Laser eye surgery

[frogbeastegg]

Not sure if this is the best place, but hey. Move if you like.

Anyone got any experience with laser eye surgery? Had it themselves? Know someone who has? Work in the area, even?

I'm beginning to consider it. Bluntly put I'm so short sighted now the world starts to blur 2 inches past the tip of my froggy little nose. Blur badly. I can't read without my glasses on unless the print is quite big and the book held close. This is with my right eye; the vision in my left is so poor I can't read with it unless the book is touching my nose. Without my glasses I am completely helpless; I can't see to cross a road – heck, I can't see the ground I'm walking on as anything but a mass of colour. I'm facing the miserable fact that with my unaided vision I am rapidly becoming little better than blind. I’m only 24. It’s going to get worse, a lot worse.

Contact lenses are not an option. I've worn them in the past and had to give it up. I can't wear them for long enough; I need vision for more than 10 hours a day. Additionally, I work in an air conditioned book shop and that dries the eyes out, making lenses uncomfortable. The final nail in the coffin of that possibility is that I would not be safe wearing them now; it's all too often that a bit of grit gets blown into my eye, or that something catches my face. Having a lens knocked out of your eye is far from pleasant, as is having your eyeball scratched by grit getting into the lens and being ground into the cornea.

I've been suffering along with glasses for years. I loathe the wretched things with a passion. My current pair are now badly in need of updating; if this were my normal unaided vision they'd be slapping a pair of glasses on me and telling me I'm not legal to drive without them. I find I very much begrudge the prospect of spending something in the region of £100 on a new pair. It's a miserable process. First there's the struggle to find frames which don't look too hideous and which provide decent range of vision before the rims get in the way (which I'm expected to do while looking through empty frames, meaning I can't see what they look like or how much my vision is blocked). I've only had the one success, that being the frames I'm using now; battered old things I've had for ... oh, four or five years. Then I have to adjust to them, meaning headaches and eyestrain galore while I stumble through a misshapen and flat looking world where my depth perception is gone. If I'm lucky I'll make the adjustment in a week without doing serious damage to anything. If not I don't adjust. Frequently I don't manage to adjust, hence my still wearing years old glasses. I can't wear this pair for much longer; my vision is simply too far gone.

What's more, if I do adjust I still have many of the same problems. Each time it rains I go half-blind because of the water on the lenses. When I enter a warm room after being out in the cold I go blind because the lenses mist up. There's a chunk around my peripheral vision where all I can see is the rims of my glasses, and beyond that the blur which is my unaided sight. The number of times I've nearly had my nose broken because a book fell on me at work and smacked into my glasses is, frankly, scary. If anything does happen to my glasses in such an accident then I am stuck until someone brings me a spare pair, a pair which gives me headaches and makes the world look wrong. My judgement of speed and distance for faster moving objects is off; throw a ball at me and I can't catch it because I cannot accurately judge when it will reach the right point. Above all, I'm completely helpless when I take them off, and at times I have to.

So I'm considering surgery. The prospect terrifies me. Little better than blind is still a hell of a lot better than actually blind. It’s supposed to be safe, painless, and quick to do and recover from. A simple little walk in walk out operation which leaves you 20-20 vision, sometimes better. You’re supposed to be able to see again immediately, able to resume your normal life faster than a cataracts patient. Supposed to be. When you’re considering something as important as your eyesight the ‘supposed to be’ in the adverts for a private operation which makes companies money is not nearly enough. The frog in me wonders why, if it is as good as all that, it is not more common. There are still many people wearing glasses and contact lenses, and the standard thing when people like me go to the opticians is still to recommend yet more glasses, not laser surgery which, if it does what it is supposed to, will provide a far, far better result.

Anyone?

[doc_bean]

I've heard you can only get surgery if your eyes are better than -6 or something, make sure you qualify before wasting too much time doing research.

I've onyl met one guy who had it done, he was ahppy about it, can't say much more than that I'm afraid. I could try and look up clinical studies if you'd like, I should have access.

