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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think the optician messed up my prescription

59 replies

montysma1 · 19/10/2022 00:24

I have been mildly short sighted for years, but its been fairly consistent.
2017 R -4.25 L -4.50
2019 R -4.50 L -4.50

For my last eye test, I seemed to have undergone substantial improvement, which -seems unlikely in my 50s.
R -2.75 L -3.50

I phoned optician more than once to query this . I was intending to buy specs elsewhere (I get contacts from this optician but can get better deal on specs somewhere else) and wanted to be sure. Plus I know perfectly well that my eye sight hasnt improved.

Opticians were hostile on the phone, adamant that prescription was correct and that I just didnt understand the notation.
And to be fair..I am not an optician. But I have bought lots of specs and contact lenses over the years so have a vague idea.
I did keep asking them to compare with my previous prescriptions on their system and tell me if they thought it was a likely change but they just wouldnt engage. They just kept repeating, "Its correct" like a mantra.

So I order the specs using the prescription.. Specs arrive and the distance vision is duly worse than old specs. Its not just a period of adapting. It is noticeably worse, which would tie in with the weaker prescription.

Not sure what to do now. I am going to pay for another eye test with a different optician, and am willing to bet it will come out something like the 2017/2019 ones.

I appreciate there will be a margin of error in prescriptions, but life long gently deteriotating short sightedness doesnt just get substantially better does it? Or does it?
New specs have pretty shit vision, I cant use them and they cost a few hundred quid, and my old specs have decent vision but only one leg!

Other point of note is that the person doing the test was a probationer or something (not the term they used but it was something like that)

Has anybody had asimilair issue (large high street chain)

OP posts:
KitchenSupper · 19/10/2022 00:41

I had this happen years ago although it was only half a diopter in one eye. I ordered contacts from them and they were obviously wrong as soon as I put them in. Had a new test and new lenses asap for free. It was a small independent optician.

If it’s a chain, can you contact somewhere central?

PickAnyName · 19/10/2022 00:50

If you are short-sighted, your vision does tend to “improve” as you get older, in that as your “normally sighted” friends are having to hold things at arm’s length you won’t need to… but if your distance vision is wrong that’s no help at all. I would suggest either going back, or visiting another branch of the same chain, to say your are not satisfied with the prescription and would like it checked by a senior optometrist. Any correction should be free. They should be able to change the arms on your glasses if one is missing.

Original poster
montysma1 · 19/10/2022 00:52

Yes I am going to try that once I am armed with a second prescription from a different optician. Could also complain to NHS who presumably pay them to do tests.

Its annoying to have bought useless specs but even more annoying that its happened after I tried to query it in advance and they absolutely wouldnt countenance an error. Or compare to previous tests that THEY did.

OP posts:
MooseBeTimeForSnow · 19/10/2022 00:54

Once you’ve got your second opinion I’d be asking for a full refund from the original, both for the exam and the glasses. I’d even go so far as the small claims court.

TheVillageShop · 19/10/2022 00:55

Short sight often does improve with age (as we become naturally more near-sighted) but if you don't feel they are right they should certainly offer a free re-test, and new glasses with the new prescription if it is found to differ from the first eye test. I've had that happen and got a refund for the first 'wrong' specs. You should at least have been given a two week trial with your new glasses but it is complicated if you ordered the specs from a different place that did they eye test - I'm unclear if you did that.

My short sight has improved over the years now I'm older (now mid-sixties), so that aspect of it does ring true. But several times I've felt my new glasses aren't as good as my old scratched worn ones, so I do sympathise.

Original poster
montysma1 · 19/10/2022 00:56

PickAnyName · 19/10/2022 00:50

If you are short-sighted, your vision does tend to “improve” as you get older, in that as your “normally sighted” friends are having to hold things at arm’s length you won’t need to… but if your distance vision is wrong that’s no help at all. I would suggest either going back, or visiting another branch of the same chain, to say your are not satisfied with the prescription and would like it checked by a senior optometrist. Any correction should be free. They should be able to change the arms on your glasses if one is missing.

Alas as well as long term slightly short sighted, I am also getting gently long sighted!
Unfortunately a corrected prescription doesnt replace my useless new specs which is my main bugbear.

OP posts:
TheVillageShop · 19/10/2022 00:59

"Alas as well as long term slightly short sighted, I am also getting gently long sighted!"

That happens. The only answer really is to go for varifocals, but I would have thought the optician would have recommended them. I couldn't live without mine - I can see far and near and in-between, but I can still read in bed without any glasses.

stillvicarinatutu · 19/10/2022 01:05

Was this your reading rx ? Or distance ?

Former dispensing optician here .

isladeltesoro · 19/10/2022 01:07

I would make an appointment at the same optician, go back with your old and new glasses, and say there is a problem with the new ones. Don't mention the prescription again, just say your vision is a lot worse with the new glasses.

They should have you put them on, look at the screen and then try adding back/taking away lenses to improve the vision. Don't waste money on another eye test until you've given them the chance to sort it!

Original poster
montysma1 · 19/10/2022 01:08

TheVillageShop · 19/10/2022 00:55

Short sight often does improve with age (as we become naturally more near-sighted) but if you don't feel they are right they should certainly offer a free re-test, and new glasses with the new prescription if it is found to differ from the first eye test. I've had that happen and got a refund for the first 'wrong' specs. You should at least have been given a two week trial with your new glasses but it is complicated if you ordered the specs from a different place that did they eye test - I'm unclear if you did that.

My short sight has improved over the years now I'm older (now mid-sixties), so that aspect of it does ring true. But several times I've felt my new glasses aren't as good as my old scratched worn ones, so I do sympathise.

I just cant believe that mine has improved though.
Its just very slowly got worse over the decades, -0.25 at a time! To improve from -4.50 to -2.75 in what was slightly under 2 years seems so unlikely.
Plus I cant see veru well in the weaker glasses.

OP posts:
stillvicarinatutu · 19/10/2022 01:09

I'm a similar rx to
You op .

But presbyopia is a thing - so our reading rx gets worse - that means if you're a minus rx the reaading g is less - I'm now 50 and in varifocals .

My distance remains similar to yours but my reading add changes the reading rx to a lesser minus .

Presbyopia happens to us all . It's an age thing . They eye is the only muscle in the body that hardens with age making it more difficult to focus at close range

You need to query the rx and find out what the distance rx is compared to the reading rx .

Original poster
montysma1 · 19/10/2022 01:13

TheVillageShop · 19/10/2022 00:59

"Alas as well as long term slightly short sighted, I am also getting gently long sighted!"

That happens. The only answer really is to go for varifocals, but I would have thought the optician would have recommended them. I couldn't live without mine - I can see far and near and in-between, but I can still read in bed without any glasses.

I am only 1.5 for long sight. I dont even notice it, wouldnt even occur to me to use reading glasses. The only time i cant read is with my distance specs on, so i just pop thrm onto my forehead to read.

I have varifocal contacts as you cant just pop a contact out of the way to read! They are Ok, dont do either job perfectly, so a bit of a compromise.

OP posts:
stillvicarinatutu · 19/10/2022 01:16

As a short sighted person reading g without specs is very common.

But the higher the prescription the harder that gets .

Original poster
montysma1 · 19/10/2022 01:17

stillvicarinatutu · 19/10/2022 01:05

Was this your reading rx ? Or distance ?

Former dispensing optician here .

Thats my distance. (Reading is 1.5)

OP posts:
stillvicarinatutu · 19/10/2022 01:20

It's maths .

You could be a -1.50 distance but a +1.50 reading which means no reading g specs required. They cancel each other out .

But as we age the reading add gets higher .

This means if we have a minus rx of say -1.50 our reading add may end up +2.00 - means the actual reading rx is -0.50 - so you can't just take specs off to read .

