Contacts lens for reading
 

Ok so I have reading glasses only, only needed them since I hit 40, but this year I thought I'd give these contact lens trials a go.

I've not a strong prescription but having a CL would be better than having to cart my glasses out with me, reading menus etc...

Anyway I went to spec savers and tested some, they sent me for a wonder for 20 mins,

Long distance is hindered when you have them in, and I could actually read the back of a tin imps Morrisons, however it was pretty poo, everything was blurry I could read but not sharp at all.

So she took them out and has ordered me some stronger ones. I'm also booking into boots to try there attack...

Anybody have these reading only contacts... How sharp is TXT to you? Compared to your glasses I heard it's not as sharp...

I actually could see double letters like a small shadow when I had them in, weird.

I think the lens are by cyber or cyfer but she said I may have to try a diff vendor... Weird stuff..

I'm short sighted and 49 , only just starting have a problem

Can't you just hold at arms length ?

i have had to wear glasses for reading for the last five odd years

I just have 20 odd pairs of cheap reading glasses (Boots, Poundland, Primark, Tescos, you name it I have bought them) usually about £2

I have them dotted about the house, in my cars, in my sheds, in my Laptop bag

A bit of a pain, but better than contact lenses imo

That's the issue my arms are no longer long enough hence glasses.

Reckon id go with Hodge recommendation , either that or string through the glasses arms and hang em round the neck .
Levering in contacts , with all the associated hassle just for reading doesn't seem worth it but anyway .
Don't enjoy the drying up either .

Do have astigmatism ? The contact lenses are weighted so it would be blurry if they haven't settled right way round

Im pretty heavily short sighted and contact lenses are always a bit hit and miss, either struggle a bit with reading or longer range.

Given up with them and just use glasses all the time

I have varifocal contacts. I'm long sighted and slightly short sighted. I use daily disposable ones which I buy online for half the price of the High Street opticians.

Hm. I must try contacts for reading. I wear reading glasses, and like Hodgy, I have them made from Speccys, as well as I buy the readymade ones from the chemists. That's because I keep losing Speccy ones. Glasses also make a temporary unsightly dent on my nose as I wear them quite low. That's because I want to see distant stuff clearly any time without the glasses in my way, and through my glasses when I'm reading. If I have contacts for reading, I don't want them messing with my distant vision. I'll go to Speccy and perhaps get a pair a try. They say they can make good ones for me.

if you want glasses just get varifocal ones, they do varied versions i got the display ones, which means i can read fine mainly what there for, but if i look up i can see normally, this is kinda the way the contacts work but not as sharp I'm led to think.

That's the thing, you see. I've tried varifical reading glasses, but they did my head in, as the plain glass/piece of plastic coming between my eyes and the distant objects gave me a headache. I thought it could be because there must be something wrong with my distant vision as well, but there isn't. Not yet, anyway. It's just very annoying to see things via anything else, when you know that you don't need it; at least for the distance. Therefore, I put up with my nose denting unifical reading glasses.

Other than that, my next door says (she's 79), that once you've started varifical, you never come off them. That's another thing that worries me. I haven't looked into this phenomenon academically, but I have been informally asking almost every varifocal spec wearer, and they said, yes, it is true. So, yeah, that's another prob.

I'll still give a shot to the varifocal contacts. Let's see if they annoy me. If they do, Specsavers say they will refund me, as long as it's within a fortnight or a month, or something like that.

I wish I could get my eyes lasered, but I've been told it's not worth it for the reading prob. Apparently laser has proven to be more effective for the ones who can't see well in the distance. Apparently you'll still need reading glasses regardless.

I can't see how varifocal contacts work at all :wonder:

More especially if you've astigmatism!

WTF are you talking about??? I don't have astigmatism.

Oh, sorry, may be you are talking about yourself. Sorry, man.

There are 2 types of varifocal contact lenses.

One is you wear a lens for short sightedness in one eye and in the other eye wear one for long sightedness. In most cases your brain does the magic. I tried this option first and it was ok. It's also the cheaper way to do it.

The 2nd type is where the shortsightedness corrected in a small circle in the centre of the lense with the distance corrected in the outsides of the lense.

I've been using the 2nd type for quite a few years now. Unlike glasses they don't take any getting used to.

I can't recommend them highly enough.

Turbo both specsavers and boots offer Free contacts TRIALS, no cost mate... its what I'm doing they get it right then you have a play for a week.

If i get a pair to work I'm going to but 10 pairs and just use them for when I'm out of the lash, or meals etc. rest of time i,ll use glasses

Oh cool! I didn't know about the free trial, but Speccy have informed me through their leaflet that it's a myth that contacts are hard to insert/apply. They're saying that it's really easy to slip them in your eyes. So, yeah, I'll give them a try. Thanks, mate. :thumb:

Omg , forgetting to take mine out after night on the lash was one of the more painful experiences ever !

Thanks coupe . I had a quick look online as well

I could find no difference between the £70.00 pair I had from Specsavers and the £2.00 ones from Primark

indeed my primary non-functional requirement for reading glasses is that the sit on my head when not in use

some are much better that others in this regard

in fact I asked my wife to top up my "reserve" due to an imminent holiday and to replace natural wastage

and the ones she brought back (unbeknownst to her) has little LED lights on them for reading in the dark - pretty cool

I have tried the ones from Primark and Poundland. Some of theirs even come in super slim, lipstick like cases as well. But unfortunately, I lose them even quicker as they're so nano in size. Moreover, I've been told by the opticians that those cheapies can make your vision more defective in long run. So I now buy such glasses at the chemists only, as I feel that they will be more quality assured. They're at least a fiver, and they do the job when I have forgotten my Specsavers' ones somewhere else.

mmm, from people trying flog £70.00 glasses - I'm not convinced


from Specsaver websites - a very careful response to the same question - my bold btw

"For most people ready made reading glasses are not as good as custom-made glasses, but they may be suitable as a spare or extra pair. Because they are made as 'one size fits all' the frame may not fit you and you may not be looking through the center of the lenses, which can cause eyestrain and headaches. Both lenses are also made the same, and therefore not ideal if one eye is different from the other. If you have astigmatism they do not correct it, making them less accurate. They are however, unlikely to do you any harm. It is still important to have regular eye examinations to make sure your eyes are healthy, particularly when you are over the age of 40. It is unlikely that you will make your eyes worse, but inevitably as you get older you will become more dependent on them and gradually need stronger lenses."

Actually, can you please ask your wife where she got these^ with LED lights on from, Hodgy? I'd like a pair or two like that myself. Please let me know, if you could. Thanks.

Hm. I didn't know what Specsavers website said. I know an optician from Alton Murphy, because I sometimes get my glass frames from them as well. She told me over a coffee that I should not buy cheap reading glasses. She may have said that because Specsavers have undercut them big style, anyway. Perhaps she doesn't want anyone else like Poundland and Primark making them go bust.