Contact lenses

[Tom]

Since I was 12 I've worn glasses, to correct a squint (basically one eye looking slightly in the wrong direction) and long vision. About ten years ago, I had surgery to correct the squint, so I no longer had to wear glasses with prisms in the prescription (heavy). Which is all good.

I was always told that because of those prisms, I couldn't wear contact lenses. But recently, my optician advised me that this is no longer the case and that I can now wear contacts.

Before I investigate further and see what he might recommend, has anyone here made such a transition, and what was it like? I've never worn them but sometimes I get so fucking sick of the weight of my glasses, I wish I did. How expensive are they?

 

[TdC]

I have. I decided several years ago that I hated glasses and didn't want to wear them unless they were cool shades to make me look like a rock star. So off I went to an optician who checked my eyes to see if I could physicaly wear contacts, and after several tests grudgingly agreed to sell me some. I got some pretty high-end soft lenses, which were very water permeable and breathable or whatever the buzzwords of the time were. They cost me about 20ish euros a month with cleaning stuff, and my health insurance paid for all of that. Their specialist, a very kind and patient lady guided me through the agonizing process of actually stuffing the things in my eyes. I had such a hard time doing that that she stayed with me till well after the shop had closed and wished me the best of luck doing it by myself the next morning; you know those people you sometimes see on the tube or in a train who are doing their lenses without a mirror or anything? Well, I am not one of them.

Actually wearing lenses was fine, but I found the putting-in/taking-out process super finicky and I really didn't like that. Also, I found that -I had 4 week lenses with special cleaning gubbins- after about 2 weeks I could feel the lenses getting coated with protine regardless of the cleaning stuff and that is really unpleasent. Additionally I found that any kind of breeze on my face, especially warm ones like you get in winter time with heating and whatnot would make me tear up and blink uncontrollably. Also, I work in IT and in that period was doing a lot of datacenter work and staring in to the hot ait exaust fans of running Sun enterprise servers to see if the retard cable layers had connected up the right pins to the correct holes in the back of the (%(^% machine seriously did my head in.

tldr: I tried them but found certain aspects of their use not so nice or downright horrible, but I am a very finicky person. You met me; I was wearing glasses. Herp derp.

 

[Tom]

You're right, I did meet you but I was so busy gazing into your eyes (which were like the cat in Shrek 2) I didn't see the glasses.

 

[Edmond]

I was thinking of having the laser surgery, but i am told that they wont do it once you get past 40, is this true?

I would go for contacts but i get so much dust and crap in my eyes doing my job that i dont think it would be the best option, also as Teeds says, the whole putting them in and taking them out would be very hard
for me i think

 

[DaGaffer]

Tried all kinds of contacts and ended up with the daily packs, but I never really got on with them, especially if I'd been drinking, but that was pre-smoking ban so that may be less of an issue now (although I think alcohol dehydration played its part). I didn't have too many problems getting them in and out, just couldn't wear them for extended periods. It was that that helped me make the decision to get lasered.

 

[TdC]

You're right, I did meet you but I was so busy gazing into your eyes (which were like the cat in Shrek 2) I didn't see the glasses.

I was also wearing thigh-high boots, just like Puss. In fact, I also speak with a spanish accent.

I was thinking of having the laser surgery, but i am told that they wont do it once you get past 40, is this true?

I would go for contacts but i get so much dust and crap in my eyes doing my job that i dont think it would be the best option, also as Teeds says, the whole putting them in and taking them out would be very hard
for me i think

I was also thinking of surgery Edmond, but I am shit scared tbh. Re your dust remark, I would certainly advocate protective glasses or goggles when wearing lenses with a chance of getting things in your eyes. I got so paranoid I did that while mountainbiking. So basically instead of doing away with glasses by using lenses, I was actively wearing more glasses because I was scared of getting things in my eyes.

 

[Sydrik]

Tried them, hated them, always worn glasses. Prob always will.

 

[Edmond]

Its getting to the point where i'm having to wear my glasses all the time now, and they are giving me a headache (but thats the perscription no doubt) so i must get them checked

 

[Bahumat]

I love mine.... Other than the fact they dry out around 10pm and make you feel tired as your eyes are straining. I have these eye drops with lubrication that help, but means I have to carry it everywhere.
If you go to a bar etc late night and they have air con it's horrible. They dry out and when you blink feel uncomfortable

 

[Edmond]

I have lube, but its a bit thick to put in your eyes...oh right.....different type of lubrication

 

[Job]

Its funny..but Ive got the classic age related long sightedness as the lens goes stiff and doesnt focus anymore...so yo basically end up with a fixed lens vision of infinity to 1m..but this means you cant read a thing without glasses and there still is no cure for it...except blending which seems a bit drastic where they turn one eye into a close up lens only and your brsin works out the difference...would fuck up your 3d vision a bit though...so Im stuck with glasses that I have to take off to see normally.

