Vari-bloody-focals?

[glasslightly]

have been a lifelong wearer of glasses for distance, and generally like wearing glasses. Am now at that stage in life where I need them also for close work. Got a pair of varifocals and have really struggled to get on with them ?

are others the same ? Should I try again - or just go for two types of glasses ? Everyone I know seems to get on fine with them….

I had the same experience with my first varifocals pair. I too was wearing for distance only prior. I payed for the top range lenses at Boots Opticians, but no deal, they were still awful and I couldn't get used to it. I then tried another optician, Vision Express, and the glasses came out bloody perfect. Try changing the supplier not only the glasses. I don't agree you should take weeks to adapt to new glasses, they should fit perfect from the second you try them on. Remember you eyes are muscles and they will adapt to anything if they're forced to. It doesn't mean it's right, though. And like you, I use computer for work all day 5 days per week.

I have the opposite, for cross stitch and tv my house ones are great.
My sunglasses for driving are set wrong for postion of my head, I have to drop it forward slightly. Going in next week to see if i can have my distance prescription put in instead.

Had mine a few years and love them now. Was getting fed up having to swap glasses to read menus and so on. The real pain was swapping from distance to reading pair to look at phone while out and about.
I got a 2 pairs of varifocals, clear and sunglasses (part of an offer). Vision express. What persuaded me is their guarantee if you didn't get on with them. Anyway, I tried them for 2 weeks, and at first thought WTF had I done. Felt sick wearing them, everything was distorting as I moved my head.
Went back, and they double checked and fiddled with the arms and nose rest. No better. A week later I went back and they said they'd get new lenses made, with a different setup.
These came back, and at first seemed a bit better, but I wasn't convinced
Anyway, I persevered for a week, and something just clicked in my brain and I got used to them.
Would not be without them now. Being able to walk down street and get phone out and read it is wonderful. Sunglasses on holiday that I can just keep on all day for distance, reading, phone, etc.

That's just my experience. Maybe some people never get used to them. Maybe some people take to them immediately.

Oh, and for office computer work I have a pair of single visions,.as I found the middle distance range of the varifocals too narrow, but that's fine as they just live on my desk.

I’ve been wearing varifocals for a long time. If I ever have an issue it’s because the lens isn’t centred properly - when I get them changed they are fine.

same here. The first pair I ever had were a nightmare. I physically had to lift them up to read. Happened again with my last pair and both had to be re measured and the lenses remade.

I think a lot depends on the skill of the person doing the measurements but over the years I’ve had to get them redone twice. I still don’t find it particularly easy to read small print in them though.

The aspect that needs getting used to has nothing to do with eye muscles. We have to adjust the position of our heads to function properly when wearing varifocals. It was actions like walking down steps that I needed to adjust to in the early days of wearing mine. When doing that, we naturally glance down with our eyes. In varifocals, this means we can’t see the step/s properly. As we ‘get used to them’, we learn to unconsciously move our head to compensate.

Absolutely get them checked to make sure they're correct. It took me a week or two to get used to mine, but once I did, they were absolutely life changing. New prescriptions now, take maybe a day or two to get used to, but they are difficult the first time. Good luck, because they gave me normal vision once I got used to them

Oh, and definitely get the most expensive ones, it's worth it

And I disagree that they should be perfect from the get go - they really aren't. It isn't just the glasses. Your brain has to get used to looking at everything through a different area of the lens, depending on how far away it is from you. Your brain has to get used to them - but only if you will give it enough time. And then you have really good vision.

I have had varifocals since my 20's - I appreciate that it takes longer to get used to them when you're older. I was diagnosed with cataracts in my 20's, and the only way to give me good vision was varifocals.

I would suggest a separate pair of reading glasses to begin with as the reading "Add" is easier to get used to if it isn't entirely string enough to read small print with, but over time, I've had stronger and stronger "adds" and can now read really small print with my usual varifocal glasses.

The 3rd choice is bi-focals. I can't wear varifocals. I was prescribed a pair once but, back then anyway, Boots used to ask you to come back after 2 weeks to see how things were going. I suffer from vertigo and balance problems. They were making this worse and I felt nauseous when I was wearing them. So they prescribed a pair of bi-focals instead and I've had bifocals ever since and am more than happy with them. I do use a pair of single focus specs for computer work though. That's mainly to stop me getting neck ache holding my head up to look through the bottom half.

TIZEROFIZZ - never looked back - ha ha
Hate specs, hate vari focals they give me vertigo - ended up with vari focal lenses stitched in - absolutely fantastic

Took me a while to be able to be able to read with them but fine now