Can some explain contact lenses to me?

[Spaghettio]

I've recently become a full time glasses wearer after only needing them for reading previously. My teenage DS is also a full time glasses wearer and has been since he was 6 years old.

He REALLY wants contacts now that he's a teen and he spent most of the summer holidays just not wearing his glasses.

I have no idea how they actually work though.

People talk about daily or monthly lenses. Does that mean a new pair of lenses every day, or you wear them for 30 days (and nights?) and then throw them away?

Is there a downside to them versus wearing glasses instead?

Do you have to poke yourself in the eye? 👁 (I can't bear the thought of this, but DS seems happy with the idea!)

Do I get them from our normal optician? Or is it better to get them online? Does he need another eye check, or can I go to the opticians and ask for them?

I feel quite stupid about this, now that I've put all those questions down....

If you get on with contacts, they can be a life changer. You need to see your normal optician (they will have some contact lens specialists) and you can only buy contacts with their prescription and with eye health checks annually (slightly different to your sight test - but can be same appointment sometimes). You can take the prescription and buy online or stick with buying in house where they might throw in a discount off back up glasses or extra care too. The technique for getting them in and out is easy once you know how and they should give you some test pairs for free so you can see how it goes. Daily/monthly refers to how often you use new lenses. As a teen, dailies are great as there are no hygiene worries - now I’m a proper grown up I trust myself to clean them properly and use monthlies. Good luck!

The dailies are worn then discarded, the monthlies are worn, washed in the solution, then stored in solution until you wear them next. These can be reworn up to a month then discarded for a hew pair. Monthlies are cheaper if worn daily. You wouldn't wear them 24/7 or sleep in them, although I believe there are types you can do this.

I wear glasses permanently and each time I've went back to contacts, dailies now, I get a contact lenses check up. Years ago I wore monthlies daily for a long time and ended up with surface damage.

I'm not sure how young is too young to wear lenses, for both using correctly and hygienically, and for eye health. It's probably better speaking to an optician for advice there.

You can ask your optician about them - a lot of them will offer a free contact lens trial so your DS can have a go and see how he gets on.

The monthly ones, you put in/take out every day (clean and then store in a special pot with solution) and then bin at the end of the month. The daily ones are disposable, so you put them in, then bin them when you take them out. They tend to be more expensive.
They take a bit of getting used to - my optician (Boots) offers regular checks (normal eye checks and contact lens checks to make sure the lenses aren't harming your eyes) as part of my plan - I'm on the cheapest kind and pay about £5/month.

You can buy them cheaper online than from an optician, but you will still need to get a regular prescription and eye check with an optician.
They CAN dry your eyes out, but the regular checks should identify issues and nip them in the bud before any harm is done.
Putting them in and taking them out can take a bit of getting used to... but once you're in the habit you don't even think about it. I resisted for a long time, and sometimes wear glasses to give my eyes a break from the lenses, but I much prefer wearing lenses overall and am a complete convert!

daily ones you wear once and then throw away. Probably not very sustainable if you're going to wear them every day but good for those who only wear them occasionally e.g. to play sport. Some are also softer than the monthly / longer wear ones so suit people with sensitive or dry eyes better.
monthly ones you wear as much as you want and put them in a pot of cleaning solution when not wearing them, then you get a new pair each month.
there's some you can even wear overnight, i've never looked into those as my eyeballs reject daily ones after a few hours!
I would go to your optician, definitely don't buy online until you've tried them, worked out if he even likes wearing them, which sort will suit him best and what prescription he needs (it's not necessarily the same as your glasses prescription).

Oh you asked about compared to glasses wearing - no losing where you put your glasses, the lenses swivel on your eyeball so your peripheral vision is also corrected. Only downsides I can think of are being absolutely rigorous with cleaning even when you’ve been out late/tired/drinking because infections can be really serious (but rare), can get dry eyes but optician can usually recommend a better rebrand to try if that happens. I’m a lenses convert through and through

Does that mean a new pair of lenses every day, or you wear them for 30 days (and nights?) and then throw them away?

Monthly lenses are those that you wear for a month then throw away. Important to disinfect daily in good-quality liquid and obviously not financially worth it if there’s a risk of one of them getting lost early in the cycle!

Daily disposables mean just that, you open a new set every day. These are useful when you do a mix of glasses and lenses wearing. Bit wasteful if you’re a solid lenses wearer. Perhaps good to try one month of disposables first to see how you get on before committing to monthly sets - mine only come in 3 or 6 month batches so quite the financial commitment. My brand also offers 15-day ones which are a similar price but I’ve been told not that different from the monthlies.

Is there a downside to them versus wearing glasses instead?

