Lasik Eyes Surgery - One Last Recycle ...the Dr. Ken Examination

Author

One Last Recycle ...the Dr. Ken Examination

doctor_my_eye@msn.com

2004-12-20, 10:08 pm

Sharpen those pencils...its testing time.

DoctorMyEye.com
THE Place To Go When
Refractive Surgery Goes Wrong!

Post subject: 2nd Anniversary Final Exam

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Doctor Minarik's Second Anniversary Examination

Instructions: Please select a number two pencil
and set it on your monitor, for it has no purpose here. Select the
answer to each question that is the most correct. No partial credit is
given, and once again I emphasize that there will be no wagering.

1=2E When asked by a patient what he thinks of LASIK, Doctor Minarik will
often give the following answer:
(A) LASIK involves the damaging of healthy nerve endings that will
limit your ability to make tears.
(B) LASIK can correct your distance vision but does not eliminate the
need for reading glasses in our forties.
(C) LASIK is like a little European roadster: You'd like to have it in
your twenties but can't afford it, but when you have the money to buy
it when you're in your forties your fat butt doesn't fit in it.
(D) If I created a procedure to save your life and had a 5% failure
rate, I would win a Nobel Prize. If I invent a procedure that simple
intends to replace your glasses, and you have a 5% chance of hating me
for the rest of your life...that's not good odds or good medicine.
(E) All of the above are likely to be said.

2=2E In the "For Tina, for I Never Knew Your Name" thread, the message
learned by Doctor Minarik was:
(A) He had failed to even ask her name until he found she had died
suddenly.
(B) He felt that her working with a disability made her a wonderful
example of strength every day when faced with adversity.
(C) The SE board could be a wonderful source of strength for her
grieving family.
(D) All of the above are lessons learned.

3=2E In the thread about driving into a sudden snowstorm outside
Bloomington, Illinois..
(A) Doctor Minarik draws the analogy that you don't consider the cars
on the side of the road until you drive straight into the LASIK
"blizzard"
(B) The thread digresses into a discussion of how snowy the winter was
in much of the country, while other parts had drought.
(C) Both of these things occurred.

4=2E In the "Looking Into My Wife's Eyes" thread:
(A) Doctor Minarik notices the "red reflex" from the pictures of his
wife that he took while biking on the New Jersey shoreline.
(B) A photograph of Jenni's retina is posted to show what that reflex
really is.
(C) The basic structure of the retina is reviewed in such a way to
describe the Divinity involved in the complex structure of the eye.
(D) Doctor Minarik lambasts the ignorance and arrogance of man for
cutting and damaging healthy eyes for profit.
(E) All of the above occur.

5=2E In the "Jerry, I Hardly Knew Ye" thread...
(A) An old classmate loses his distaste for LASIK when co-management
fees start to save his practice.
(B) Jerry buys much nicer suits as a result of co-managing LASIK.
(C) Doctor Minarik loses a cohort to help him heckle LASIK
continuing-education classes.
(D) All of the above occur.

6=2E The "Feel felt fine rule"...
(A) Was designed to placate the angry LASIK patient to is worried about
his vision.
(B) Was explained to a large lecture hall full of doctors in a way that
Doctor Minarik felt demeaned the patient.
(C) Was intended to sooth the nervous patient that other people feel
the way he does, many others felt that way during the past while
healing, and now they are "fine".
(D) Raised Doctor Minarik's blood pressure.
(E) All of the above are true.

7=2E In July of 2003 Doctor Minarik spoke in front of the American Board
of Disability Analysts for the following purpose:
(A) To enlist Allied Health Professionals into the discussion of the
dangers of refractive surgery.
(B) To begin to create a dialog with psychologists and family
therapists that will be meeting post-op LASIKs who suffer from
depression and anxiety.
(C) To create the first documentable case of LASIK complications being
presented to a Professional Forum in the interest of future disability
claims and legal precedents.
(D) To allow Doctor Minarik to put on a suit for the first time in
2003.
(E) All of the above goals were reached.

8=2E In his fictitious "hillbilly" consent form, Doctor Minarik
emphasized:
(A) While a high tech laser performed the procedure, a low tech "go
kart" with a dangling razor blade cuts the flap.
(B) Refractive surgeons rarely have the procedure done to themselves
because they understand the risks.
(C) The reality of informed consent is that it is used to reduce legal
liability but rarely explains the dangers in depth.
(D) All of the above are pitfalls of consent as we know it today.

9=2E Which of the following acts of professional indescretion has Doctor
M=2E stumbled into:
(A) Perpetuating the stereotype that Aussies are beer-drinking
slackers.
(B) Lambasting Doctor Gemoules for boasting that his "contact lens
polishing tool" exceeds the prowess of the other doctors on the board.
(C) Chastising Doctor Bard for underestimating the intelligence and
reasoning ability of the non-eye professionals that read this board
regularly.
(D) Representing Doctor Potter with a Beatrice Potter graphic to
represent him when he chastises Doctor Minarik for ripping into him.
(E) All of the above indescretions have occurred.