[Banquo's Ghost]

I'm sad to say, but you may be disappointed. Your sight seems to be getting worse, and they can only do laser surgery when your prescription has been stable for at least a year.

Here's the BUPA factsheet (http://hcd2.bupa.co.uk/fact_sheets/html/lasik.html) which has some more links.

It sounds from your description that you may have a more serious problem with your sight than just myopia. I'm sure you have consulted your doctor (though it doesn't read as if you have had an eye examination recently and using old glasses is guaranteed to make things much, much worse) but if not, really worth doing just to cover all the bases.

I wish you all the best and hope you can sort out a solution. :bow:

[drone]

I've looked into getting Lasik before, and I know a few people who have had it done. My understanding is that they will only do the surgery if your eyesight has stabilized, so if yours is getting worse you may not be a good candidate. You may need to wait a while.

Edit->Gah! Beaten by BG

[Blodrast]

I looked into this myself (crappy eyes...)
I'll give you a couple of links I found interesting/useful.
Some of the stuff may not apply 100% to you, since it refers to some North American contexts (e.g., prices).
However, the technology, rates of success, etc, etc, even though they may be reported for the US, should be roughly the same everywhere in the world as long as the same technology is used.

http://www.allaboutvision.com/visionsurgery/prk.htm
There's LOTS of info on this site.
The link above is for PRK, this one is for LASIK:
http://www.allaboutvision.com/visionsurgery/lasik.htm

They describe the technology, the procedure, they have comparisons between various technologies, they have _some_ figure sheets, although I wasn't too happy about them. Can't recall exactly why right now, but I thought they were kinda biased, in the sense that one can always show you some nifty graph that highlights exactly what they want you to see/notice, but doesn't necessarily give you the real big picture.

Prices (again, for US): http://www.allaboutvision.com/visionsurgery/cost.htm

An .... interesting, shall we say, experience of a guy who had it done, is here:
http://www.probability.ca/jeff/writing/lasereye.html

Well, it ain't much, but it's something.
After reading through, I must say I'm somewhat less enthusiastic about the whole thing than when I started reading...

Also, note that 3%-5% develop "minor" problems afterwards - which, they say, are fixable... but it just makes it all more of a hassle.
Also, long term, there seem to be quite a few problems...
Finally, but maybe most importantly, check out the "successful" percentages. It's a bit of a gamble for my taste.
http://www.allaboutvision.com/visionsurgery/outcomes_2.htm

Sorry, but "at least 85%" doesn't quite cut it for me...

Good luck with your decision, froggy. Ain't gonna be an easy one. I'd advise you take a few very serious conversations with several doctors, and do NOT let them just throw a bunch of pamphlets and technical mumbo-jumbo at you.

[Blodrast]

I'm sad to say, but you may be disappointed. Your sight seems to be getting worse, and they can only do laser surgery when your prescription has been stable for at least a year.

Here's the BUPA factsheet (http://hcd2.bupa.co.uk/fact_sheets/html/lasik.html) which has some more links.

It sounds from your description that you may have a more serious problem with your sight than just myopia. I'm sure you have consulted your doctor (though it doesn't read as if you have had an eye examination recently and using old glasses is guaranteed to make things much, much worse) but if not, really worth doing just to cover all the bases.

I wish you all the best and hope you can sort out a solution. :bow:

Obviously not blaming you, BG, or anything, but what frustrates me about that site (as well as many others), is the lack of raw numbers. I.Want.The.Damned.Numbers.
Why the hell is it so difficult to publish them ? That's pretty much what everybody wants!
Even on the links I gave - and the reason I liked them was precisely because they had SOME numbers -, there's not enough of them, and some stuff is intentionally vague.

"Some patients develop minor complications".
:furious3: :furious3:

What do you define as "minor" ? Non-life threatening ? I mean, heck, blind people can still live, right ? And "some patients" ? WTF? HOW MANY of them ?

Sorry about getting so worked up about this, but to me it seems that deliberately not disclosing information for such a damned crucial decision is just too hypocritical and arrogant, and makes it all much more suspicious.

Or maybe I'm just paranoid like that.
Oh hell, who am I kidding, I am paranoid.

