The USMC, Crappy Vision, Glasses & Laser Eye Surgery?

[BerettaNut92]

Hi folks,

My vision is about 20/800. Talked to a recruiter on the phone and said that (nor my 110 lb frame--underweight by 5 lbs) shouldn't be a problem. My optometerist (sp?) also says I'm a good candidate for laser eye surgery.

I'll talk to the recruiter more when I have a day off work in a few weeks, but wondering if anyone here has enlisted and has vision as bad as mine? Was it a problem? Will it close any doors (other than the obvious aviation) if I have lousy vision? And they let you purchase a spare pair of glasses to carry in case yours break, correct?

All things considered I rather wear glasses than do surgery.

TIA, folks

 

[Wiley]

When I went in the Navy in '68, as long as vision was correctable with glasses you were good to go.

About four years ago I had LASIC. Best thing I ever did for myself! With the advances since then I'm thinking of having a 'tune-up'. It is surgery and some people have problems (they look like this: ) but they're only 1-2 percent. Do check into it.

As for the weight, just tell 'em you're too tall for your weight.

 

[usmcmonty]

They issue two sets of glasses in Boot Camp I believe.

Once in the Fleet you can order more (no one likes the Boot Camp Glasses A.K.A. BCG)

If you have the surgery and fall within the requirements then you should be Good to Go.

What jobs (we call them MOS) were you looking at. We could always use more Grunts!

 

[MrAcheson]

Yeah with the boot camp glasses Skunky could be the asian Drew Carey.

 

[fix]

Already replied on TF, but here goes

Skunk,

I enlisted with 20/600 left, 20/400 right (IIRC). However, I am corrected to better than 20/20 in both eyes. Needed waiver for flight status, but that was just a matter of filling out the right paperwork and getting a letter of rec from my CO. Issued 2 pairs of aviator type glasses and 1 pair of prescription sunglasses. Later issued disposable contacts, though I didn't wear them much. So aviation is not necessarily out of the question if you prove yourself.

 

[Balog]

I've got pretty bad eyes, and they let me in. Not sure what my actual prescription is. If it's correctable you should be able to get a waiver.

 

[JJohnston015]

Regarding your build: I have a very lightly built second cousin who got not one, but two stress fractures in his hip from running with a loaded backpack in USMC boot camp. I don't know the full story, but I think he finally got through the third time. Just something to think about.

 

[nomadboi]

I'd had similar questions about Lasik, since I do stuntwork and have considered signing on with the Seattle Police Department. I know a number of cops with glasses, but also know some of them are signing up for Lasik.

 

[tmix]

I'm a optician, who has refered quite a few people for LASIK.
How old are you?
Do you have a written prescription you could read me the numbers from?
With this info, I can tell you if you are a candidate for LASIK or not.
Lemme know

 

[nomadboi]

I just turned 28... can't remember my prescription off the top of my head, but it's not all that bad- I can function without them, just can't read things at any distance, and squint a lot. I do have some astigmatism- does Lasik fix that? Does the astigmatism still change from year to year, requiring constant re-adjustments?

Thanks.
-Kevin

 

[BerettaNut92]

Oops. forgot to mention AFAIK I am correctable 20/20. No color blindness.

Edited to add: I hope y'all aren't thinking I'm considering joining just so I can have an M-16 pattern rifle

 

[Kodiak AK]

For what it is worth my ex had preaty bad eyes . She looked into corective surgury , and her command shut her down .Aparently the surgury she was going to have would impare her night vision and USCG did not want that . When we split she still had her BCG's

 

[Sean Smith]

Oops. forgot to mention AFAIK I am correctable 20/20. No color blindness.

IIRC, the Army doesn't care how bad your eyesight is if it is correctable, can't speak for the USMC but service requirements for that sort of thing usually aren't radically different. So even without eye surgery you could probably get a waiver for your eyesight if you needed it easily enough. It used to be that some corrective operations for your eyesight were hard disqualifiers, but that was back in 1991.

 

[SemperFi83]

Skunk: Trust me, the smaller, more slightly built guys were better suited to get through boot camp. They could do pull-ups all day long and ran circles around the bigger guys. Low drag, high speed.

Wear the BCGs in boot camp and then you can go back to your own prescription glasses after you graduate.

Uncle Sam's Misguided Children loves all kinds, sizes, colors and shapes, as long as you can hack it.

Semper Fi!

 

[QuarterBoreGunner]

nor my 110 lb frame--underweight by 5 lbs

110 lbs! Good Grief Man! What? Are you made out of balsa wood and vaporware?