10. When Ron Link visited the Minarik home for a cookout in the summer
of 2002:
(A) Young Dylan took refuge under Ron's arm for comfort, which reminded
Doctor Minarik of the comfort he gives the SE community.
(B) Doctor Minarik was reminded of the Star Trek episode in which Jon
Luc Picard returns to the South of France to get strength from
interacting with his older brother Rene.
(C) Doc's new Jack Russell terrier "Gracie" shocked the ever living
crap out of herself while trying to leap her electric dog fence border
to join Ken and Ron on their walk.
(D) All of the above occurred.

11. Doctor Minarik's beverage of choice...
(A) Is Diet Mountain Dew
(B) was the source of the "Tina" thread, as he stopped to buy one every
morning at her gas station.
(C) Has been accepted as payment for services when SE patients come to
visit for cosults.
(E) Is a universal currency in the Minarik home.
(F) All of the above are true.

12. CR-39 lenses....
(A) Are the original plastic spectacle lenses developed by PPG
Industries.
(B) Are optically superior to High Index and Polycarbonate lenses when
dealing with peripheral distortions in post-op LASIKS.
(C) Got that very technical name because they were simply the 39th
batch of Columbian Resin that the PPG chemists were testing for
clarity.
(D) Helped make PPG into the strong and powerful multi-national company
that it is today, with its roots in the old Pittsburgh Plate Glass
Company.
(E) All of the above are true.

13. In "A Walk in the Woods"..
(A) Doctor Minarik returns to the home of his refractive surgery
mentor, finding him recently divorced and suprisingly reflective.
(B) Doctor Minarik equates the experience with Reagan and Gorbachev
walking in the woods to discuss detante.
(C) The sudden onset of Parkinson's disease in an old friend brings
Doctor Minarik to a peaceful recognition of the man's inner strength.
(D) The mentor's true affection for his dogs suprises and pleases Dr.
M, as he confronts the realities of things lost.
(E) All of the above occur.

14. The flattening of the anterior chamber of the eye in refractive
surgery, particularly RK:
(A) May change the circulation pattern in the eye and induce ocular
hypertension.
(B) May increase the risk of blowout fracture of the globe when struck
by an airbag.
(C) May be the reason for the spoke-shaped cataracts in post-op RKs
that mimic the shape and pattern of the cuts.
(D) All of the above have not been studied adequately by the FDA.

15. When an anti-LASIk patient is confronted with the argument that
LASIK "must be safe because it is FDA approved"..
(A) He should remind the person that cigarettes are "FDA approved"
(B) He should remind the person that dry eyes and haloes are not
considered serious complications according to FDA protocols.
(C) He should remind the individual that laser manufacturers have
millions of dollars in funds to spend on the FDA approval procedure,
while Ron Link leads a battle against them by buying his groceries at
ALdi and taking the bus to meetings.
(sorry, Ron. )
(D) All of the above are true.

O=2EK. Pencils down. Pass in your blue books, and refrain from talking
while leaving the exam room.
Your scores will be posted on my office door by Friday at noon. Bring
Diet Dew.

Quote:
Quoting Ron Link

Nice summation Dr. Ken. I will always remember our walk and the respect
I had for your motivations, work and your loving family. SE certainly
has had the right mix of human ambition and failure to qualify for a
Star Trek episode. I'm in a pretty tough place at the moment, but I do
know that SE is a ship that can help people get from or move through
one place to another.

Quote:
Quoting Dr. Minarik

I share your view of our mission here...

and I think we serve a lot of purposes. For some people, this place is
a place to find constant comfort. For others it is a short dose of
"therapy" before they go on with their lives and stop posting. For
others, coming back to post is the only positive and life-affirming
thing that comes from their bad LASIK...a chance to warn others. And
finally, for those who read our words and then re-consider the risks of
even considering LASIK..our finest mission is served.

Quote:
Quoting Gail Brion

Not pretty, but real.

I think that sums up your tenure here at SE. I wish more doctors were
real when it comes to RS.

Although I have great respect for Ron and the doctors that give their
time here, I wish they were not needed and that SE never had to have
been formed. The truth of the matter is that RS has run a large,
patient-sponsored, research project on millions of unsuspecting people.
I am just one of the lab monkeys that didn't quite make it, but on to
the next experiment! Tally ho!

I have a feeling all of us are going to be needed here for a long time.

Quote:
Quoting pknapp

Nice Hodge-Podge

thread of Diet Dew, Aldi Foods, RS, Ron Link and Dr. Ken's trials and
tribulations!

Dammit, I am sorry Ron that you're having trouble with your eyes. As
Gail says, she was one of the guinea pigs. Some of us were, it seems.