Personally, I just find that my eyes can get a bit dry or itchy after wearing them for long hours (I often do 8am to 11pm at work - this is against medical advice so I do not recommend it), or when the aircon is very strong. But the pros far outweigh the cons for me. Much better vision (360 compared to the frame-limited glasses), everything is just clearer, I haven’t had a single infection since I started wearing lenses. Easier to go to the beach and get in the water - I’m from a seaside town abroad which I visit often - as I can actually see what’s happening.

I only wear lenses outside, when I’m at home it’s glasses all the time. My eyes get tired if I wear lenses at home now vs I can’t see a thing if I go on the street with glasses! But I guess I just got very used to that after years of alternating like this.

Do you have to poke yourself in the eye? 👁 (I can't bear the thought of this, but DS seems happy with the idea!)

I don’t poke myself in the eye, but I do have to touch my eyeball when I put them in and take them out. Not directly, through the lens itself obviously. It was a bit strange at first and my mum had to help me the first week or so (I was a young teen) until I got the hang of it.

Do I get them from our normal optician? Or is it better to get them online? Does he need another eye check, or can I go to the opticians and ask for them?

I get annual eye checks and only ever order them through the clinic I am under, but that’s mainly because I have a very complicated prescription which changes regularly, and the lenses need to be custom-ordered, so it’s quicker through them. Can’t advise on ‘normal’ prescriptions sorry.

A lot of opticians do monthly schemes. Mine are dailies and £33.
This includes all the checks and any issues in between.
Also have glasses as a back up ( and a spare pair in my glove box).

If you are considering monthly disposable ones, are you confident that DS would follow the proper cleaning routine each day ? If it's not done properly it can lead to eye infections so he may be better off with daily disposables. I use Boots Opticians and pay £30 per month. This includes the months worth of lenses, an annual sight test and a comprehensive contact lense eye health check, also discounts on glasses. There may be cheaper offerings out there but do make sure it includes these thorough examinations.

I used to cringe at the idea of touching my eye but quickly got used to it.

I'd recommend asking for a contact lens appointment with a good optician that will cover hygiene, inserting and removing contacts and some trial lenses. They will encourage you to insert and remove multiple times during the appointment to get confidence. It's well worth the money and will answer a lot of your questions.

I got lenses when I was 16 as I was fed up of being taunted for wearing glasses. My eyesight isn't suitable for disposable lenses so the ones I wear last me a couple of years and work out around the same price as having a monthly payment. So many advantages like glasses not steaming up, getting rained on, losing them and most importantly for me - being able to see when I'm in the swimming pool.

Thank you! I feel much better informed now, and can answer some of his questions.

I'll make an appt with our regular optician (boots) so they can check his eyes and we can do a trial. Fingers crossed it works. 🤞🏻

I wear both contacts and glasses. Mostly my glasses. I buy a months supply of dailies with my prescription whenever I need them. When I first got them, I had monthlies but I found them a faff and wasn't wearing them every day. I probably wear contacts twice a week (usually at a weekends). Reasonably easy to get in and out, the downside I found was if I rubbed my eye they would dislodge or fall out and then I'd be blind in one eye until I could get another one in.

I have worn Gas Permeable lenses for 40 years. I think opticians don’t promote them because once you’ve bought them there’s no extra cost and they last years. Once you have the prescription you can buy them online. They are £50 as opposed to £150 in store.
They are smaller than soft lenses so easier to pop in and out but obviously that’s not quite so good for sport (although it’s not stopped me).
To clean them you just rub cleaning solution on every night and then store them in conditioning fluid over night. No big one if you forget once in a while.
I think they were supposed to be healthier than soft ones but apparently they do cause eyelid drop after many years.

No steaming up is the best bit I think. I’m not a fan of glasses although I wear them more now. I can’t bear suddenly going blind when taking something out the oven.

Personally I’d go down the laser surgery option. Saves money in the long run and perfect sight.

I’ve worn contact lenses since I was 14. So much better than glasses for sports when at school. I use monthly ones (Same pair for a month then change) that come in a 3 month pack but if I lose one, my optician will replace them. I’m on a scheme that includes free eye and contact lens checks. You’re not supposed to wear them when swimming though @RaraRachael -my optician went spare at me for doing that!

There are daily, weekly, fortnightly and monthly options. This is how long the lens is intended to be worn for (only daytime, taken out at night) before being thrown away.

Dailies are safest as they are not stored overnight so less chance of infection from mishandling them. And good for learning as it matters less if you tear or lose one. However also most expensive and terrible for the planet.

I would suggest starting with dailies and then moving to fortnightly once he is ok with them.

You can get ones you wear at night too but I don’t like the idea personally!

He will need to get them from an optician first of all to ensure correct prescription (it’s different from glasses prescription) and to ensure the lens fits well. Different brands may need to be tried out.

Once he is happy with brand etc you can re-order new supplies on the internet which is cheaper.

