multi focal contacts

Parents Forum Parent Cafe
#1

<p>Has anyone had great success with these? I started with AirOptics and switched to Bioinfinity but my near vision is still unsatisfactory. Thankfully I can read the computer screen perfectly at work all day, but reading the back of a medicine bottles is near impossible. I just feel like there is never enough light, especially in the evenings.</p>

<p>It's almost time to go back to the optometrist so any recommendations would be appreciated. The optometrist is young and not very encouraging :-(.</p>

#2

<p>I have been wearing multifocals on and off for a while…just recently switched to air optics. My problem is that my eyes get so very dry by the end of the day. </p>

#3

<p>I wear regular contacts & use reading glasses.</p>

#4

<p>This is my only real complaint about aging. (Well, I could think of others, but this one is constant.)</p>

<p>I have had trouble wearing any contacts since age 45. Dryness, headaches, complete inability to read anything small. I now only wear them socially, but they aren’t great for night driving. </p>

<p>The eye doctor has tried playing with more distance, less distance, different RX in each eye, different brands……</p>

<p>My husband is a few years older than I am and can wear contacts for 16 hours straight. I wish I had a helpful suggestion, but my sense is that the ability to wear contacts declines with age.</p>

#5

<p>When your eyes are dry, they may also be irritated or inflamed even if they don’t look red.
This impacts your ability to focus.
I only wear my contacts twice a week if that because my eyes are dry, although I can see much better with contacts.( I am very near sighted)
Also if you go the reading glasses route, you can get one optimized for looking at computer screens.
<a href=“http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/15/technology/personaltech/easing-eye-strain-with-the-right-lenses.html?_r=0”>http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/15/technology/personaltech/easing-eye-strain-with-the-right-lenses.html?_r=0</a></p>

#6

<p>I used to wear contacts. But then I got old. I couldn’t get the multi focal ones to work for me… so I had Lasik done a couple of years ago. It was the best decision I ever made. I do need reading glasses when reading the back of medicine bottles though. The print on them is really small. </p>

#7

<p>Unfortunately my eyes are too nearsighted for Lasik. I cant even get my multifocal classes filled at Costco cause they don’t go that high.
Its been awful since I lost my purse with my extra glasses in Portland.:frowning:
I cant see at night either. I had to wait till morning after I drove my daughter back to school after break.
I hadn’t really noticed I didn’t see well until I was on roads that were more unfamiliar.
You might try moisturizing eye drops & see if that helps your visual acuity.</p>

#8

<p>^Have you checked lasik lately? My eyes were really really nearsighted. They were so bad that if my glasses fell off the nightstand I couldn’t even see them. I would have to get on the floor and feel around for them… </p>

#9

<p>Mine are -11.00.
I am so nearsighted, that I have to have lenses to do an eye exam. I can barely see how many fingers they are holding up. Its like a Marx bro skit.
I considered lasik, as I figured at the least I wouldn’t need glasses that were quite as strong, but I was concerned I wouldn’t be able to see close either.
My son in law to be, had Lasik, before he went in the service. I think he’s been pretty happy with it.
I haven’t heard of this surgery before. They implant a lens.</p>

<p><a href=“http://visianinfo.com/help-for-severe-myopia/”>http://visianinfo.com/help-for-severe-myopia/</a></p>

<p>Id probably save on glasses!</p>

<p>Also, OP, it may help to change your saline solution & use drops.
Ifound it helps a lot when my eyes are tired.</p>

#10

<p>I have multi focal lenses- Biofinity- and I love them. I decided to move to those rather than contacts with reading glasses because I couldn’t read my phone and I didn’t want to put on reading glasses every time I needed to see my phone. Also, I’m in grad school and was reading text books for hours at a time using the reading glasses. When I would take the reading glasses off, my distant vision was messed up for a long time. The same thing happens when I wear my regular glasses (cannot deal with my progressive lenses- nothing is in the right place and I’m moving my head all the time trying to find the right spot) and read “under” them. </p>

<p>They said I should change the Biofinity lenses once a month but I change them much more often than that. I had gone to daily wear lenses with my regular contacts because I get protein build up really fast and they get scratchy and blurry. So I end up going 10 days to 2 weeks with the Biofinity. I really wanted daily wear multi-focal when I got them last year and they kept telling me they were SO expensive that way. But, using three times as many monthly ones and having to buy all that contact solution all the time makes it pretty even, IMO. I’m going to try to get them to give me daily wear ones next time. I also have to replace my left one much more often than my right so I have a bunch of “non dominant” eye contacts left and only one more dominant eye left. </p>

#11

<p>Hey EK, my Rx is right there with you. One ophthalmologist said I was a candidate for lasik, but I am not interested in trying it. I know problems are not common, but the chance of it ruining the vision I have is not something I am willing to risk. I have done fine for this long with glasses and contacts, so at least my vision is great with those.</p>

<p>My former optometrist did not recommend the multi focals for me. He said he only has success with patients in about 2 out of 10 cases. I have been doing monovision since the presbyopia set in at about age 45. My brain accommodates it well. I just started with a new optometrist who was more encouraging with the multi focals, but in the end we decided to just stick with the monovision since I was successful with those.</p>