SE, to me, is all of the above sometimes and something entirely
different at times. I won't even try to explain! How about a "for
example?" The other day I called a new blindie because she was not in
good shape. We talked awhile and she got something out of the
conversation, as did I. I don't do as many of those as I used to. But,
I'm still here. Sometimes it's just to vent, tell a "good" story, or
whatever. Ramble, kind of like Ken does at times.

But, I'm still here, blind as hell and getting worse. Pouring Dr.
Holly's drops in daily, driving to work hoping I don't have an
accident. Should know more about cataract surgery within a month. Don't
know how that will turn out because of the cracked, scarred corneas.
Catching hell at work because of work turned in "with mistakes." My
proofreading skills are not what they should be. This, is not what we
had anticipated one, two, three or almost four years ago in my case
when we submitted to this 15 minute procedure. In Ron's case, and many
of the RK and PRK's, it's been even longer. Not a nice way to live. Of
course, it's because "we are idiots, zealots, crazy, anti-refractive
nuts, whiners and just plain *hit-heads." We have nothing better to do.

When I read about anti-lasik zealots, it almost makes me puke! I could
care less if every person in the world has Lasik, except my family and
friends of course. So, for those of you wanting it, or needing it, and
think we are zealots, go have it done. Don't bother to debate it, just
do it. Who cares what we think? It doesn't really matter, because we
are damaged goods.

The line starts here for those debating the virtues of Lasik. No need
to debate or call us names. Just put your $$$$$$$$ together, find a
good lasik surgeon and do it. It could probably be done on your lunch
hour without missing any work. You could come back from lunch and enjoy
this "lifetime miracle."

I spend my lunch hours with ice packs on my eyes.

Quote:
Quoting Broken Eyes

Thanks for this thread.

For me, SE is a place of validation.

I am not alone. There are thousands like me. Our experiences are real.
Our lives matter. We are not the insignificant 1-5% cost of doing
business. Our pain and suffering means something to somebody. Somebody
cares enough to stand up for what is right. Somebody is going to make a
difference.

SE is a place of goodness.

You are a geniune, good person, Dr. M.

"In the end, only kindness matters".
>From the song "Hands" by Jewel.

Quote:
Quoting Libster

At least Phyllis's humour hasn't been dampened post Lasik. Or were you
more funny before?
I just had my eyes refracted for new glasses. Actually only one eye can
be refracted since AMD. Anyway the OD had gone to a continuing ed class
where a doc was speaking about Lasik and said most people were
20/happy, then there are the 20/whiners. The OD woke up from his nap
when he heard that and couldn't believe his ears. We had a good laugh.
Happy anniversary Dr. Ken!

Quote:
Quoting pizzo

Dr Ken,

Happy Second Anniversary to you! I have to confess I cheated a bit on
your exam. (Unless open book was OK?)

Ron,

Hang in there friend. We all know the physical and emotional torture RS
can visit on us, and I hate hearing of your distress, in so many ways.

Phyllis,

Libster asks a great question. Were you in fact funnier before LASIK?

pizzo

Quote:
Quoting RDelsen

I have a little land in Baja. We can start a Colony of RS victims.

Remember the old leper colonies. I wonder how many people have had
refractive surgery and subsequently have decreased eye health, work
ability, social drawbacks, financial demise, etc..
It might be a million maybe. I was at a drugstore looking for the
Theratears which is always running out of stock, and suddenly a young
woman almost ran into me looking at the same shelf. Not being shy
anymore about LASIK damage, I look at her and asked, "Did you have
LASIK"? She shockingly looked at me and said, "Aah yes". I then held a
conversation with her for awhile and found out she had moderate dry
eye. Her young son who had just walked up and listened, seemed to have
a horrified quiet look on his face, which almost made me cry, knowing
that children are afraid to see any death or pain in their mom or dad
THAT is NEVER going to go away. I later saw her in a grocery store and
ask how she was. She sort of said things were alright. But I knew she
just did not want to ADMIT the moderate irritation. Wonder how her life
has diminished. Maybe she is now willing to join all of us with a
million or so from mild to severe mutilation pain in Ciudad de Ojos,
Baja California, Mex.. With the talented and smart people on this site,
we could start a cool high tech city.

Quote:
Quoting Marina

I had never had so much fun doing a "Final Exam" before!

This is great! I believe I did very well in your final exam (without
cheating!).

Thank you Dr. Minarik for your wonderful contribution to Surgical Eyes
and Happy Second Anniversary!

Although I've recovered from the trauma of Lasik, I'm still here at
SE for many reasons...

I'm eternally grateful to Surgical Eyes.
I believe and support the mission of SE.
The knowledge and wisdom I find here enrich my life.
Participating on SE has been my best therapy.
SE gives me the chance to transform my bad experience into something
positive.
I want to help people make an informed decision...
Help people who are suffering.
"Meet" and interact with my "blindie" friends.
Have fun sometimes.