[Sasaki Kojiro]

It sounds like you're using the hard contact lenses. Have you looked into the soft ones? Air conditioning doesn't bother them, the can't get knocked out, and grit can't get under them. The only time they are uncomfortable on me is when I stare to long without moving my eyes...rather annoying at movies.

Wikipedia is actually fairly informative on eye surgery:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LASEK

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LASIK

[naut]

The frog in me wonders why, if it is as good as all that, it is not more common.
I suppose because it's relatively pricey. (AUS$5500 here.)

I know a woman who had it done, she had no complications and the recovery was a day or two.

[Seamus Fermanagh]

Both my wife and I had this procedure. It was very quick and shockingly effective. Post operative discomfort was an issue for about 6 hours.

My vision was approximately 20/200 in both eyes, after 1 week I was seeing at 20/15.

My wife was 20/600 in one eye and 20/850 [stigmatism] in the other. After two weeks her vision stabilized at 20/20 in one eye and 20/25 in the other.


Find a reputable surgeon who has done a lot of these procedures.


That surgeon will examine your records and eyes to determine:

are your eyes stable enough to benefit from the procedure, and

are your cornea thick enough to allow for the surgery.


I strongly encourage you to consider this procedure. It is a little pricey, but the results are fantastic.

[KukriKhan]

After research - both internet and anecdotal - Mrs. Kukri went under the knife last year. With excellent results. After a lifetime (50+) of virtual partial-blindness, she's now 20/20.

The basic procedure is safe; you won't get worse than you are.

Find an experienced, trusted-by-personal-testimony cutter/doctor (that's what the Missus did). You'll be OK.

Our friend/co-worker who had it done 10 years ago (as a 19 year old, severely nearsighted guy) still swears his visual acuity is excellent, and we have no reason to not believe him.

Of course, any surgery is potentially a problem. To get peace of mind, check the facilities. Clean? Professional? Reputeable?

You'll be fine, I'm sure. Just trust your own judgment on who and where you're dealing with.

[Samurai Waki]

Had it done about 6 years ago. My vision is still pretty good, just be sure to check out reputeable doctors, and actually visit several before deciding. This is like plastic surgery, (although a fair bit safer) so you'll want the best, and not necessarily the most expensive. When I had it done, it was considered extremely safe, so it's probably tripled its effectiveness and safety by now.

The only person I've ever met who didn't have a good result of Laser Eye Surgery was an older fellow who had pretty bad cataracts in his eyes, so he couldn't see very well in the first place, his doctor missed the mark, and he ended up virtually blind in one eye, and was also considered legally blind. He had to wear extremely thick glasses, and had to be at most eight inches from being able to read font size 72, on a 19 inch screen.

[Vladimir]

All I can say is do it, if you can. As mentioned before, degenerating eyesight may be a symptom of something more serious and LASIK might not be able to help. Make sure it’s not something simple like a vitamin/nutrient deficiency that can stop or reverse the regression.

Of course speak to several doctors. I had it done and I love it. My lenses were shaped like dumbells much like Seamus' wife. I had the advantage of having the input of several family members that had similar eye surgery done at the same institute. It’s a hell of a lot cheaper than it used to be and in some cases it’s free, as long as you go back for all the check-ups.

It’s clear that you’ve thought a lot about this and I can see that it’s important to you. Just make sure you: Find out if it’s something simple; talk to several doctors, but with your health care system, I don’t know how to help you there; and if you can…do it!

[BDC]

My Father had it done, worked out well. I'd suggest if your eye site is getting worse still at 24 might be time for a doctor's visit, although opticians should refer you if they are worried.

You should look at contact lenses again. They are improving very fast, you get fancy ones that shouldn't really hurt your eyes at all and so on.

