Contact lenses? Very confused!

[TheRealLillyAllenVerifiedAccount]

I wear varifocals but change to readers for computer use, reading, sewing etc. This saves me from having to hold my head at weird angles so I can look through the bit of the lens that let's me see close up.

I've never had contacts before but am thinking about getting a trial. I'm really confused though. The lady in the opticians (not the optician) was in full sales pitch mode and it was busy.

She said you can get verifocal contact lenses. But dont you then end up having to hold your head at an odd angle to use a PC etc? She said no but you need to change your sight line with glasses to see through the right bit so why would that be different with contacts?

She also said you can get a short sighted lens for one eye and a long sighted lens for the other but how does that work? Does your brain just chose the one you need to focus?

Can I just get long sighted contacts and then the appropriate strength readers to wear over the top when needed?

I also get very dry eyes. Will contacts make that worse? The lady said it wont make it worse but I'll need to make more of an effort to use drops. To me, that sounds like it will make it worse?

TBH maybe it's all a lot of effort when I'm not overly bothered about wearing glasses anyway.

I'm very short sighted. -13.5 and -12.75 and have worn contacts for over 40 years but am wearing them less now I'm older.
My specs are now varifocals and I have -11 single vision daily contacts which are great to wear for social events etc.
I wear ready readers over my lenses to see menus, my phone etc when I am out and about wearing my contacts.
Good luck everyone. great eyesight must truly be a blessing!

@TheRealLillyAllenVerifiedAccount i had my appointment on Saturday. The optician was really helpful and explained the options (apart from just getting reading glasses).

First, different strength contacts in each eye - she said this isn’t the preferred option these days. It can work, but people can struggle with depth perception.

Second, multi focal contacts which have concentric rings for each prescription. She said they work very well but the compromise is that neither are 100% perfect vision - you probably get 80% of proper vision for each prescription.

The costs is another drawback - £46 a month compared to the £27 a month I pay now.

Given my need for reading glasses is infrequent, she said it would be better just to use reading glasses when I really need them (I can still read just fine, it is just very close up work I can’t do with my contacts in).

My contact lens prescription was borderline to be made stronger, but she kept it as is to not impact my reading vision (still well above what’s needed for driving etc).

So I’m going to keep doing what I do now (occasional reading glasses) and then when reading becomes a more frequent struggle will switch to the concentric lenses.

The cost of disposables is very high compared to GP. I pay £200 every 5 or 6 YEARS. I know I have to buy fluids: £2 for the sterile water 3 months supply, £5 each for soaking and cleaning fluid every 5 or 6 weeks.

Forgot to say I have astigmatism in both eyes. Left eye is far weaker than the right and can be difficult with spectacles as the weight is so different even with very light lenses. Plus my eyesight can be difficult with balance.

Joining as I have been considering varifocal contacts. I really want them for times when my glasses are inconvenient or downright unhelpful or unusable. Skiing, diving, using binoculars, etc.
I never have to move my head about the way you describe @TheRealLillyAllenVerifiedAccount, I just move my eyes to the top or bottom of the lenses.

I'm quite surprised that she said different strength contacts in each eye isn't the preferred option. When I got to the point of needing varifocals (but preferring to wear contacts) the optician strongly suggested trying this first before multi focal contacts, saying that most people did get on very well with it when they adjusted, but not everyone got on with the multi focal lenses. Then when I stopped being able to wear contacts regularly and decided to go for laser, the consultant strongly recommended monovision (i.e. one eye for distance and one for close up). This is what I've gone ahead with it and have had no issues with it at all. They give you trial lenses before you go ahead so you can see what your surgery outcome will be.

I do still need a pair of very weak, +1 ready readers for extreme close up work but I'm talking about detailed nail art and reading super tiny print on cosmetic labels for example, it's perfectly fine for 99% of reading and I've had no issues with depth perception.

Because the lens is much closer to your eyes with contacts than glasses, you don't have the same problems. I use RGP lenses. have done for a very long time, you take them out at night and put them back in in the morning, you don't just wear them all the time. There are some weekly or longer disposables. RGP lenses work out much cheaper as you only need a pair and probably a spare pair, if you don't keep losing them. You can get varifocals for both types but I've never tried I just put on a cheap pair of readers if I need particularly good close vision for something.

I did different strength contacts for distance and near vision from about mid 40s to mid 50s but then it gradually stopped working for me. My prescription is too strong for multifocal contact lenses so I have contacts slightly undercorrected for distance, like @SlipperyLizard still legal (with a good margin) for driving but it also means I can read all but the tiniest print in poor light conditions in them, in practice this tends to be just pub menus and I'm fine with the maginfier on my phone. I did buy a pair of +1 readers but I can't remember the last time I used them. However for driving at night I do have a pair of distance glasses to wear over my contacts which deal with glare and sharpen up road signs and markings which I can't see as well as in daylight.

Then I've got full strength varifocal glasses for days when I'm not wearing contacts but that really is emergencies only as with a -13 prescription no amount of thinning is going to make them a good substitute for contacts. I have considered laser but I would only do it if I had to stop wearing contacts, I love the fact that I can see super close up without contacts or glasses and don't want to lose that, it is really useful at times.