Yes you need to “touch” your eye. It’s not a big deal.

I have had lenses for 30 years, since I was 12, and never had any issues. Mostly I have used fortnightly ones. With soft contact lenses the cleaning regime is minimal, basically just need to put them in fresh “all in one” solution every night.

Sorry to hijack the post but do you go to an independent or a chain? I’m paying 33.75 per month for fortnightly lenses and solutions. However, I have just got some fab multi focal glasses which I wear three days per week (when I’m at work) so wonder if dailies would be more economical in the long run. I do have astigmatism so that pushes the price up.

Book an appointment with Boots and they will explain the options and show him how to insert. He will also receive a 5 day trial.

I use dailies as it is healthier to the eyes to have fresh lenses every day. They shouldn’t be worn in the shower or swimming pool as they can trap bacteria. Saying that, I do, but then I put a clean pair in afterwards.

I’ve had contact lenses since I was 16, I’m 56 now. They are so much more comfortable than 40 years ago.

I hate wearing glasses so much unless they are just for reading purposes.

Try not to make it into a big deal for him as they really are so easy to insert and remove.

I wore gas permeable for years before I had laser surgery. My eyes had basically deformed to the shape of the lenses so I had to not wear them for a month before the surgery to let my eyes recover. That was a laugh I can tell you, with my eyes changing shape every day.

Anyway. Getting contacts was one of the best investmemts I made in myself, all those years ago.

As others have mentioned, you need to make sure your son is absolute scrupulous about maintaining healthy hygiene when putting lenses in and taking them out. Washing hands thoroughly and I would say daily disposables are easier to manage and he won't have to follow a cleaning routine like monthlies.

The only reason I mentioned this is I got a really bad infection called contact keratitis. I honestly felt like I had been shot in the head. I had to take steroids and antibiotics daily for 8 weeks and visit the eye clinic every day for the first 7 days then reduced the visits.

I know of someone who contracted this infection whilst on holiday in a remote part of the world and couldn't get treatment for it (although he didn't know how serious it could be) and basically he lost most of his sight.

That said, I wear and have worn contact lenses every day for about 30 years. I don't get on with glasses at all and have a very short sighted prescription. So I think if he wants to wear them it's great but please do reiterate to him he must keeps his hands scrupulously clean when handling them.

NO to gas permeable! I had them for years and soft lenses are so much easier - much much comfier and less likely to fall out or get grit underneath. Also way easier to clean.

My teen wears contacts started age13 mainly as she does a lot of sport. The hardest bit was she had to prove she could put them in and take them out in front of the technician before they would let her leave the opticians. It took a good half hour and she got quite flustered as it was in the corner of the open shop. She then had 5days worth to practice at home for short periods of time, now sees optician every six months for a check up it’s £30 a month for dailies. I’ve had to pause the subscription twice as she kept building up a big supply as she switches to glasses on non-sport days for a break.

I absolutely love my contacts and have been using them since I was 16 (I am now 34). Now I use dailies because it is much easier and hygiene wise way better. Acuvue oasis are very comfy and no problems and no single eye infection since 16. I totally recommend it and your optician will help your son to get going with them. They are awesome!

Some of us have no alternative to gas permeable. My prescription is too complex for any other types of lenses. I've had them for years and never had any of the problems you obviously did. My daughter has soft lenses and has to go through much more of a palaver than I do. 🤔

Personally I really like rigid gas permeable (RGP) lenses. I have done trials with dailies a couple of times but the vision quality isn't as good as with RGPs. I've been wearing RGPs for almost 30 years. I started with them when I was a teenager, over the Easter holiday, so the getting-used-to-it part wasn't too much of a hassle. (You have to build up your tolerance when wearing them for the first time; an hour or two a day to begin with, adding an hour each day until you're up to the max allowed daily wear limit.)

A pair costs about £160 (they get a bit more expensive with corrections for certain eye conditions) and a pair will last one to two years; my current optician (who works at Moorfields, so I figure he knows his shit) says technically longer if the daily cleaning and care is scrupulously done. My current pair, for example, is now over four years old. The solutions — one for cleaning, another for storage — cost about £6 a bottle and each bottle lasts for two to three months.

It is best to get them supplied and fitted by an optician, though, as there are several measurements to ensure exact fit that won't be on the prescription. So if you order them online from the prescription only they may not fit quite correctly. (They may, of course, if you luck out with the fit measurements. But it's not guaranteed.)

Gas permeable here too, since 1984 and the cost of new ones has gone down over the years not up! I also can't have any other kind.
DD has just been to our optician abs is getting a trial of dailies to practice with.
You don't touch your eye with either obviously, you'd be a bit off mark if you did! It does take some getting used to- when I first got mine it took me hours to get them in and out but I wanted them badly and persevered.