[English assassin]

Contact lenses are not an option. I've worn them in the past and had to give it up. I can't wear them for long enough; I need vision for more than 10 hours a day. Additionally, I work in an air conditioned book shop and that dries the eyes out, making lenses uncomfortable. The final nail in the coffin of that possibility is that I would not be safe wearing them now; it's all too often that a bit of grit gets blown into my eye, or that something catches my face. Having a lens knocked out of your eye is far from pleasant, as is having your eyeball scratched by grit getting into the lens and being ground into the cornea

Modern disposable lenses are a heck of a lot better even than lenses from five years ago. Not everyone gets on with them still but.... Having a lens knocked out basically doesn't happen (to me anyway), nor does the grit thing, and it if did, well, they are disposable. Just carry a spare with you.

I doubt that your unaided eyesight is worse than my wife's (which is BAD), and she gets on with disposables fine. I'd give them a go before surgery.

[Caerfanan]

I'd back the opinion of most people here. Make sure first that your vision is not getting worse still. I know two people who did it and were satisfied with the results.

[frogbeastegg]

Looking at my prescription from a year and a half ago, my left eye is right on the edge of what they consider to be the safe limit. I know it has got worse since then. Add this to my unstable prescription, and it doesn’t sound too possible.

I also admit I don’t like the risks, however minor. In the event something does go wrong I’d possibly lose the one thing which allows me to do the things I love most in life: read and write. Some of the side effects are not good for me either. I spend half a year walking to and from work in dark or semi lit conditions; impaired night vision will get me flattened.

I'm a fit frog. I have a quick health check every 3 months when I go for my contraceptive injection. I’m a tad underweight, but that’s all. I’ve always been a shade underweight; it’s so minor that the doctor simply tells me to make sure I get a lot of calcium. I eat properly and walk around 5 miles a day five days a week. I don’t spend all day staring at computers, or any of the other big sight killers.

I used to have my eyes tested every year. Last time I went they told me they didn’t need testing again for two years.

I have an eye test tomorrow, and on Friday they are going to see if they can find a type of contact lens which will suit me. The one who I spoke to to make the appointments was raving about lenses you can leave in for a week(!). When my jaw hit the ground at that she explained that wearing them for such a short time was a recommendation of theirs, because they didn’t think wearing them for a month(!!) before removal was quite so hygienic. When I wore contacts (hard, gas permeable) I had 10 hours, 12 if I pushed it and wanted to get aching eyes. You couldn’t sleep in them either. Hehe, you had to be very stoical too. If you cried they tended to float out of place.

Technological process is an awesome thing. I did look at contact lenses again when I had my last eye test and attempt at having an up to date pair of glasses. Soft lenses hadn’t advanced much from where they were back when I was wearing hard lenses; they were essentially blobs of goop you shoved in your eyes which didn’t correct vision as well as hard lenses or glasses, which needed changing daily, and which tended to give you eye infections. Now they are chattering away about breathable membranes which have moisturiser in them.

[edyzmedieval]

Hmm, is there an age limit?

I'm doing performance sports, and I'm kind of short sighted. Myopia. About -2.5(left) and 3.5(right), and I wear glasses, not contact lenses.

[Marius Dynamite]

frogbeastegg your eyesight sounds very bad for someone at such a young age. I recently got glasses to see things further away. This was because, at least I'm sure it is, my Physics teacher had old fashioned writing and it was very difficult to copy from the board. I sat at the back of the class and could barely see it and had to screw my eyes up a lot. Combine a day of screwing eyes up (I sit at the back of a lot of classes) and coming home to sit close to a computer, it messes up your vision.

How did you eyesight get so bad, if you don't mind (so I can avoid :P)?

[Sasaki Kojiro]

Hmm, is there an age limit?

I'm doing performance sports, and I'm kind of short sighted. Myopia. About -2.5(left) and 3.5(right), and I wear glasses, not contact lenses.

If it's a contact sport, soft contacts are fine. They really don't come out unless you take them out.

[Crazed Rabbit]

My mother got Lasik several years ago, and it really helped.

I'm planning to get it, or some other form of eye surgery, in a couple years, after I graduate college. I don't need glasses for making my way around or sports, but to see the board in a lecture room.

Finding a good surgeon is probably the most important part. The site usaeyes.org contains a list of '50 tough questions for your doctor':
http://www.usaeyes.org/lasik/faq/lasik-tough-questions.htm

As well as other useful information.