And another good reason is...
I love reading Dr. Minarik's great posts!

Marina

Quote:
Quoting RDelsen

I may have to go to Mexico if I don't get better

I was serious about Mexico for the following reasons:

1=2E Around the Cabo area is a semi-tropical condition different than
most of Baja which is arid. This warm semi-humid condition is good for
my dry eyes, and the Pacific side is not as hot in the summer, but does
not need heaters in the winter, nor fans.
2=2E I can live cheaper and eye docs are preventing us from getting any
disability, thus I have to live with what I have.
3=2E Prescriptions are generally cheaper.
4=2E Experimental surgery like genetic engineering of corneas, nerve
growth factor use with corneal shaping etc. due to less bureacracy and
lobbying against it by the ISRS or AAO.
5=2E I can eat good fish and get exercise and do creative things until
the Lord takes me home.
6=2E I can die somewhere that is not connected to my country of origin
that has not protected me and also turned it's back on me. Sorry, but
it is true.
PS Dr. Grant cannot connect to answer you right now because he threw
his cell phone into the blue ocean and is sipping a Corona.

Quote:
Quoting 10F3prcnt

Macanudo too

quote by Dr. Minarik:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------=
-----

Doctor H. has been known to love a good Corona.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------=
-----

Or was it a Arturo Fuente? It should have been a Tampa Nugget in honor
of his "Cigar City" visit. LOL.

Allan

P=2ES. I still want to be Mayor of SE City/Island

"One man with courage makes a majority" A. Camus

Quote:
Quoting calypso68

I passed with flying colors, even though I started the course late !!

Open book helps, to be sure !

I, too, am ready for some R&R... a virtual beach paradise without the
floaters!!!

Quote:
Quoting RDelsen

It is just enough for me and my immediate family, BUT..

A couple months ago I was in contact with an agriculture professor and
some organic farmers near Cabo San Lucas because I was interested in
selling my lot in N. Baja near San Felipe(too hot in summer and too
cold in Winter) and taking some of my California money down to the La
Paz and Todos Santos areas. I was sort of bummed out from trying to
resolve my eye pain for 4 years here in the US, and wanted to find a
place to write, live, and die where it was warm. I was also thinking
about going to Hawaii, but since I am not married, I was thinking about
finding a mexican wife who did not mind my disabled boring life,
although I can still dance and sing rock and roll. I have not surfed
since the LASIK, but I have been looking at some goggles at a fancy
sporting goods store with a huge selection. If I can get a few big
waves before I die, that would be great. But on some days, after
reading another post by a victim or getting an email from a brave
anti-LASIK activist, I think that I would be a coward to leave without
trying to save some poor fools from the lasers fire and micro...blade.
I try to be a forgiver, but I also try to save my fellow man from evil.
Now lets toast to that you anti-RS activists.

Quote:
Quoting Dr. Minarik

I just got an email from my daughter at college.....

and she thinks she "aced" my exam. She ran around and shared it with
her 3 apartment-mates, and they sent it home to their myopic moms and
dads. Every little bit helps, eh?

Quote:
Quoting Nick

quote by RDelsen:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------=
-----

Now lets toast to that you anti-RS activists.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------=
-----

Want to hear how I turned a bad day into a good day?

As a result of getting a speeding ticket I had to attend a driver
improvement course. The instructor was talking about the need to be
alert to impaired drivers on the road (drugs, alcohol, medical
conditions, etc.) During the break I walked up to the instructor and
said "There is a new breed of impaired drivers on the road to be on the
lookout for", and I proceeded to tell him about the thousands of LASIK
patients with impaired night vision. He was so incredulous that after
the break he had me tell the entire class of about 30 people what I had
told him.

There's another 30 people who will tell more people.

Quote:
Quoting Dr. Minarik

Great Job, Nick!

The best way to undermine the "hype machine" that is LASIK is to talk
to policemen, psychologists, nurses....and other caring people who want
to hear the bad things and not just the hype.

Quote:
Quoting Dr. Minarik

It's been a good start to the new year. Two Surgical Eyes patients have
visited...and they both brought a case of Diet Mountain Dew !!

Powered by New Millennium Technologies of Rockford
(815)289-3891
=A9 2004

serebel

2004-12-20, 10:08 pm

So, what's your point with this long, boring diatribe? Things must be
slow at your little website.

SErebel

Ragnar

2004-12-25, 10:07 pm

If there was any question about Dr. Minarik being nuts, this post has
answered that question. He's got a lot of time on his hands also.