<p>And I agree about maybe changing solutions. All of a sudden my left eye in particular was having issues. It felt like there was sinus pain behind it, then the inner corner started stinging. I thought it was allergies, then the allergy pills were not relieving it any more. This was off and on over a period of a year. New optometrist put me on Clear Care still with my old lenses, and it was a huge change! All of those symptoms went away. When I got my new lenses yesterday, she had them soaking in Pure and Moist. Problem in left eye returned for the day. I will try them today after sitting in Clear Care overnight. </p>

#12

<p>I could write a book about this. Did the multi focal and now I’m doing the mono vision. They both have pros and cons, I changed optometrists and he thought you get better vision with the mono vision than the multi focal. I’m voting for neither lol!</p>

<p>Anyways since I am always complaining about my contacts, we are trying this. I have the mono vision contacts but he also prescribed a stronger contact for the one eye for driving and night vision. I have a wear reading glasses but to drive my vision is really crisp and I liked that. My SIL does this as she can’t tolerate the mono vision but then I got used to not seeing that great which is the reality with mono or multi focal contacts </p>

<p>Also clear care is the way to go. </p>

#13

<p>As it happens, I am about to try the multifocal contacts. I currently wear progressives (glasses), but I hate wearing glasses all the time. Unlike many people, I took to progressives like a duck to water. It is true that i see close up better without them, but that would be true of anything. I wore contacts for a long time with no issues, except when unbeknownst to me an optometrist prescribed the near eye/far eye combo. I has surgery for strabismus as a child, and I can switch at will from eye to eye, but tend to have issues using both at the same time (Binoculars, 2-eye microscopes, etc). By the end of an evening at the ballet, for example, my dominant eye would be strained and I would have a headache. With regular contacts that correct for distance, I am blind close up unless I have readers, and I read a lot. I refuse to go around with readers on a thing around my neck. The optometrist says that the multifocals should give me close vision sufficient to read a magazine–okay, maybe not The New Yorker :slight_smile: --or a menu without readers. That I may be able to deal with. I don’t plan to wear them all the time.</p>

#14

<p>I will always read a thread about contacts and glasses! Recently turned 50 - great health overall - but the vision thing is challenging as I am extremely nearsighted and experiencing dry eye issues. Working on dry eyes with heated moist compress several times a day, fish oil capsules and drops. Can generally wear contacts 8 hours/day. But after coming home from work, I am stuck wearing my glasses all evening. Glasses are thick and not terribly attractive. I find myself reluctant to make weekday evening plans as I can’t drive at night and don’t want to go out in my glasses. Definitely having an impact on my life.</p>

<p>Eye doc had suggested surgery as my best option - but I am leery. It would be similar to cataract surgery with implanted lenses. Similar to the link posted by emeraldkity. It would be amazing to eliminate contacts for good. I’d be happy with just reading glasses as needed. I’m just worried about a bad result and being in worse shape visually than I am now, so going to mull it over for a while.</p>

#15

<p>I switched to progressive lenses … I got tired of not being able to see with contacts (multifocal or otherwise)! </p>

#16

<p>That’s probably my next step too, if I’m not ready for surgery. You’d laugh if you saw me now - wearing my thick glasses, with reading glasses over them! Yes, I am wearing 2 pairs of glasses. It is absurd.</p>

#17

<p>A bit off topic, but I have always hated shopping for glasses ever since I was 3 yo. It is so hard to imagine how they will look with my thick lenses in them (which also make my eyes look smaller).</p>

<p>Well I have a new prescription and really should get it filled in case I have a problem with my contacts. H and I went into a smaller optical center we have used in the past. The woman said they would take 30% off the cost of the frames and lenses. Ok, I still wanted to keep the cost down and told her that. I also told her what I wanted in a frame - the thin gold or brown metal, thin temples of the same material, and oval shape for the lenses. She hands me frames that are plastic, have thick temples, are rectangular and worst of all, some that were $400!! Did you not hear me?</p>

<p>I finally found a frame that was acceptable and was priced at $150. So she worked up the order and with the 30% it was still going to be $579. I hesitated and said I would have to think about it. She said she would talk to her manager (shades of buying a car??). She came back and said they would do it for $500 if I ordered them right then (more shades of buying a car???). I still said I would have to think about it. She gave me back my prescription and we left. On the way out I heard the man say, “That’s it?” And H who was behind me heard him add “They’re crazy”. Yep, not going back to that store - ever. I really hate shopping for glasses :frowning: .</p>

#18

<p>My advice for someone thinking of Lasik is really check out your surgeon. I went to a couple places before I finally picked the one that did my Lasik. Why did I pick him? Well for one thing he had done a lot of lasik surgeries and I figured if I picked someone who had done thousands of surgeries I would have a better chance of it turning out fine.
Also he is the official Lasik provider for the Atlanta Falcons, So I figured he must be ok. But still it was scary because you don’t know if its really going to be ok until afterwards.</p>

<p>Two of my sons wear glasses. I’ve found both Sams and Walmart to be reasonable about the cost.</p>

#19

<p>Costco Optical has good prices on glasses & contacts and you can bring in your RX from your own eye dr, as opposed to using their in-house optometrist.</p>

<p>Enjoying reading this thread as I feel I am the only one of my friends complaining so much about diminishing eyesight. I would have been fine simply adding readers to contacts, but losing the ability to wear contacts for more than a few hours at a time is very frustrating. End of my whine!</p>

#20

<p>Every opthamologist and retinal surgeon I know says they would not have lasik done. That tells me something. I have tried several differnt multifocal lenses, but now wear my glasses most of the time. I use lenses when going out to a fancy event or when I go skiing.</p>

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