Hmm, is there an age limit?

I think it's better if you're older - that is, if you're 21 it's better than 18 because your eyes have stopped changing. I don't know if 30 is better than 25, or anything.

Best of luck, whatever you do.

Crazed Rabbit

[Seamus Fermanagh]

My mother got Lasik several years ago, and it really helped.

I'm planning to get it, or some other form of eye surgery, in a couple years, after I graduate college. I don't need glasses for making my way around or sports, but to see the board in a lecture room.

Finding a good surgeon is probably the most important part. The site usaeyes.org contains a list of '50 tough questions for your doctor':
http://www.usaeyes.org/lasik/faq/lasik-tough-questions.htm

As well as other useful information.



I think it's better if you're older - that is, if you're 21 it's better than 18 because your eyes have stopped changing. I don't know if 30 is better than 25, or anything.

Best of luck, whatever you do.

Crazed Rabbit

25-45 is all about the same, relatively few significant changes on average during this age-frame. After that, you start developing short-arm syndrome.

[Lord Winter]

If it's a contact sport, soft contacts are fine. They really don't come out unless you take them out.
Hard contacts aren't bad ethier, I've been using them for soccer and skiing for a year now and have never had a problem.

[Tachikaze]

I had LASIK performed in 2000. I am still very happy with the results. I wrote a web page about the entire experience. It's not currently online, but I can post it if you want.

I also would stress that the doctor is critical. I have known a lot of people who have had the operation. All came out better than they went in, but some had minor problems (starbursts at night, reduced night vision, difficulty focusing at distant objects). The determining factor seemed to be the doctor. Mine came out perfect and another person who used my doctor had great results. Two of the people who had the minor side effects had the same doctor.

I had no real discomfort after the operation, unless you include having to wear the clear plastic shields over my eyes. It was very quick and painless. But scary.

[scotchedpommes]

Hard contacts aren't bad ethier, I've been using them for soccer and skiing for a year now and have never had a problem.

I would have to say with gas permeable or hard lenses experience largely
depends on the shape of the lens and your eyes. I've been using them for a
number of years now and certainly wouldn't recommend using them unless there
is no other option.

[Avicenna]

Personally I find it quite.. strange.

You pay bucketloads to have someone fry off part of your eyes with lasers. And hope they don't miss.

Also, if you're middle-aged, you'll start get long sightedness anyway, so you'll still have to wear glasses.

[frogbeastegg]

How did you eyesight get so bad, if you don't mind (so I can avoid :P)?
It's genetic. Both my parents have bad eyesight, and three out of my four grandparents. The effect worsens with each generation. At least I didn’t inherit the glaucoma my maternal grandmother has.


Humph. My eyes are fine and healthy, and my natural sight will improve somewhat if I can get something which matches my prescription. Apparently my eyes are working hard to try and compensate for my less than perfect general glasses-wearing vision, and this wears them out.

Problem. I'm not suitable for soft lenses. I have a stigmatism in my right eye, which no one ever bothered to tell me about until yesterday. Yay. Ordinary soft lenses can't do anything for that, meaning my right eye ends up with blurry vision which leaves the world looking awful for me, as it's my dominant eye. However there is one manufacturer with one type of soft lens - one out of a list 3 pages long - which is experimenting with soft lenses which will be alright for people with a stigmatism. The optician is ordering a pair of those in for me to try.

Otherwise I think I'm a wee bit stuck. ~:(

The good news is that the optician waived the usual contact lens trial fee out of pity. I only have to pay if the other lenses work and I order some of my own.

[The Spartan (Returns)]

i have horrible long sight.
many people say my sight sucks.
its blurry from even 3 4ft. away.

[naut]

Astigmatism is annoying, I have it in my right eye also. I also have scratches on my cornea(s), looking at a white surface or the sky I can see the scratches/can't see past them.

[edyzmedieval]

If it's a contact sport, soft contacts are fine. They really don't come out unless you take them out.

Basketball, performance and football/soccer every day. I have to take them off, but it's very nasty because I see blurred.

