lasik v. black hole

After spending $150 on contacts this morning (including a coupon for $22 off via code CRAZEONLYDEAL at Coastal Contacts), I began pondering how much of my parent's money (or health insurance money, I suppose) I have spent in the past 16 years of my life on vision related items- eye exams, contact exams (they are two separate exams, did you know), contacts, glasses, contact solution...and then contemplated the possibility of Lasik.

To put this in perspective:
- I have been wearing glasses since third grade (age 8?); contacts since sixth grade (age 12?). Up until age 18, I had exams every year; since then, every two years.
- Let's say eye exams are $50, contact lens exams are $75. Just for exams up until now the cost would be:
o Eye exam only (age 8-12, 4 years) = $200
o Eye + contact exam (age 12-18, 6 years) = $750
o Eye + contact exam (since age 18, twice) = $250
o So $1200 just in exam fees
- Now glasses…and contacts….
o Ok. There’s too many calculations involved. NEXT

Let’s just say I spend $300 a year on contact lenses. If Lasik costs $3000 (I know there is cheaper out there, but I’m just overestimating a little because the cheaper ‘specials’ on Lasik tend to be new doctors that aren’t necessarily reliable), this will yield margins of return in 10 years. Which seems like a long time and perhaps not worth the investment, until you think about the span and duration to which you use your eyes.