PNW - absolutely, as the two posts above state, I wear them for any distance activity. Even when I take walks or go bike riding.
I went to dinner on Friday. My sil used reading glasses over her contacts. I used the flashlight app to read the menu. My H and his brother used a magnifying app on their phones to read the menu.
You think we have passed the middle age portion of our lives?
LOL, Deb922. That’s why I refuse to walk around with reading glasses dangling from my neck or on my head. I’m fighting off the inevitable.
Really happy to see the posts on using the phone flashlight in dim restaurants. Why did I never think of that?? I need a lot of light to read, far more than the geriatric set. In my monovision setup, the dr. used my weak eye for distance. I never understood that, nor could or can I see distance, even with correction.
oh…this is one of my current problems that I cant find a good solution for as well!.. I have to wear gas perm contacts for distance vision…don’t get corrected in soft contacts or glasses well due to severe astigmatism and slight ketatoconous (fancy word for corneas that arent shaped right…) This was all well and good until about a year ago when I could not see up close…another scourge of aging! I briefly attempted monovision (one contact for distance and one for close up)…even though the eye doc had very little hope for success…and he was right…My distance vision is so poor that the difference in the correction casued me to be dizzy and have no depth perception…plus I didnt get great close or distance correction…I am currently wearing a pair of readers and have another pushed up on my head (very attractive look) and would do anything for another alternative…I have even started going wiithout sunglasses hoping to induce an early cataract as that surgery seems to correct both vision issues…can someone tell me about the multifocal contacts? how are the different than the monovision? anyone have success with these and very severe near-sightedness?
katie93mom, I have fairly severe near-sightedness, some astigmatism, and now wear the multifocal contacts. They are soft, though. They 're not perfect, but I am very happy with them. My eye doctor told me that they work by having a distance prescription and reading prescription(s) built in to the whole lens, and one’s brain selects what it needs. He said not everyone can wear them (some brains apparently refuse to choose 
), but I feel fortunate they work for me and that my brain accepts them, lol. My distance is corrected to 20/20 on the charts, although I know my distance vision is sharper with my glasses or regular old contacts. It’s been a good compromise for me. I too walked around with glasses on my head or in my hands at all times. Sigh. Now, most often I’m able to read well enough without readers, although in low light I still need help so I won’t squint…
@katie93mom my left eye has a multifocal soft contact, and my right eye has a regular soft contact. When I read and my eyes look down, everything is in focus due to the multifocal. For distance, both lenses “work.” Multifocals come in gas permeable versions. The problem is, neither will be really sharp, so instead of 20/20 corrected, I’m at 20/30.
^^I have mild distance and reading prescriptions and this is exactly my setup (modified monovision) and outcome. One multifocal, one regular, ok vision. I had tried straight monovision and wasn’t thrilled with it. The eye doc said with this scenario, the question is not if it’s good, but if it’s good enough. He told me my vision will never be as sharp as with my glasses. (sigh) My big problem is the computer screen. My unaided vision is great at that distance, so with contacts it blurs. If I’m going to have a lot of screen time, I usually wear my glasses so I can take them off while on the computer. I’m due for my yearly exam soon and know something needs to be tweaked. I just have no idea what or how! This whole aging thing is a real PITA!
I am also a very happy user of daily wear multifocal contacts. I believe they have rings for close reading, computer distance, and far distance.
I’m very nearsighted. (I’ve been told there’s an E at the top of the chart…) The one eye each for near and far vision thing didn’t work for my brain, probably because one eye is always dominate. The multifocal contacts took me about 2 weeks to get used to so that I didn’t have occasional double vision when switching to distance. Far distance vision (mountains and stars) is still not quite as sharp as it could be with optimal correction, but I don’t have to carry reading glasses anymore. (Though I do still have a pair in my purse for hubby, who is lost without reading glasses.) I do keep some pure distance vision contacts for travel to National Parks, but then I need reading glasses for anything close.
I actually got it in my head to try contacts a few years ago. The recommendation was to correct my distance vision and use reading glasses. But I also tried multifocal contacts too. All tries were a disaster for me. Between severe dryness of my eyes (maybe due to menopause) and the fact that I felt that I couldn’t see well no matter what combination I tried, I didn’t feel like it ended up being good option for me. I see so well with progressive bifocals and that’s what works best for me.