Contact lenses are out of the discussion, because I don't have enough patience to "install" them every day.

And I have the same problem like Froggy. It's genetic.My grandma has, both of my parents have and even my older sister has. :skull:

[Lorenzo_H]

Its funny I should see a topic about this, I was just thinking about it.

I know someone who did mess up. He had the operation and something went wrong, and now whenever he sees a light, a red ring appears in his vision. I don't know what mistake was made, or what.

[Lorenzo_H]

Astigmatism is annoying, I have it in my right eye also. I also have scratches on my cornea(s), looking at a white surface or the sky I can see the scratches/can't see past them.
How the hell did you get those? I am asking because I would be quite worried that with all the things I have put in my eyes how I dont have any.

[naut]

Not sure how it happened. But on my right cornea I have 2 scratches, luckily my left eye is dominant so it isn't really noticeable unless I look a the sky or a whiteboard etc.

[Lorenzo_H]

That sort of thing is new to me! Why doesn't it heal?

[william the bastard]

Not sure if this is the best place, but hey. Move if you like.


So I'm considering surgery. The prospect terrifies me. Little better than blind is still a hell of a lot better than actually blind. It’s supposed to be safe, painless, and quick to do and recover from. A simple little walk in walk out operation which leaves you 20-20 vision, sometimes better. You’re supposed to be able to see again immediately, able to resume your normal life faster than a cataracts patient. Supposed to be. When you’re considering something as important as your eyesight the ‘supposed to be’ in the adverts for a private operation which makes companies money is not nearly enough. The frog in me wonders why, if it is as good as all that, it is not more common. There are still many people wearing glasses and contact lenses, and the standard thing when people like me go to the opticians is still to recommend yet more glasses, not laser surgery which, if it does what it is supposed to, will provide a far, far better result.

Anyone?

Frog Meet frog..
I am currently in checking process before laser surgery. I was 44 and being myope(short-shighted) since 4o years now. turning long-sighted too with age.
Doctor said me if I want continue to work I 'll better try surgery quickly.
After a medical exam with a optical surger, she told me I will probably recover a good view and can put my glasses into a bin except for driving and go to cinema.

I don't know if with have the same scale in France but my vision for each eye is between - 9 and -10 for short sighted (and working a long time on computer...).

So frogbeastegg, don't bother anymore, it's not look so terriyfing, and if you want , i will share my experience with you. I have a new "rendez vous" next thursday for another checking.( sorry for my poor English).

My sole problem is that you can't get train (due to air clim) for at least one month, and I got my eurostar ticket for end of April:furious3:

[frogbeastegg]

~:eek: Your eyesight is much worse than mine, assuming the rating system is the same.

The bits I looked at said -6 was the safe limit; I wonder why? Old information, or a different kind of surgery, possibly. Hmm.

I would be interested to hear how it goes for you ~:)

Myself, I'm going to try the one type of soft contact lenses which can work with some astigmatisms. It's free to try, and the worst that can happen is a repeat of my attempt with the ordinary lenses: a frog stumbling around with her dominant eye giving nothing but a blur. I also have to get my eyes rested (or whatever) from overworking in an effort to compensate for my outdated prescription; that will improve my sight some, and then the vision I have would match the vision which is noted down on my latest prescription.

If the lenses don't work ... I shall have to see.

[Kommodus]

I had my eyes zapped about a year and a half ago. No more glasses for me! :2thumbsup:

My experience was mostly positive. I have 20/20 vision (slightly better, actually). The only drawback is that I do have some of the "starburst" effect at night. I've gotten used to it, and it's never really impaired my ability to function normally. So overall, I'm very satisfied with the outcome.

Just do your research, make sure you understand the risks, and be sure you can live with the possible negative effects if they occur. Then choose a good physician with a lot of experience and modern technology. An preliminary examination will tell you whether or not you're recommended for the surgery.

[Beren Son Of Barahi]

our dear froggy...

i had my eyes done about 7 years ago now, (as a 18 yr old) i started out wearing +9.5, by the time i had the surgery my eyes were stable at +4.5. The procedure was pretty scary in those days, but now there is blade free surgery, which was the scariest part of all. the results are better then i could of dreamed of, it has completely changed my life, and it's the simple things that always make me happy...waking up in bed, with the person you love, and being able to see them clearly, was one of the happiest days of my life. The risk are getting smaller and smaller.

