Getting lots of 'glare' when driving at night with contact lenses? Is this just getting old or something more sinister?

[Meglet]

Over the last couple of months I have been getting lots of glare from headlights / streetlights, mainly on darker roads, it's not too bad driving in town. Driving in the rain is worse though.

I'm going to go to the optician in the next week or two but wondering what it might be. I've worn contacts for 8 years and this has only just happened. My eye sight is fine otherwise, just a bit shortsighted.

Am I just going to have to wear glasses for driving now? I hope thats the worse case scenario.

I get exactly the same thing, and always have since wearing lenses (about 15 years now). Actually, now you mention it, maybe I should have asked the optician about it at some point - I always tend to forget everything I want to ask on these sort of occasions. (although I must admith 15 years is leaving it a bit late if there's a problem !!).

Every check up my eyes are fine, and my sister who wears lenses gets this too - although interestingly she has only recently noticed, which she thinks co-incides with her changing lenses to the leave-in-for-a-month type. Not sure if that's relevent or not - have you recently changed type?

I would mention it to your optician to put your mind at rest. (and let me know if I need to worry!!)

I've always had daily disposables. It might be tiredness making it worse actually, just gone back to work as a lone parent with 2 pre-schoolers and 30 min drive to work.

On the other hand, some Prada specs might be nice for work . I could wear contacts at home, hardly ever drive when not at work, let alone with the dc's at night.

I'll get an appointment asap and let you know!

I have always had this too
am also a lone p and so rarely drive in the dark (work is local so an evening drive would be purely social -ha, haha ha)
I don't think it can be anything sinister, my vision is def worse when tired, maybe the moisturising drops might help? anyway good luck!

thanks!!

There are some lovely specs about at the moment aren't there - I spent ages last appointment trying different ones on.

Unfortuneately I appear to have the wrong shape/size/style face for the fashionable designer specs and the only ones that look passable are the cheapy own brand ones. (Even my mum has more trendy specs than me!) That's why my glasses only tend to come out at night....

Get laser surgery - wore glasses/lenses for 25 years - had it done a decade again, no glare, no £200 to the opticians every year (at least) and I have 20/20 now.

isn't there a limit to the degree of shortsightedness laser can correct? I am extremely shortsighted

I was 6.something in one eye. It can't correct all of it - I think the limit is 8 but it can still make it substantially better so you just have specs for reading etc.

I'm only 1.5, I should look into laser eye surgery really. My contacts are £27 a month, but I worry about something going wrong if I have them zapped.

I didn't realise my eyes were that bad
I'm 8.00 in my right eye and 8.25 in my left.
Fuckity fuck, that's my distant dream of laser correction shattered!

meglet you should def do it. A friend of mine has had it also and has not looked back (in a manner of speaking) at 1.5 it is really worth it
I am 8 and I wouldn't hesitate if I was less, I just don't fancy going through it and still needing something (tho it would be great to see the other side of the swimming pool)

perhaps we could share a nice golden labrador instead

Afraid glare and poor night vision are recognised complications of laser eye surgery. Of course, most people are fine, and even those who do have difficulties may be helped by corrective surgery... but laser treatment is very far from a guarantee that night driving will be better - could leave you much worse off.

There are loads of reasons why you could be finding glare around lights at night. One is that the contact lenses could be drying your eyes out a bit by the end of a long day - if you have dry patches on your cornea, this can cause symptoms of glare and haloing that you don't normally get. Obviously, laser eye surgery can cause eyes to become dry, so may not cure the problem, if the cause is eye dryness. Have you tried lubricating eye drops to see if they help (although once your eyes are dry, a few drops won't cure it, you have to keep them well moisturised throughout the day)? I would also speak to your optician - they may be able to get you lenses that let more oxygen through to your eye and cause fewer problems with dryness. There are loads of other reasons, of course, why you may have glare at night, but if it is only a problem when you wear contacts, rather than also with glasses, then it is likely to be something to do with the way your contact lenses fit and how moist your eyes are, I would have thought.

I second Rabbitstew on the dryness issue. When I was younger I asked the optician about this very same thing when wearing lenses and she advised that my pupils were opening so wide in the dark that their diameter was larger than the prescription area of the contact lense. I don't know if this helps anyone, but just what she told me. I tend to wear my specs now anyway!