Does everyone have to “engage” their eyes to focus their eyes?

[SinkGirl]

I posted the other day about blurred vision in low light, I have an eye test on Wednesday which is the soonest one I can find as I’m a bit freaked out. The other night I was in a fairly dark room and couldn’t read the text on my phone at all.

I was talking to DH about how in natural light I can read most things but realised I’m slightly straining to focus and if I close my eyes and open them normally so my eyes just feel “natural”, things are blurry.

He reckons that happens to everyone if they “relax” their eyes - things go out of focus.

It feels to me like I have to “engage” my eye muscles for things to be in focus - I’m not sure if that makes sense. If I’ve been doing this engaging / relaxing thing repeatedly like I just have been trying to figure out what’s going on, it’s then much harder to focus on anything.

Is this just how eyes work?! I realise this seems a stupid question but I’m just really used to it being like this and I’m not sure if it’s like that for everyone!

Yes, but it is instantaneous unless I am tired. It’s like my eyes stop working (but don’t turn off altogether iyswim) unless I am actively looking st something. I also have different level of focus. I have absolute focus which I can’t do when I am tired (this is essentially perfect vision), I have every medium focus (which isn’t perfect but shows all forms with distinguishable accuracy) this is what I use to read/write most of the time or for tasks like cooking etc which require me to be able to seeexactly what I am doing but not in fine detail. Then I have low focus which is directed by shows rough forms (sometimes I read like this and guess by the shape of the word/use it for typing). Then I have off mode which is similar to peripheral vision. It has no centre or point of focus and everything appears as a vague idea of form, colour and relative position. I typically use this when starting absent mindly, walking while in deep thought etc.ind mind does fill in the gaps for me but it can be a bit off (I often walk into the wrong shop for example).

Oh no Kats - that’s exactly what they’ve done, they’ve made the glasses half the strength of the actual readings as they said my eyes will still be compensating and the full prescription would be uncomfortable. Hopefully it’s enough to help.

Gregory yes, that sounds just like it - do you wear glasses?

SinkGirl l went back. They retested me, then announced that they can't do anything to improve the vision in my right eye (!?) - they did suggest that they could 'reduce the focus' in my 'good' eye "so the difference wouldn't be so obvious"?!
l've opted to keep them as they are. l can't see the point in having both of them with reduced focus. l'm not impressed though.
l saw a post on social media yesterday (l forget which one) saying how much they'd paid for their glasses previously, and they'd gone to Asda opticians and got them for a fraction of the price. l think l'm going to try that next time, their charges are very reasonable (thin lenses, etc included in the price!) and see how they do. l have a family history of glaucoma so l have to replace my glasses every year, so l think it's worth a try. l've been going to my current opticians (chain) for about 10 years, and l can't say l'm impressed.

my eyes didn't work together - my dominant eye took over and the othr eye was a "lazy" one. I have trained them well over the years and only now am I struggling to be honest and I think I need varifocals so need to address that soon. I find mine are worse if i am tored, spend too much time on screens or have been driving alot.

when they treat a lazy eye they patch the good eye to make the lazy one work harder and get muscle tone so reducing focus on the good eye would be making the poorer eye work harder and therefore work better with the other one - so their description of that was poor in my view

katseyes7 sorry to derail but why do you have to replace your glasses annually? I also have family with glaucoma and this has never been mentioned to me, i was only ever told I just needed to have eye tests more frequently. #worried 😬

@RB68 Dsis was given prism lenses for that issue. Basically a slight wedge shape. Have you tried them?

I have a family history of glaucoma so l have to replace my glasses every year -this is catagorically not true

I will investigate @colehawlins but not as far as I am aware no. I have had 47yrs of attention to my eyes after initial surgery when I was tiny. For someone as old as me when my eyes are fresh the opticians struggle to catch me out - lol. I spend way too much time tired these days though. I am T2 too these days and have extra tests on eye health so any issues hopefully get caught

Glaucoma history people should have annual tests though - doesn't nec mean new glasses to be fair

Phew, thanks RB68 that's what I thought. I'd be totally bankrupt if I had to buy a new pair annually - I pay for the lenses to be as thin as I can afford as they're castle wall thick otherwise!