If lenses can help to strengthen your eyes, then thats a great option, but i can only recommend that you find out about surgery if you can...

here is a link to the group who did my eyes, they develop a lot of technology in the field, as well as publish a lot in journals. they are australian, but they have some great information on the site.


also the measurements are uniformed here is what current technology can handle
You have refractive errors outside the range for treatment with current available technology:

* Short-sightedness (myopia) over -12.0 diopters.
* Long-sightedness (hypermetropia) over +6 diopters.
* Astigmatism higher than 6 diopters.



http://www.theeyeinstitute.com.au/

[Slyspy]

I use monthly disposable soft contact lenses and have had no problems with them despite my workplace being very smokey.

I too tried lenses years ago and found them very uncomfortable. I finally tried them again about a year ago and was pleasantly surprised. I hardly know they are there at all, the only time I reel them is at the end of a long shift when I'm tired. Even then merely taking them out, rinsing, and replacing freshens them up.

I do find my glasses more comfortable when using computers though. Happily this isn't a big part of my working day.

I have never had a lense fall out.

At the moment I use the ones you take out every night, but may look into the ones you can wear all the time. Though those are thicker so may take more adjusting to.

The price isn't bad, an easy to set up direct debit with three months worth of lenses posted to me at regular intervals.

I hope your "experimental" soft lenses work out for you.

I've often considered surgery myself, although since my eyesight isn't that bad I have never had a true need to go for it. If your eyes are a bad as you say and if you do meet the requirements for surgery then maybe you should go for it, especially if the lenses don't work out.

[frogbeastegg]

The new lenses work! :balloon:

It's not perfect; the vision in my right eye comes and goes a little as I blink and the lens rotates. One moment I can read the eyechart flawlessly, the next the bottom lines are a bit blurred. Still readable though. Irritating, but I can live with it. Other than that my vision is much improved: better distance vision, sharper vision all round, and colours look a trifle cleaner too. As the prescription is the correct strength my eyes will be resting and sorting themselves out so I have the unaided vision I am meant to. They're very comfortable; I can't tell I am wearing them. I can leave them in for a week at a time, and should be able to wear the replacement lenses immediately after removing the old ones.

Hehe, I can't wait to go to sleep tonight - so I can wake up tomorrow morning and see properly the moment I open my eyes. It's been 13 years since I could last do that. :massive grin: And I can't wait to go out in the rain and not get part-blinded by water on my glasses, and to have a shower without being blinded by steam, and to go from a cold place to a warm one without my lenses steaming up, and ... [/giddy-with-joy frog]

Not sure I'd want to drive in these though. While the loss of sharpness when the right lens shifts is minor it is enough to be potentially distracting in the wrong circumstances. :shrug: I don't drive now anyway.

[Ronin]

Contact lenses are out of the discussion, because I don't have enough patience to "install" them every day.


after you are used to doing it (ie after about 2 weeks of use) putting contact lenses on is something you can do in about 20 seconds....it can take some time in the beggining.....I remember the first time I tried to put them on all by myself I took a good 12 minutes :laugh4:

[Banquo's Ghost]

The new lenses work! :balloon:

Fantastic news, milady Frog!

I'm pleased it has worked out for you so well. :beam:

[Martok]

Congratulations, Froggy! I'm honestly very thrilled for you. :medievalcheers:


after you are used to doing it (ie after about 2 weeks of use) putting contact lenses on is something you can do in about 20 seconds....it can take some time in the beggining.....I remember the first time I tried to put them on all by myself I took a good 12 minutes :laugh4:
Heh; that brings back memories. ~:rolleyes:

I too had a devil of time the first month or so that I started wearing contacts -- I just couldn't stand the thought of putting something IN MY EYE. :fainting: I eventually got the hang of it, though, and have now been happily wearing them for 8-9 years. I still have glasses as well, but I only wear them about 20% of the time, as they usually become uncomfortable after a few hours of use. I'll take contact lenses any day of the week. :yes:

[Big King Sanctaphrax]

I think eyewear can be quite cool really-as soon as it's even mildy sunny, I stick on a pair of sunglasses. They're quite simply one of the coolest accessories known to man. So, if I had impaired vision, I just get prescription sunglasses made and wear them all the time.

