. I have another appointment for three weeks from now, and we'll see where I am then. Until then (and unless something changes), I can honestly say I'm totally kicking myself for not doing this years ago, and think that it was probably the best money I've ever spent. I would (as of now) do Lasik again in a heart beat.
If I missed anything or you have any specific questions, ask away!!!
TL;DR: I had lasik four days ago and while it was quick it wasn't 100% painless or comfortable. However, it wasn't too bad and I would definitely do it again, because it was well worth it.