For some people, being able to live without glasses seems too good to be true. If you’re used to squinting to read your alarm clock first thing in the morning or having to switch into your contacts before going for a run, it can be easy to maintain the status quo day-in and day-out.

But most people would take the opportunity to get rid of their glasses if they could. Brad Thomas, a real estate agent in Roanoke, Virginia, decided to take the leap.

“My vision was so bad that my eyes would throb at the end of the day from the strain, even with glasses,” explained Brad.

Brad began to consider LASIK as an option once he had undergone eye surgery with Vistar Eye Center for a tear in his retina. “My eye doctor saw the tear in my retina at a regular check-up appointment,” Brad recalled, “so he referred me to the doctors at Vistar to get that fixed.”

Even though it was scary to think about something as serious as retinal detachment, the surgery was successful. “I realized that eye surgery wasn’t that bad,” said Brad, “and knew I could trust the doctors at Vistar with something even as precious as my eyesight.”

That’s when Brad began to seriously consider LASIK. “With any eye surgery, you’re concerned about potential complications, but after talking with Vistar, I felt a lot more comfortable about getting LASIK surgery,” he said.

He decided to go for it, scheduling LASIK surgery with J. Stuart Tims, M.D. who specializes in cornea and LASIK surgery. “The surgery only took a few minutes and was painless,” said Brad.

Any nervous tension was immediately relieved when Dr. Tims gave Brad a vision test immediately after the procedure. “I had 20/20 vision right away!” Brad exclaimed. “It was incredible to be able to go from double vision all of my life to 20/20 in a matter of minutes.”

Now Brad gets to enjoy life without the need for glasses or contacts. “My son, Grey, was born last November, and just being able to see his face every day is one of the best parts of my day,” said Brad. “I’m so glad I trusted the doctors at Vistar Eye Center so I could start living my life with 20/20 vision.”