[doc_bean]

I think eyewear can be quite cool really-as soon as it's even mildy sunny, I stick on a pair of sunglasses. They're quite simply one of the coolest accessories known to man. So, if I had impaired vision, I just get prescription sunglasses made and wear them all the time.

I have glasses that change colour, nice system, but far from perfect, not dark enough in the sun, sometimes too dark inside (well, rarely, if sunlight falls into the room it might happen).

[Ignoramus]

I've had glasses for about 6 years and they don't bother me at all. After a while of constant wearing you can't even feel that they're there. Sometimes, I'll forget I have them on and begin searching for them.

[frogbeastegg]

People can generally be split into two camps: those who need to wear glasses and consequentally loathe them, and those who don't need them and so think they are cool. :yes: My guess is it's because the former group are reliant on them, while the latter can get rid of them whenever they choose.

[doc_bean]

I don't hate my glasses, mind you I've been wearing glasses for over 18 years already...

[Stig]

I think I'm happy I don't have glasses. I wear sunglasses now with this weather, but glasses all of the time, I just don't see myself wearing them. Hell I would opt for lenses anyway.

[Ronin]

Heh; that brings back memories. ~:rolleyes:

I too had a devil of time the first month or so that I started wearing contacts -- I just couldn't stand the thought of putting something IN MY EYE. :fainting: I eventually got the hang of it, though, and have now been happily wearing them for 8-9 years. I still have glasses as well, but I only wear them about 20% of the time, as they usually become uncomfortable after a few hours of use. I'll take contact lenses any day of the week. :yes:

I still use glasses when I´m home.....but when you are out and about they are too much on an hassle....when I head out the door i´m always using my contacts.

[Martok]

For me, it's more of a comfort issue than anything else. Convenience and vanity do factor in as well, but 90% of the reason I prefer contact lenses over glasses is simply because I can wear contacts for much long periods of time without them bothering me. I can wear mine for 16 hours a day with little difficulty, whereas I can't wear my glasses for more than 4-5 hours before they start to hurt.

I've never had anything against glasses themselves. I certainly didn't mind them at first, since they allowed me to finally see properly again. However, after wearing them for almost 4 years, I'd realized that I couldn't wear them for long periods of time without experiencing a fair amount of discomfort (and occasionally outright pain), thus I made the jump to contacts.

My glasses are still nice for the first hour or so that I'm awake, and then the last couple hours before I go to bed. Occasionally I'll wear them all day, as every now and then I have days where my eyes just don't seem to want the lenses in them, but that's pretty rare.

[Vladimir]

I'm glad to see that you're seeing well again. :jester:

[frogbeastegg]

Any other soft lens users experienced anything like this?

My vision in my left eye is deteriorating; I'm slowly losing my close up vision. That's the one with the stable prescription, the eye I rely on to provide a stable range of vision to compensate for my right's perpetual shifting. I've passed two nights without my lenses in, so my eyes are rested and the lenses have been cleaned and soaked. My right eye seems to be seeing the same as before, so I doubt I accidentally put the lenses in the wrong eyes.

Last night it got so bad I had to take my lenses out because I couldn't see to read. This morning the vision is improved, yet my left eye is still giving me a slightly blurred image. When compared to my right eye it's also giving me slightly muted colours; a page which looks a creamy-white with my right eye is a greyish-white with my left.

My left lens did turn itself inside out overnight the first time I took it out (Oh, the fun I had yesterday morning working out why my eye was irritated and I couldn't see a thing!), but this should not have damaged it, surely? It's in the right way around now.

Has anyone got any suggestions? It's going to be a few days before I can go to an opticians. It's devastating to be losing my vision all over again ~:mecry: