Glasses, Contact Lenses, Cycling etc

[rjb]

Following a change in my prescription about 5 years ago I was advised to try varifocals. The optician suggested that for new users they were not for everyone and some users could not adjust to them. For that reason I took my prescription and used an online seller to order a pair. The online site (glasses direct) led me to Plastic lenses (polycarbonate Iirc) as they are shatterproof and aimed at sporting use. Fortunately they were also at the cheaper end of the spectrum and also the lightest option so I have had no issues with them slipping down my nose. Total bill was 1/3 of what my optician proposed, and I have been very happy with them, i have not needed to change them and my optician says they are ok unless my prescription changes. The only problem was the anti scratch coating seemed to produce a fresnel ring effect over time, probably from wearing off and I would not have it next time. They are beginning to look a bit tatty but 5 years use is a bonus and I have a spare pair of identical framed distance glasses. Hope that helps.

Oh and I have edited this to say be careful if using xylene paint thinner as it can dissolve the lenses. Don't ask me how I know.

[531colin]

Glasses stink.
Monthly disposable contact lenses...no brainer....even though i now need reading glasses as well

[Edwards]

I have worn glasses for over 50 years and am used to the., I have never tried contact lenses so can not comment.
With your job I would think the the risk of something getting in your eye is higher than somebody working in a shop or office.
Do you think the risk of the extra item in there is worth it?

I also had a manual job and appreciated the protection glasses give.

[Vorpal]

I use both glasses and contacts.
There are advantages and disadtvantages to each, and they can vary from one person to another.

Contacts are less hassle, once they're in. For most people, they increase sensitivity to light, wind, and dust, so if you get contacts you may need to wear sunglasses more. Contacts are worse when you get sweat in your eyes, but at least they can't slide down all the time when you get sweaty

I generally wear prescription safety glasses when using power tools, doing DIY stuff, etc. I would recommend getting some if you are going to wear them for work. You should be able to deduct them as necessary for work. You might be able to deduct the eye test, as well. I know that employers have to pay for eye test for employees in some circumstances, so it may be worth investigating for yourself.

I have a hard time finding contacts that are comfortable, and the companies seem to change them all the time, so every couple of years, I have a period of trial and error to find new contacts that work well for me.

[531colin]

I have a hard time finding contacts that are comfortable, and the companies seem to change them all the time, so every couple of years, I have a period of trial and error to find new contacts that work well for me.

i'm amazed. i put mine in when I get up, take them out when i go to bed.
Had them from Specsavers and the local optician
For a few years I wore the ones you leave in night and day for a month, I eventually got trouble with them

[531colin]

I have worn glasses for over 50 years and am used to the., I have never tried contact lenses so can not comment.
With your job I would think the the risk of something getting in your eye is higher than somebody working in a shop or office.
Do you think the risk of the extra item in there is worth it?

I also had a manual job and appreciated the protection glasses give.

If you are "used to" wearing glasses and change to contacts, there is a period where you do get stuff in your eye, until you re-learn the reflex to blink. i don't wear any sort of glasses on the bike, I hate the bloody things. I carry a bit of mirror and spare contact lenses....last used last summer when a friend got something in his eye. i have never used it for myself. About once a year I get a fly in my eye and just hook it out with my finger,,,,,just like you do without a contact lens in.

[Heltor Chasca]

Thanks again. Who was to know their were so many things to digest? I need to know about dissolving things in thinners though [emoji6]

I opted out of any coating as the optician said as long as I'm in a completely clean environment (which I'm not ever) they will just get 'rainbow-smears' which is what I thought lady unicorns have done once every few years, but it's a lens coating apparently.

I'm going to give the contacts a full trial and keep glasses for mooching and sore eye days. Who knows I may even enjoy the image change.

[Tangled Metal]

Don't listen to any advise on here. Try it all out. Free contacts trial for a month but do get glasses and carry them in case...

Speaking from experience of contact lens failing in my eye. Split in two when i rubbed my eye once. Painful and hard to get both pieces out. Then you're stuck half blind without backup glasses.

Of course ignore my advise because it's not advise it's experience. My experience and mine alone. Just like everyone else's here.

Glasses - get plastic = shatterproof apparently so ok to drive in. Anti scratch natch! Anti reflective a plus but essential for higher refractive index lenses. One cost that could last 4 years or fail in less than 2. Most opticians give 2 years warranty BTW, do remember that and use it if need be. You have a lump of metal/plastic and glass/plastic stuck on your nose. Shouldn't be heavy and if you're used to safety eyewear then not an issue. Don't allow your glasses to get a knock from the side, its quite painful effect on your nose is worth avoiding.

Contacts - so many types it's confusing. Monthly trial for free. They have so many benefits. Nothing to interfere with the look of your face (advantage? I don't know). Nothing annoying on your face = better for sports for some ( only an issue for me when i took up ju jitsu, so i got contacts as well just for that). They can help with hayfever, seriously they stop pollen irritating your eyes. Negatives? Well they suit you or they don't. Your free trial might be with the wrong type so go to a good opticians. If you don't get the right pair it's murder to have something so irritating in your eye. Worse than a bit of grit IMHO. Nearer an eyelash that has folded in and you can't see to fish out. If you've experienced that you'll have an idea of how bad contacts can be. You might not be able to wear them. That's through your choice or taken away from you because your eye is too dry. I was very borderline with eye dryness when i got my second set and the result was 2 hours maximum to wear them before i clawed them out, without worrying if my eyeball came out too!!!!