On 20 Dec 2004 18:09:11 -0800, doctor_my_eye@msn.com wrote:

>Sharpen those pencils...its testing time.
>
>
>DoctorMyEye.com
>THE Place To Go When
>Refractive Surgery Goes Wrong!
>
>Post subject: 2nd Anniversary Final Exam
>
>---------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Doctor Minarik's Second Anniversary Examination
>
>Instructions: Please select a number two pencil
>and set it on your monitor, for it has no purpose here. Select the
>answer to each question that is the most correct. No partial credit is
>given, and once again I emphasize that there will be no wagering.
>
>1. When asked by a patient what he thinks of LASIK, Doctor Minarik will
>often give the following answer:
>(A) LASIK involves the damaging of healthy nerve endings that will
>limit your ability to make tears.
>(B) LASIK can correct your distance vision but does not eliminate the
>need for reading glasses in our forties.
>(C) LASIK is like a little European roadster: You'd like to have it in
>your twenties but can't afford it, but when you have the money to buy
>it when you're in your forties your fat butt doesn't fit in it.
>(D) If I created a procedure to save your life and had a 5% failure
>rate, I would win a Nobel Prize. If I invent a procedure that simple
>intends to replace your glasses, and you have a 5% chance of hating me
>for the rest of your life...that's not good odds or good medicine.
>(E) All of the above are likely to be said.
>
>2. In the "For Tina, for I Never Knew Your Name" thread, the message
>learned by Doctor Minarik was:
>(A) He had failed to even ask her name until he found she had died
>suddenly.
>(B) He felt that her working with a disability made her a wonderful
>example of strength every day when faced with adversity.
>(C) The SE board could be a wonderful source of strength for her
>grieving family.
>(D) All of the above are lessons learned.
>
>3. In the thread about driving into a sudden snowstorm outside
>Bloomington, Illinois..
>(A) Doctor Minarik draws the analogy that you don't consider the cars
>on the side of the road until you drive straight into the LASIK
>"blizzard"
>(B) The thread digresses into a discussion of how snowy the winter was
>in much of the country, while other parts had drought.
>(C) Both of these things occurred.
>
>4. In the "Looking Into My Wife's Eyes" thread:
>(A) Doctor Minarik notices the "red reflex" from the pictures of his
>wife that he took while biking on the New Jersey shoreline.
>(B) A photograph of Jenni's retina is posted to show what that reflex
>really is.
>(C) The basic structure of the retina is reviewed in such a way to
>describe the Divinity involved in the complex structure of the eye.
>(D) Doctor Minarik lambasts the ignorance and arrogance of man for
>cutting and damaging healthy eyes for profit.
>(E) All of the above occur.
>
>5. In the "Jerry, I Hardly Knew Ye" thread...
>(A) An old classmate loses his distaste for LASIK when co-management
>fees start to save his practice.
>(B) Jerry buys much nicer suits as a result of co-managing LASIK.
>(C) Doctor Minarik loses a cohort to help him heckle LASIK
>continuing-education classes.
>(D) All of the above occur.
>
>6. The "Feel felt fine rule"...
>(A) Was designed to placate the angry LASIK patient to is worried about
>his vision.
>(B) Was explained to a large lecture hall full of doctors in a way that
>Doctor Minarik felt demeaned the patient.
>(C) Was intended to sooth the nervous patient that other people feel
>the way he does, many others felt that way during the past while
>healing, and now they are "fine".
>(D) Raised Doctor Minarik's blood pressure.
>(E) All of the above are true.
>
>7. In July of 2003 Doctor Minarik spoke in front of the American Board
>of Disability Analysts for the following purpose:
>(A) To enlist Allied Health Professionals into the discussion of the
>dangers of refractive surgery.
>(B) To begin to create a dialog with psychologists and family
>therapists that will be meeting post-op LASIKs who suffer from
>depression and anxiety.
>(C) To create the first documentable case of LASIK complications being
>presented to a Professional Forum in the interest of future disability
>claims and legal precedents.
>(D) To allow Doctor Minarik to put on a suit for the first time in
>2003.
>(E) All of the above goals were reached.
>
>8. In his fictitious "hillbilly" consent form, Doctor Minarik
>emphasized:
>(A) While a high tech laser performed the procedure, a low tech "go
>kart" with a dangling razor blade cuts the flap.
>(B) Refractive surgeons rarely have the procedure done to themselves
>because they understand the risks.
>(C) The reality of informed consent is that it is used to reduce legal
>liability but rarely explains the dangers in depth.
>(D) All of the above are pitfalls of consent as we know it today.
>
>9. Which of the following acts of professional indescretion has Doctor
>M. stumbled into:
>(A) Perpetuating the stereotype that Aussies are beer-drinking
>slackers.
>(B) Lambasting Doctor Gemoules for boasting that his "contact lens
>polishing tool" exceeds the prowess of the other doctors on the board.
>(C) Chastising Doctor Bard for underestimating the intelligence and
>reasoning ability of the non-eye professionals that read this board
>regularly.
>(D) Representing Doctor Potter with a Beatrice Potter graphic to
>represent him when he chastises Doctor Minarik for ripping into him.
