Do I need progressive-lense glasses?
July 16, 2019 12:43 PM Subscribe
I had LASIK 20 years ago but my ability to read books has recently rapidly declined. I thought I needed simple reading glasses but a fancy eyewear place ended up doing an exam, found an astigmatisms in both eyes and next thing I know I owned $500 progressive-lensed glasses. What do I do now?
They are willing to take the glasses back and swap in the simple reading lenses...
...But what I'm wondering is — before I do that, is there any reason to keep these? My long distance vision is perfect so I don't really know what ill effects the astigmatisms actually have on my daily life.
Also — sometimes I'm out at a bar and I want to read my phone which is difficult. So I want to wear glasses all night at the bar without taking them on and off. But are progressive lenses my only option? With the ones I bought, I find myself constantly having to position my head properly to see books and phones clearly and it feels very odd and inconvenient compare to simple reading glasses. I also like the frames aesethically very much on these glasses and wouldn't mind wearing them out, but if they're just plain reading glasses that's obviously not going to work.
Anyway, I haven't had to think about vision-related stuff in 20 years so I just want to make sure I'm not spending money I don't need to. Thanks!
They are willing to take the glasses back and swap in the simple reading lenses...
...But what I'm wondering is — before I do that, is there any reason to keep these? My long distance vision is perfect so I don't really know what ill effects the astigmatisms actually have on my daily life.
Also — sometimes I'm out at a bar and I want to read my phone which is difficult. So I want to wear glasses all night at the bar without taking them on and off. But are progressive lenses my only option? With the ones I bought, I find myself constantly having to position my head properly to see books and phones clearly and it feels very odd and inconvenient compare to simple reading glasses. I also like the frames aesethically very much on these glasses and wouldn't mind wearing them out, but if they're just plain reading glasses that's obviously not going to work.
Anyway, I haven't had to think about vision-related stuff in 20 years so I just want to make sure I'm not spending money I don't need to. Thanks!
I have a set of progressive lenses. As you've discovered, they only work well under certain circumstances. In the future, I'll just go with two sets of glasses, one for reading, one for everything else.
posted by SPrintF at 1:24 PM on July 16, 2019
posted by SPrintF at 1:24 PM on July 16, 2019
I'd go with the inexpensive option. Presbyopia, the condition that makes many of us need reading glasses after we turn 40 or so, is a muscular condition that laser surgery is not going to fix. Cheap reading glasses (like you might buy for $10 - $20 in a Walmart) will fix it. When I had laser surgery, the doc gave me a choice of fixing my mid-range or my distant-range vision (not everyone has to make such a choice). I chose the middle, and got a pair of cheap distance glasses which I keep in the car for driving, and a pair of cheap reading glasses that I keep at home. It sounds like you could get away with just the reading glasses. It's certainly possible to carry a set with you, if you're worried about small print at a bar, or if your job requires you to read small print. Or you can take out your phone and use a magnifier app if those occasions are rare.
posted by ubiquity at 2:03 PM on July 16, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by ubiquity at 2:03 PM on July 16, 2019 [1 favorite]
I must be the last person in the world who wears bifocals, but I am super far-sighted, also slight astigmatism, and I love them. In my case, I am far-sighted (hyperopia) genetically, but am also now an old and my close vision is deteriorating. I tried progressives a couple of years ago at the urging of the optometrists and I HATED them. I felt like they actually made my distance vision worse, I had no more peripheral vision, and I could never find the reading section.
My top lenses don’t do much except correct the astigmatism, and the reading prescription for looking at my phone, books, menus, etc., is on the bottom. The line doesn’t bother me at all and I kinda like it bc it makes it easy to know where the prescription changes.
I do have a separate pair of computer glasses bc old, but you might not need those. I switched to bifocals in college when carrying around a separate pair of reading glasses became too annoying.
posted by DiscourseMarker at 4:03 PM on July 16, 2019 [1 favorite]
My top lenses don’t do much except correct the astigmatism, and the reading prescription for looking at my phone, books, menus, etc., is on the bottom. The line doesn’t bother me at all and I kinda like it bc it makes it easy to know where the prescription changes.
