I had lasik done 5 years ago and it's a miracle I tell you.
I was a -3.50 on my contacts.
I'm now seeing 20/15 in my right eye, 20/20 in my left on an AVERAGE day.
Some days, after a good night's sleep I can see the hairs on a gnat's asss from 100 yards away.
As far as the "automatic" reliance on reading glasses, it's not always the case.
I'm 44 y/o and haven't needed readers until about a year ago, and it's only when reading in dim light, or fine print just before bedtime after having been up for 16 hours or so.
Same thing with the "halo vision", or seeing stars at night. I only notice them when I'm tired.