>(E) All of the above indescretions have occurred.
>
>10. When Ron Link visited the Minarik home for a cookout in the summer
>of 2002:
>(A) Young Dylan took refuge under Ron's arm for comfort, which reminded
>Doctor Minarik of the comfort he gives the SE community.
>(B) Doctor Minarik was reminded of the Star Trek episode in which Jon
>Luc Picard returns to the South of France to get strength from
>interacting with his older brother Rene.
>(C) Doc's new Jack Russell terrier "Gracie" shocked the ever living
>crap out of herself while trying to leap her electric dog fence border
>to join Ken and Ron on their walk.
>(D) All of the above occurred.
>
>11. Doctor Minarik's beverage of choice...
>(A) Is Diet Mountain Dew
>(B) was the source of the "Tina" thread, as he stopped to buy one every
>morning at her gas station.
>(C) Has been accepted as payment for services when SE patients come to
>visit for cosults.
>(E) Is a universal currency in the Minarik home.
>(F) All of the above are true.
>
>12. CR-39 lenses....
>(A) Are the original plastic spectacle lenses developed by PPG
>Industries.
>(B) Are optically superior to High Index and Polycarbonate lenses when
>dealing with peripheral distortions in post-op LASIKS.
>(C) Got that very technical name because they were simply the 39th
>batch of Columbian Resin that the PPG chemists were testing for
>clarity.
>(D) Helped make PPG into the strong and powerful multi-national company
>that it is today, with its roots in the old Pittsburgh Plate Glass
>Company.
>(E) All of the above are true.
>
>13. In "A Walk in the Woods"..
>(A) Doctor Minarik returns to the home of his refractive surgery
>mentor, finding him recently divorced and suprisingly reflective.
>(B) Doctor Minarik equates the experience with Reagan and Gorbachev
>walking in the woods to discuss detante.
>(C) The sudden onset of Parkinson's disease in an old friend brings
>Doctor Minarik to a peaceful recognition of the man's inner strength.
>(D) The mentor's true affection for his dogs suprises and pleases Dr.
>M, as he confronts the realities of things lost.
>(E) All of the above occur.
>
>14. The flattening of the anterior chamber of the eye in refractive
>surgery, particularly RK:
>(A) May change the circulation pattern in the eye and induce ocular
>hypertension.
>(B) May increase the risk of blowout fracture of the globe when struck
>by an airbag.
>(C) May be the reason for the spoke-shaped cataracts in post-op RKs
>that mimic the shape and pattern of the cuts.
>(D) All of the above have not been studied adequately by the FDA.
>
>15. When an anti-LASIk patient is confronted with the argument that
>LASIK "must be safe because it is FDA approved"..
>(A) He should remind the person that cigarettes are "FDA approved"
>(B) He should remind the person that dry eyes and haloes are not
>considered serious complications according to FDA protocols.
>(C) He should remind the individual that laser manufacturers have
>millions of dollars in funds to spend on the FDA approval procedure,
>while Ron Link leads a battle against them by buying his groceries at
>ALdi and taking the bus to meetings.
>(sorry, Ron. )
>(D) All of the above are true.
>
>O.K. Pencils down. Pass in your blue books, and refrain from talking
>while leaving the exam room.
>Your scores will be posted on my office door by Friday at noon. Bring
>Diet Dew.
>
>Quote:
>Quoting Ron Link
>
>Nice summation Dr. Ken. I will always remember our walk and the respect
>I had for your motivations, work and your loving family. SE certainly
>has had the right mix of human ambition and failure to qualify for a
>Star Trek episode. I'm in a pretty tough place at the moment, but I do
>know that SE is a ship that can help people get from or move through
>one place to another.
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting Dr. Minarik
>
>I share your view of our mission here...
>
>and I think we serve a lot of purposes. For some people, this place is
>a place to find constant comfort. For others it is a short dose of
>"therapy" before they go on with their lives and stop posting. For
>others, coming back to post is the only positive and life-affirming
>thing that comes from their bad LASIK...a chance to warn others. And
>finally, for those who read our words and then re-consider the risks of
>even considering LASIK..our finest mission is served.
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting Gail Brion
>
>Not pretty, but real.
>
>I think that sums up your tenure here at SE. I wish more doctors were
>real when it comes to RS.
>
>Although I have great respect for Ron and the doctors that give their
>time here, I wish they were not needed and that SE never had to have
>been formed. The truth of the matter is that RS has run a large,
>patient-sponsored, research project on millions of unsuspecting people.
>I am just one of the lab monkeys that didn't quite make it, but on to
>the next experiment! Tally ho!
>
>I have a feeling all of us are going to be needed here for a long time.
>
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting pknapp
>
>Nice Hodge-Podge
>
>thread of Diet Dew, Aldi Foods, RS, Ron Link and Dr. Ken's trials and
>tribulations!
>
>Dammit, I am sorry Ron that you're having trouble with your eyes. As
>Gail says, she was one of the guinea pigs. Some of us were, it seems.
>
>SE, to me, is all of the above sometimes and something entirely
>different at times. I won't even try to explain! How about a "for
>example?" The other day I called a new blindie because she was not in
>good shape. We talked awhile and she got something out of the
>conversation, as did I. I don't do as many of those as I used to. But,
>I'm still here. Sometimes it's just to vent, tell a "good" story, or
>whatever. Ramble, kind of like Ken does at times.
>
>But, I'm still here, blind as hell and getting worse. Pouring Dr.
>Holly's drops in daily, driving to work hoping I don't have an
>accident. Should know more about cataract surgery within a month. Don't
>know how that will turn out because of the cracked, scarred corneas.
>Catching hell at work because of work turned in "with mistakes." My
>proofreading skills are not what they should be. This, is not what we
>had anticipated one, two, three or almost four years ago in my case
>when we submitted to this 15 minute procedure. In Ron's case, and many
>of the RK and PRK's, it's been even longer. Not a nice way to live. Of
>course, it's because "we are idiots, zealots, crazy, anti-refractive
>nuts, whiners and just plain *hit-heads." We have nothing better to do.
>
>
>When I read about anti-lasik zealots, it almost makes me puke! I could
>care less if every person in the world has Lasik, except my family and
>friends of course. So, for those of you wanting it, or needing it, and
>think we are zealots, go have it done. Don't bother to debate it, just
>do it. Who cares what we think? It doesn't really matter, because we
>are damaged goods.
>
>The line starts here for those debating the virtues of Lasik. No need
>to debate or call us names. Just put your $$$$$$$$ together, find a
>good lasik surgeon and do it. It could probably be done on your lunch
>hour without missing any work. You could come back from lunch and enjoy
>this "lifetime miracle."
>
>I spend my lunch hours with ice packs on my eyes.
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting Broken Eyes
>
>Thanks for this thread.
>
>For me, SE is a place of validation.
>
>I am not alone. There are thousands like me. Our experiences are real.
>Our lives matter. We are not the insignificant 1-5% cost of doing
>business. Our pain and suffering means something to somebody. Somebody
>cares enough to stand up for what is right. Somebody is going to make a
>difference.
>
>SE is a place of goodness.
>
>You are a geniune, good person, Dr. M.
>
>"In the end, only kindness matters".
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting Libster
>
>At least Phyllis's humour hasn't been dampened post Lasik. Or were you
>more funny before?
>I just had my eyes refracted for new glasses. Actually only one eye can
>be refracted since AMD. Anyway the OD had gone to a continuing ed class
>where a doc was speaking about Lasik and said most people were
>20/happy, then there are the 20/whiners. The OD woke up from his nap
>when he heard that and couldn't believe his ears. We had a good laugh.
>Happy anniversary Dr. Ken!
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting pizzo
>
>Dr Ken,
>
>Happy Second Anniversary to you! I have to confess I cheated a bit on
>your exam. (Unless open book was OK?)
>
>Ron,
>
>Hang in there friend. We all know the physical and emotional torture RS
>can visit on us, and I hate hearing of your distress, in so many ways.
>
>Phyllis,
>
>Libster asks a great question. Were you in fact funnier before LASIK?
>
>pizzo
>
>
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting RDelsen
>
>I have a little land in Baja. We can start a Colony of RS victims.
>
>Remember the old leper colonies. I wonder how many people have had
>refractive surgery and subsequently have decreased eye health, work
>ability, social drawbacks, financial demise, etc..
>It might be a million maybe. I was at a drugstore looking for the
>Theratears which is always running out of stock, and suddenly a young
>woman almost ran into me looking at the same shelf. Not being shy
>anymore about LASIK damage, I look at her and asked, "Did you have
>LASIK"? She shockingly looked at me and said, "Aah yes". I then held a
>conversation with her for awhile and found out she had moderate dry
>eye. Her young son who had just walked up and listened, seemed to have
>a horrified quiet look on his face, which almost made me cry, knowing
>that children are afraid to see any death or pain in their mom or dad
>THAT is NEVER going to go away. I later saw her in a grocery store and
>ask how she was. She sort of said things were alright. But I knew she
>just did not want to ADMIT the moderate irritation. Wonder how her life
>has diminished. Maybe she is now willing to join all of us with a
>million or so from mild to severe mutilation pain in Ciudad de Ojos,
>Baja California, Mex.. With the talented and smart people on this site,
>we could start a cool high tech city.
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting Marina
>
>I had never had so much fun doing a "Final Exam" before!
>
>This is great! I believe I did very well in your final exam (without
>cheating!).
>
>Thank you Dr. Minarik for your wonderful contribution to Surgical Eyes
>and Happy Second Anniversary!
>
>Although I've recovered from the trauma of Lasik, I'm still here at
>SE for many reasons...
>
>I'm eternally grateful to Surgical Eyes.
>I believe and support the mission of SE.
>The knowledge and wisdom I find here enrich my life.
>Participating on SE has been my best therapy.