 

[ileks]

I've been wearing them since I was about 16. You just get used to them. I can put them in in about 20 seconds. They are much better for general day to day stuff but during the night if I am watching TV or playing games i prefer my glasses.

 

[Exioce]

£30/month, daily disposables. Wear them morning until night, no problem with dryness or getting them in/out. Been using them for about 10 years.

Shit, just realised how much money my faulty genes have cost me.

 

[megadave]

I just dropped £120 on lenses before finding this thread. 3 months worth of 2 weekly lenses and a months worth of dailys. I generally wear the dailys on the weekends when I know i'm going to get fucked up and chuck 'em before passing out. 2 weeklys are way cheaper and I just wear them until they start feeling uncomfortable which is often more than 2 weeks.

Once you get used to them they're great, I can put them in and take them out pretty much instantly, only problem I have is they start to feel uncomfortable after 12-16 hours of continuous wear. After using them for a while, glasses become a bit of a pain.

Will get laser surgery sometime next year though

 

[Ceixah]

Contact lenses are like the best thing I ever paid for £19.50 a month for my continuous wear monthly lenses that I sleep in etc and literally don't take out for a whole month air optix night and day they're called - or infact no I switched to biofinity ones, but well worth the money would recommend highly

 

[fettoken]

Though, glasses can make you look quiet a lot more sophisticated and intelligent than you already are. TdC

 

[Wij]

Never had my eyes tested

 

[Krazeh]

Like Ceixah I use continuous wear lenses so put a pair in, wear for 30 days straight, take out and sleep one night with no lenses and then repeat. Costs me 20 a month and I would definitely recommend them.

 

[Gups]

I work in IT and in that period was doing a lot of datacenter work and staring in to the hot ait exaust fans of running Sun enterprise servers to see if the retard cable layers had connected up the right pins to the correct holes in the back of the (%(^% machine seriously did my head in.
.

Rofl I work for a Company that does cabling in Data centers I know exactly what you mean! ** I dont do the cabling myself however occasionally get dragged in if I want to earn more ££'s

With regards to the active subject I had laser eye surgery about 4 years ago and (ecuse the pun) have never looked back its awsome! A not very pleasant procedure but I had worn glasses for 20 years, The feeling of not having to find my glasses and to be ableto see in the shower is awsome! Also my young kids had destroyed a few pairs of glasses of mineby pulling them off my head so cost was kind of relative!

 

[Ormorof]

i used to wear monthlys that required daily cleaning and if you can get it from your optician/contact lense place get the hydrogen peroxide cleaning stuff for cleaning

the downside to using it is that once they are in the case you cannot use those lenses for at least 6-8 hours (not a problem for me as i cleaned them overnight) but the upside is that the lenses will feel like new once they are clean

I am currently using daily lenses as i realised i didnt need them every day so i use them when i go on nights out or to cinema (especially if its 3D) or something like that

would love laser eye surgery though, when i have the monies

 

[Tom]

Cheers all, will check it out. My prescription is quite odd though, if I relax my eyes (without glasses) then everything is blurred and a single image. If I then focus my eyes, everything goes relatively sharp but becomes a double image.

 

[DaGaffer]

Cheers all, will check it out. My prescription is quite odd though, if I relax my eyes (without glasses) then everything is blurred and a single image. If I then focus my eyes, everything goes relatively sharp but becomes a double image.

Sounds like Amblyopia.

 

[Edmond]

Cheers all, will check it out. My prescription is quite odd though, if I relax my eyes (without glasses) then everything is blurred and a single image. If I then focus my eyes, everything goes relatively sharp but becomes a double image.

At any point during this do you get red lasers shooting out of them?

 

[Gups]

At any point during this do you get red lasers shooting out of them?

I so wanted that to happen after my OP however no I was going to buy some (more) blue Lycra and act all hero like!

 

[Tom]

At any point during this do you get red lasers shooting out of them?

Yes, I was the guy with the lasers in the last episode of Breaking Bad.

 

[Jupitus]

Yes, I was the guy with the lasers in the last episode of Breaking Bad.

SPOILERS!!!!!!!!

 

[Tom]

Apparently I need something called toric lenses, so they've ordered me some to try.

 

[ileks]

Apparently I need something called toric lenses, so they've ordered me some to try.

I've got those.

BTW, Vision Express is run by a bunch of fucking idiots. Avoid them at all costs.

 

[Tom]

I use my local optician, have done for ten years.

 

[Rubric]

I have a slight stigmatism so they thought i may need Toric lens, but they said they would try normal ones first as the Toric ones are alot more expensive. Turns out i can get by with standard lens. I pay £22 a month at specsavers, get free eye tests and half price designer frames for that.