Astigmatism

[GirlMum93]

Hi all

I've just been diagnosed with astigmatism within my eye site. Usually worse at night with lights and when I am driving at night.

Long distance vision is not great, anything close is fine ... has anyone had this? And if so has yours been at least 'bettered' by wearing glasses all the time?

Are you long sighted with an astigmatism then?
What's your prescription?

Sorry I meant short sighted if close work is ok

@dementedpixie

Are you long sighted with an astigmatism then? What's your prescription?

Short sited with astigmatism.

I think it's gotten a lot worse over past year. For example I can't see peoples faces from 10 feet away now, I would pass people I don't know

It’s just long/short sight. It means that your eye is not completely round so that you’re less/more long/sight sighted in one bit of the eye compared to the opposite bit.

Wearing glasses corrects for it, unless you have an irregular type (and the optician would have told you if you had).

It’s actually unusual not to have astigmatism.

I have to rely on my partner to drive us if it's at night completely now as the lights blind me.

@underneaththeash

It’s just long/short sight. It means that your eye is not completely round so that you’re less/more long/sight sighted in one bit of the eye compared to the opposite bit.

Wearing glasses corrects for it, unless you have an irregular type (and the optician would have told you if you had).

It’s actually unusual not to have astigmatism.

Thank you. I've been prescribed glasses so I'm hoping by wearing them all the time it will at least help a bit.

I’m extremely short sighted -9.50 in both eyes with severe astigmatism. To be honest it doesn’t bother me at all. I have good glasses and contact lenses and can see fine with them both. Sometimes I struggle with glare at night but I have sjorgens syndrome too which causes very dry eyes and I think this is my main issue. Get the best glasses / lenses you can afford, it will be fine!

@Bagelsandbrie

I’m extremely short sighted -9.50 in both eyes with severe astigmatism. To be honest it doesn’t bother me at all. I have good glasses and contact lenses and can see fine with them both. Sometimes I struggle with glare at night but I have sjorgens syndrome too which causes very dry eyes and I think this is my main issue. Get the best glasses / lenses you can afford, it will be fine!

Thank you! I find even with my glasses my short sighted is still a bit blurry. I think I might just not be wearing them enough.....!

Yes my night driving is terrible now. Never use to be

I have astigmatism in both eyes and am quite short sighted -5.25 in one eye and -7.5 in the other. I can't really see anything without glasses or contact lenses, it's all just a blur. I usually wear contact lenses and can generally see fine to drive at night if the weather is dry. If it's wet and dark then I can't see very well. I find it easier with contact lenses than with glasses, I don't like driving with my glasses on really.

Ive worked in opticians for the past 14 years. Astigmatism is normal. More people have it than dont. It would be more unusual if you didnt have one. Its just part of your prescription, wear glasses and its no problem.

Very short sighted, things blur at about 20cm away(!), severe astigmatism and now need varifocals... If your specs don't correct for astigmatism as well as short sight you will have blurred vision. I just accept that I need to wear my glasses all the time if I want to be able to see. The lenses are also eyewateringly (pun intended) expensive but it can't be helped. The corrected prescription glasses should solve your blurred vision problems.

It's honestly not a big deal. I found out I had it 6 years ago, I wear glasses all the time to fix it, job done. Nothing to worry about :).

@emma1103

Ive worked in opticians for the past 14 years. Astigmatism is normal. More people have it than dont. It would be more unusual if you didnt have one. Its just part of your prescription, wear glasses and its no problem.

Thank you

For driving at night:

1. Get anti reflective coating on any new glasses, or,
2. Wear contact lenses when driving

However modern headlights can be extremely bright which on narrow country roads will be a problem which you can't do anything about.

It's a really normal thing to have, OP. No need to worry about it. Just wear your glasses. I'm short-sighted in one eye, long-sighted in the other (but neither very severely) and have an astigmatism. I wear my glasses for driving, reading and watching tv, and usually at work (I'm a teacher). I take them off otherwise.

I'm mildly short sighted. -1.00 in both eyes with severe astigmatism (-2.50 in both eyes).

I couldn't see someone's face clearly from 10cm away - 10m sounds good to me!

If it's light you're struggling with id recommend investing in the special lenses which improve this. It's really worth your while.

I have a condition called keracatonus and wear my sunglasses half of winter because that certain flat light really aggravates my eyes 🤣🤣🤦‍♀️

DS & I both have it to varying degrees. I make Velma from Scooby Doo seem like a hawk I'm that short sighted. DS much less so. We both get the 'halo' effect around street & vehicle headlights at night. It's very common, sometimes hereditary.

I have this and it does tend to get slightly worse at each eye check. I wear my glasses all the time and have prescription sunglasses and it's not an issue at all, even driving at night is fine.

I clicked on this thread because I have astigmatism, wear specs and don't get why it's meant to be a problem

Answer: it doesn't look like it is a problem! (thank you PPs for the info ) HTH op as well

Hang on

We both get the 'halo' effect around street & vehicle headlights at night. It's very common, sometimes hereditary.

Is that because of astigmatism?

@Chewedcarpet

Hang on

We both get the 'halo' effect around street & vehicle headlights at night. It's very common, sometimes hereditary.

Is that because of astigmatism?

Apparently so. I only found this out recently too - been short sighted with astigmatism all my life.

Before you had this last eye test did you wear glasses at all?

Before I found out I was short sighted and had astigmatism in my early 30s, I thought something was wrong with my brain not my eyes. I know that sounds a bit mad but I didn’t realise that short sightedness made driving at night so difficult or that looking down the isles in a supermarket just would look like a blurry mess. I only have a moderate prescription but have significant astigmatism and I wear glasses (varifocals since my mid-50s) all the time and it’s not a problem. I do find car headlights and streetlights have halos at night and are dazzling but I think that’s more an age thing.

You can get lenses that help with driving light glare. Speak to your opticians about them.

Re: halos, well bugger me, I must have spent a fortune over the years on new glasses because I thought the old ones were scratched and that was why I was seeing halos around lights.

What a plonker

@Chewedcarpet 😆 if and when they become a problem, tell your optician who can probably recommend a tweak to your prescription. I find having an anti glare coating applied to my lenses helps.