I am also struggling with the same problem, as -9 and -11 in my eyes and it's so frustrating reading about all these brilliant new types of lenses, knowing they won't most likely be possible for me (I need toric ones too for astigmatism).

I've ended up with a good pair of GP lenses which are best for computer work which is my usual day but just about meet driving standards.

This compromise won't last for ever.

So annoying, I have considered lens replacement surgery for this reason but they wouldn't do that due to risk at present although it might open up in the future.

I'm wearing Total daily disposable multifocal lenses and they are on the whole ok esp for middle distance and distance though not absolutely brilliant for reading - for very close up stuff I need to take them out (because I'm mainly short-sighted I can then see very close up with just my naked eyes). Also, the multifocal lenses don't correct astigmatism unlike multifocal glasses - v frustrating as I have this in one eye. Seemingly there are a couple of brands which do these but my optician wasn't keen.

It's all getting so frigging expensive too - £50 per month for 20 pairs per month, plus I've just been quoted £600 for new (thinned down) lenses in my current frames as my prescription has changed. An absolute racket. For work (long periods at multiple monitors) I seemingly need glasses specifically for this so that's yet another cost.

If the lens replacement surgery at 10k wasn't with some degree of risk I'd be seriously considering it! When you add it all up it's not so crazy.

@Springspringspringagain yes I know two people who had the lens replacement and both have had issues - one has permanent quite severe damage to vision as they nicked the cornea; the other got a slightly incorrect lens fitted and still has to wear glasses!

I do the one lens in one eye and none in the other, so my left eye sees distances, right eye for reading. It took no time for my brain to work it out!! The only time it is an issue is if I have a hood up, so have no peripheral vision.

I did the one long/one short and it didn’t work for me. So I have daily disposables and readers. DDs are more expensive, but work out cheap for me as I don’t wear them when I’m WFH, which can be four days a week.
Cannot get my head round varifocal lenses. Might be worth a go if you can have a free trial?

I got a good tip from the lady measuring for my varifocal specs this time. When she was marking them up she told me not to sit bolt upright. It's not how I'll actually sit so it would result in the medium and reading range marks going in the wrong place. My other tip is to get frames with the nose pads that are the ones stuck on, that you can widen or squeeze together. It means you can alter them slightly when you get the specs if you need to adjust where the reading area sits if it's a fraction out. Can't do that with a plastic moulded frame.

I’ve recently had a retinal tear in the mix too. Oh what fun. But at least I CAN see (with glasses/lenses and through the fog of floaters) - in the olden days I’d be an absolutely useless member of society (I mean maybe I could have done needlework up close to my face? But I’m rubbish at that kind of thing).

Used mono vision for a while as in one contact lense when just needed for distance then one for long and one for short when also needed reading glasses. It was ok for a night or day out but didn’t get on with driving or computer work with them. Your optician should be able to get some in for you to trial doc to help you decide.

There is a compromise. Yes they are very useful but you’ll find the quality of vision not quite as good as verifocal glasses. So great for every day but would probably annoy you for extended periods of close up work

You can also try monovision. Each eye uses a different lens. Once for clothes and one for far away and your brain sort of gets used to it, but again it’s not perfect but some people

Have you checked whether your employer will contribute to the cost of glasses if they are needed for work? Mine does. Although I think it just covered the cost of the sight tests and I get mine free anyway because of being worse than -10 so I haven’t looked at the details. But it is worth checking out.

I can’t get on with the separate nose pad types, they never fit properly (and get tangled in my hair if I forget and shove the glasses up there like I do with sunglasses, always avoid separate nose pads on those for that reason too).

My distance is fine and since getting older I need glasses for reading and computer work. I do have glasses but for day to day in the office I wear multifocal daily lenses, Acuvue Moist. They are about £35 a month from Boots but I get most of the cost back from the private health insurance.

For people who need higher than -10 specs and have bifocal or varifocals do you know you can get the complex lens voucher from your optician which is worth £40.57?
I got this last year when I had my prescription made up at Asda.
I got 2 pairs of thinned out specs , one pair specs varifocals and one pair of specs single vision.
They came out to £120 for both pairs but when the marvellously persistent lady from Asda called Specsavers where I get my eyes tested, they eventually gave her the codes so my 2 pairs cost me £80,

I know you need to be extremely careful with your eyes and so I am not for one minute suggesting this is the best option for everyone but just an idea.

I'm retired now and no longer drive so it was worth trying for me.
I also went back and got varifocal transitions thinned out specs for £139 which have worked well and Specsavers told me that they cannot do them at all in my high prescription.
I was -14.5 at the time,

@SlipperyLizard I had multi vocal lenses and they did work for a couple of years. I now wear one lense for distance and nothing in my other eye. It has been absolutely great. I would urge you to consider this option or at least speak to your optometrist about it. Like you I have been a contact lenses wearer for a long time, over 30 years, but only started having problems reading with my lenses in around 5 years ago.

@EnchantedDaydream they do actually but it’s about £35 so doesn’t go anywhere near my prescription unfortunately

No, better than nothing but only just. I get free sight tests but still spend a fortune on glasses and contacts. I could save by just having glasses but I would give up an awful lot of other things before contact lenses.