Laser - it's surgery. That's serious. It can work very well if your prescription is stable. Expensive here (£300 in sourh American countries in a good practise too). If your prescription is complex you might need actual surgery such as lens replacement apparently. You may end up with dry eyes a lot and sensitivity to strong lights.

So it is down to you to decide. It's personal choice and using other's experiences as a guide is a double edged sword. It could be the wrong experience you listen too. I'd be interested to know your choice and how you get on. Please update us when you've decided and have used your personal choice of eyewear.

[ambodach]

Grarea and other posters have summed it up pretty well. I started off with specs many years ago and then went on to Stone Age hard lenses before progressing on to softer ones. Never used the daily disposables. My job entailed often going into steamy warm areas so no problems with condensation etc and in rain they are good. However for camping I found them a bit of a nuisance and I got fed up with them and went back to specs. Mebbe it is old age but I now prefer the specs as less daily hassle.
Cycling In rain I have to have as big a skip on my cap as possible in order to see tho' washing up liquid on the lenses helps sometimes. For your work you would need eye protection of some kind so specs may be best for that.

[Tangled Metal]

I've never found rain an issue with glasses. Why do some see it as an issue and others don't?

[661-Pete]

Don't listen to any advise on here.

Would that include yours, by any chance?
P.S. the word is "advice".

[Vorpal]

I have a hard time finding contacts that are comfortable, and the companies seem to change them all the time, so every couple of years, I have a period of trial and error to find new contacts that work well for me.

i'm amazed. i put mine in when I get up, take them out when i go to bed.
Had them from Specsavers and the local optician
For a few years I wore the ones you leave in night and day for a month, I eventually got trouble with them

My eyes seem to be very sensitive, and get dry easily. Contacts make that worse. Some contacts make that substantially worse, so that I can only wear them for a few hours.

The daily wear type ones are the most likely to be ok, thought I can still only wear about 20% of them.

[Stevek76]

Do you have astigmatism? This will show up as a number in the cylinder section on your prescription.

If so contacts will be a little more expensive so bear that in mind with people lobbing numbers about.

Personally I almost exclusively use contacts these days, I'm reasonably short sighted at around -5.5 diopters and a reasonable dose of astigmatism to boot (~-1.5) and contacts were a bit of a revelation to me. At stronger levels of correction glasses are ok if you're looking through the centre points but due to spherical aberration (the effect that produces rainbows) the vision is progressively shoddier as you look off centre. Even through the centres my distance acuity with up to date pescriptions is 6/5 with glasses but between 6/4 and 6/3 with contacts. Saying that, if you're only just failing the driving requirement then I doubt you're as short sighted as I am.

I currently use acuview Oasys which come in at about £21 quid a box of 6 for the astigmatism variety and usually around £18 for normal (though a few places seem to be doing them for £14 if you go through google shopping...). They're fortnightly lenses so that would work out to around £12/month if you wear every day and replace as directed. For me these were by far the most comfortable (even at the start I couldn't 'feel' them once they were in) and also, again for me, had a far superior stability system to the alternatives (the lenses need to be kept at the correct rotation for astigmatism!) Most use a single thicker section at the bottom to keep the lenses oriented correctly, the acuview ones use thicker parts at each side.

You will need glasses regardless, as much as many people push it, including me. Constant wearing of contacts is not recommended and tolerance varies from person to person, and it's always handy to have backup. You may find if glasses suffice for many of your activities that going with dailies for contacts will work. They remove much of the faff of contacts and suit sporadic wearing much better.

Another thing to note is that any grit in the eye will ruin contacts in very quick order, even in the kind of light DIY were you might not be using eye protection so dailies might be 'cheaper' in that respect than breaking a monthly or fortnightly lens a few days wear in.

[[XAP]Bob]

As a primarily astigmatic glasses wearer I have few issues with glasses when cycling.

My current frames were chosen with cycling in mind, and the lenses are photo chromatic (saves me having a second pair for sunglasses) and have scratch resistant and the blue antiglare (better for computer users) coatings.

When cycling - if it rains I put a baseball cap on. That keeps most of the rain off the glasses, and I occasionally give them a wipe with the padding on the thumb of my gloves.

In properly cold weather I have to be a bit careful how I breathe when stopped at lights etc...

[Tangled Metal]

Don't listen to any advise on here.

Would that include yours, by any chance?
P.S. the word is "advice".

Especially mine!

Seriously that was tongue in cheek. Truth is a lot on here is people giving out snippets of experience. With vision it's unique to each of us. There is no way my experience will match what the OP experiences. I was just trying to impart the idea that he's got to suck it and see.

The only advice worth anything is to try things out. Try free month trial of contacts. Try glasses out. The OP should build his own experience. Unless you're a gardener (i think the OP is a gardener or landscape designer), with the same requirements/prescription/eyes of course.

To give you an example, i went back to the opticians i got the last set of contacts from when i found out i couldn't wear them for 12 hours without pain like the last set in had. She expressed surprise about that because she had sold the same brand, type and strength of contacts to another person who had been very happy wearing them all day long. I got the contacts for martial arts so could manage with 2 to 3 hours of uncomfortable use on the few days a week I needed them. However come time to get another batch she refused to sell me any more. She was a small independent who worked on the basis of repeat custom and word of mouth recommendation. I took the hint and have never worn contracts since.

It's effectively a form of prosthetic IMHO. You'd not expect one type of false leg or hand to work for everyone needing one. Not a good analogy but optical correction is unique in every case.

BTW this comment was in response to someone making a black and white comment like glasses suck contacts are great. Or the sentiment that goes like... i wear contacts all day long only taking them off when i go to sleep so you should get them too. That got me thinking we're just recounting our experiences. There should be a disclaimer to this effect after each post.