It's just maths . I was a dispensing optician for 10 years before my current job .

stillvicarinatutu · 19/10/2022 01:21

Op it looks like you're looking at you're reading rx not you're distance rx ?

JestersTear · 19/10/2022 01:23

This happened to my DH, who put his new specs to one side and went back to his old ones after a couple of days. I queried this and it turned out that he couldn't see properly with his new readers or everyday glasses. I insisted he took them back as we're not rich and they're a shop like any other at the end of the day.
Turned out that it had been a newly qualified optician who had done his test and she'd put pluses where there should have been minuses or something (didn't really understand what DH was telling me) anyway, they compared his old lenses while he waited and he had his new ones all sorted again within a week.

stillvicarinatutu · 19/10/2022 01:23

God my Maths ! I meant if your a -1.50 with a +2.00 you'd be a +0.50 for reading

Doh !

I think you're looking at you're reading prescription op not your distance ? You need to query

stillvicarinatutu · 19/10/2022 01:26

JestersTear · 19/10/2022 01:23

This happened to my DH, who put his new specs to one side and went back to his old ones after a couple of days. I queried this and it turned out that he couldn't see properly with his new readers or everyday glasses. I insisted he took them back as we're not rich and they're a shop like any other at the end of the day.
Turned out that it had been a newly qualified optician who had done his test and she'd put pluses where there should have been minuses or something (didn't really understand what DH was telling me) anyway, they compared his old lenses while he waited and he had his new ones all sorted again within a week.

Actuallly there are two ways to
Write prescriptions - either + cyl or minus cyl

It's maths . It's technical. But you can just convert the cyl either way - it's more likely the dispensing optician got it wrong there . I worked with both + and - cyl so could convert the rx to either . It's actually quite simple but too complicated to explain here !

stillvicarinatutu · 19/10/2022 01:28

Short answer is if you can't see we'll go
Back !

doittwice · 19/10/2022 01:32

I used to be -2.75 left and 2.5 right and now since last year I am -1.75 on both eyes. At first it felt odd with the new glasses, it took me a couple of days to train but now there's no way in hell I can wear my old glasses. I'm mid 30s btw.

stillvicarinatutu · 19/10/2022 01:32

My guess is he's using readers for distance !

Go back and get clarification on which is which .

Headunderthecovers · 19/10/2022 01:37

Just so you're aware if you take your prescription elsewhere to the original prescriber the opticians you go to are judged to have accepted the prescription and are responsible for any rechecks.
This was brought in to save customers having to go back and forth between different prescribing and dispensing opticians so the optician who made up the glasses (as they got the money for them) are now the ones you need to see. However from the sound of your post it looks like you got them online so you need to ask the online provider for the way forward as you they should remake them free of charge and reimburse you for any recheck. Basically once you take your prescription elsewhere you are now in the hands of the dispensing company to fix the problems (unless there is a gross error such as putting a reading prescription as your distance one).
The likelihood is you've probably become less shortsighted, but not perhaps as much as the jump the optometrist gave you (and hopefully it's not a transcription error altogether ).
The probation probably means pre-registration optometrist- so essentially they are still under supervision whilst doing their final year of professional examinations after university. These optometrists tend to be very thorough, but lack experience so may not consider that you're unlikely to get on with such a big change in prescription all in one go.
Rechecks are not at all unusual in opticians so just ask to speak to the dispensing optician at the opticians you purchased your glasses from if it's a physical practice and they will book you in with their optometrist for another test which will be free and if it's online ask their procedure for this.

Original poster
montysma1 · 19/10/2022 01:38

stillvicarinatutu · 19/10/2022 01:21

Op it looks like you're looking at you're reading rx not you're distance rx ?

2019

SPH R -4 50 L -4.50
Near add 2.0 both eyes

Current
SPH R -2.75 L -3.25
Near add 2.0 both eyes

OP posts:
MadelineUsher · 19/10/2022 01:41

You were unreasonable to order specs elsewhere using their prescription that you disputed. Waste of money.