HAVE A SAMICH FER GOD'S SAKE!

Edited to add: I hope y'all aren't thinking I'm considering joining just so I can have an M-16 pattern rifle

So why are you considering joining? Just curious. I was all set to join the Big Green Machine myself, when I found to my dismay that flat feet and an allergy to sulfa drugs AND penicillin sort of put the kibosh on that plan.

Oh well, I probably wouldn't have gotten helos anyway.

 

[Patent Works]

Lasik Cautions

Of course, there can always be complications in a minority of cases, but here is one that hits many people, though it doesn't bother many.

I was moderately nearsighted, and opted to go for Lasik. I had (with glasses) superlative, sharp, fighter pilot vision, day and night. After, my vision at night and in dim indoor light (watching TV, movies) was blurry, with haloes and fuzz surrouding the images. Not out of focus, but like a cheezy romantic greeting card. Night driving is less safe, since the light are each surrounded by splashes of stars. It was like taking a custom-painted concous car through the gas station car wash machine. It might be fine for most folks who never had better than Chevy-quality vision, but it certainly made mine worse. People who are used to contact lenses are accustomed to these vision problems, and don't find them objectionable.

The problem is that the corrected area is smaller than my enlarged pupil. Now, there are systems (probably not the cheapest) that correct a larger area, avoiding this problem.

The benefits certainly are super, however, so I am not entirely regretful.

One silver lining was that formerly when pistol shooting, especially indoors, my perfectly corrected eyes gave a perfectly blurry target image when focused on the front sight, making bullseyes difficult. Now, the imperfections from Lasik give me a sharp ghost of the target while I am focused on the front sight.

As it happens, the surgeon got one eye prescription wrong, and I insisted that it be re-done. I suggest asking the surgeon what prescription he concluded, then spending a few bucks to have glasses made to verify (donate them to the lions when done.) Then, it did not heal right and needed to be re-opened for proper healing.

Price should not be the slightest concern. Go for the very best you can find.

 

[Patent Works]

I should also add that the night blur can be temporarily addressed (such as for night driving) with expensive eye drops that are intended for glaucoma treatment.

The night effect of Lasik was a great disappointment to this amateur astronomer.

 

[BerettaNut92]

110 lbs! Good Grief Man! What? Are you made out of balsa wood and vaporware?

Carbon fiber. Duh...

High carbs. High protien. Low exercise. Frequent breaks on the porcelain pot.

You too can lose 30 lbs in 30 days!

 

[Kodiak AK]

Uncle Sam's Misguided Children loves all kinds, sizes, colors and shapes, as long as you can hack it.

As long as you graduated High School or have 13 or more colledge level credits if you didn't.

Ditto on no gang related or race related tats . They decide what is and isn't not you .Or heck even to many tats in general . My Uncle had a conpition on that one . He told me about the Jar heads he saw sporting massive ink when he was Navy .

 

[TechBrute]

Good god, Skunk, you're half the man I am (based solely on weight.) I'm 220 lbs.

 

[Hkmp5sd]

Edited to add: I hope y'all aren't thinking I'm considering joining just so I can have an M-16 pattern rifle

Ever consider simply moving to a state where they are legal? Being able to play with a M16 doesn't offset some of the negative aspects of military life.

 

[BerettaNut92]

Techbrute, yes you may be, but as far as tactical density (tactical units per kilogram), I got you cornered

No race related tats except the Crew Crux Cran (Asian hate group) yellow happy faces on my little arms.

Seriously I'm not sure which MOS I want. I don't know much about what they have to offer. Probably something the Federales will have favor upon if I decide to be an ATF agent when I get out? I'll have to talk to the recruiter more.

 

[QuarterBoreGunner]

ATF Agent Skunkabilly!?!?!

We're doomed.

Time to sing the doom song.

 

[tcdrennen]

Skunk, if you decide on LASIK, go to Dr. Manger at Saddleback Eye Center in Laguna Hills - a little pricier, but an excellent (99%) success rate (success being 20/25 or better.)

I went in with 20/400 each eye, some astigmatism, came out 20/15 each eye, no astig, still good after 3 1/2 years.

 

[jsalcedo]

My best friend joined the army reserves with 20/700 they assured him it would be no problem.

Once he decided to go active duty there were serious restrictions on his MOS (due to his eyesight) to the point where he was going to be relegated to support roles.

This was back when surgery wasn't as available as it is now.