>SE gives me the chance to transform my bad experience into something
>positive.
>I want to help people make an informed decision...
>Help people who are suffering.
>"Meet" and interact with my "blindie" friends.
>Have fun sometimes.
>
>And another good reason is...
>I love reading Dr. Minarik's great posts!
>
>Marina
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting RDelsen
>
>I may have to go to Mexico if I don't get better
>
>I was serious about Mexico for the following reasons:
>
>1. Around the Cabo area is a semi-tropical condition different than
>most of Baja which is arid. This warm semi-humid condition is good for
>my dry eyes, and the Pacific side is not as hot in the summer, but does
>not need heaters in the winter, nor fans.
>2. I can live cheaper and eye docs are preventing us from getting any
>disability, thus I have to live with what I have.
>3. Prescriptions are generally cheaper.
>4. Experimental surgery like genetic engineering of corneas, nerve
>growth factor use with corneal shaping etc. due to less bureacracy and
>lobbying against it by the ISRS or AAO.
>5. I can eat good fish and get exercise and do creative things until
>the Lord takes me home.
>6. I can die somewhere that is not connected to my country of origin
>that has not protected me and also turned it's back on me. Sorry, but
>it is true.
>PS Dr. Grant cannot connect to answer you right now because he threw
>his cell phone into the blue ocean and is sipping a Corona.
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting 10F3prcnt
>
>Macanudo too
>
>quote by Dr. Minarik:
>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Doctor H. has been known to love a good Corona.
>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>Or was it a Arturo Fuente? It should have been a Tampa Nugget in honor
>of his "Cigar City" visit. LOL.
>
>Allan
>
>P.S. I still want to be Mayor of SE City/Island
>
>"One man with courage makes a majority" A. Camus
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting calypso68
>
>I passed with flying colors, even though I started the course late !!
>
>Open book helps, to be sure !
>
>I, too, am ready for some R&R... a virtual beach paradise without the
>floaters!!!
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting RDelsen
>
>It is just enough for me and my immediate family, BUT..
>
>A couple months ago I was in contact with an agriculture professor and
>some organic farmers near Cabo San Lucas because I was interested in
>selling my lot in N. Baja near San Felipe(too hot in summer and too
>cold in Winter) and taking some of my California money down to the La
>Paz and Todos Santos areas. I was sort of bummed out from trying to
>resolve my eye pain for 4 years here in the US, and wanted to find a
>place to write, live, and die where it was warm. I was also thinking
>about going to Hawaii, but since I am not married, I was thinking about
>finding a mexican wife who did not mind my disabled boring life,
>although I can still dance and sing rock and roll. I have not surfed
>since the LASIK, but I have been looking at some goggles at a fancy
>sporting goods store with a huge selection. If I can get a few big
>waves before I die, that would be great. But on some days, after
>reading another post by a victim or getting an email from a brave
>anti-LASIK activist, I think that I would be a coward to leave without
>trying to save some poor fools from the lasers fire and micro...blade.
>I try to be a forgiver, but I also try to save my fellow man from evil.
>Now lets toast to that you anti-RS activists.
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting Dr. Minarik
>
>I just got an email from my daughter at college.....
>
>and she thinks she "aced" my exam. She ran around and shared it with
>her 3 apartment-mates, and they sent it home to their myopic moms and
>dads. Every little bit helps, eh?
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting Nick
>
>quote by RDelsen:
>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Now lets toast to that you anti-RS activists.
>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>Want to hear how I turned a bad day into a good day?
>
>As a result of getting a speeding ticket I had to attend a driver
>improvement course. The instructor was talking about the need to be
>alert to impaired drivers on the road (drugs, alcohol, medical
>conditions, etc.) During the break I walked up to the instructor and
>said "There is a new breed of impaired drivers on the road to be on the
>lookout for", and I proceeded to tell him about the thousands of LASIK
>patients with impaired night vision. He was so incredulous that after
>the break he had me tell the entire class of about 30 people what I had
>told him.
>
>There's another 30 people who will tell more people.
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting Dr. Minarik
>
>Great Job, Nick!
>
>The best way to undermine the "hype machine" that is LASIK is to talk
>to policemen, psychologists, nurses....and other caring people who want
>to hear the bad things and not just the hype.
>
>
>Quote:
>Quoting Dr. Minarik
>
>It's been a good start to the new year. Two Surgical Eyes patients have
>visited...and they both brought a case of Diet Mountain Dew !!
>
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>(815)289-3891
>© 2004

serebel

2004-12-26, 10:07 pm

That's cause his website is a failure.

SErebel