I do have a separate pair of computer glasses bc old, but you might not need those. I switched to bifocals in college when carrying around a separate pair of reading glasses became too annoying.
posted by DiscourseMarker at 4:03 PM on July 16, 2019 [1 favorite]
I switched to progressives (for the most part, my backup glasses have always been bifocals) after a hard sell at an optometrist I like/trust, but there are definite pluses and minuses. I work at a computer a lot and the middle distance thing does seem a lot easier on the eyes. The computer work was a big part of the reason they wanted me to switch, and I agree it was a big step up. However if your glasses get a little bit crooked or they weren't measured exactly perfectly they are not going to be as usable as bifocals. I had one pair (actually, one of three ever! hah) that the reading was always a little bit off, my current pair is only like 7-8 months old and I definitely need to go in to get them adjusted frame-wise as something has gone slightly wrong.
That said my vision improved very, very slightly in one eye/distance since I mostly switched over so maybe there is something to it. I would not trust online vendors for this though, or anyone who wouldn't completely redo the lenses for *any reason* given how finicky they are. I can't speak to the astigmatism part of the thing, but definitely have been meaning to get another pair of bifocals as backup glasses with my latest rx. Bifocals might be an option for you even if the top is just no rx since you want to wear the glasses out, etc. (my face gets sore wearing glasses all day tho, maybe just using them as reading glasses is best).
posted by love2potato at 5:11 PM on July 16, 2019
That said my vision improved very, very slightly in one eye/distance since I mostly switched over so maybe there is something to it. I would not trust online vendors for this though, or anyone who wouldn't completely redo the lenses for *any reason* given how finicky they are. I can't speak to the astigmatism part of the thing, but definitely have been meaning to get another pair of bifocals as backup glasses with my latest rx. Bifocals might be an option for you even if the top is just no rx since you want to wear the glasses out, etc. (my face gets sore wearing glasses all day tho, maybe just using them as reading glasses is best).
posted by love2potato at 5:11 PM on July 16, 2019
What worked for me was progressives for driving which lets me also read the instrument cluster and Waze map on my phone. I use those drug store pull apart (spring loaded) polarized sunglass attachments on my progressives for sunny days. And I carry cheap drug store (or Costco) reading glasses for when I'm really going to be reading (paper or screens). So the progressives stay in the car (be careful to clear that with optometrist that they will be able to handle the temperature).
posted by forthright at 5:41 PM on July 16, 2019
posted by forthright at 5:41 PM on July 16, 2019
DiscourseMarker: you and me! I tried progressives for three years and hated them: the distortion at the edge of the glasses and having to move my head constantly to see the entire computer screen was annoying and occasionally painful. I do web work in my day job and digital art in my side job and it is VERY IMPORTANT that I be able to see the entire screen of my giant monitors at once. Switched to bifocals for non-computer work and a separate pair of glasses for computer work and haven't looked back. Every time I go in, they still try to badger me to switch to progressives.
posted by telophase at 7:39 AM on July 17, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by telophase at 7:39 AM on July 17, 2019 [1 favorite]
When I couldn't see well at any distance, progressives were great. I had them for years, and I loved them.
However, I've had cataract surgery, and now I can see at a distance without glasses. I got progressives, and they were awkward and annoying. I now use reading glasses when I need them. That's still really annoying sometimes, as my job involves a lot of switching back and forth between medium and close distances sometimes, but I just wasn't happy with the progressives doing that. And even though I have great vision insurance, the progressives were still hella expensive compared with getting reading glasses.
It is tricky to be a part-time glasses wearer though, and I found I have to keep glasses in various locations rather than hoping I'll remember to bring me with them. So one pair lives at home, one lives in my purse, and one lives at the office. But they're cheap enough that I can do that.
posted by FencingGal at 2:12 PM on July 17, 2019
However, I've had cataract surgery, and now I can see at a distance without glasses. I got progressives, and they were awkward and annoying. I now use reading glasses when I need them. That's still really annoying sometimes, as my job involves a lot of switching back and forth between medium and close distances sometimes, but I just wasn't happy with the progressives doing that. And even though I have great vision insurance, the progressives were still hella expensive compared with getting reading glasses.
It is tricky to be a part-time glasses wearer though, and I found I have to keep glasses in various locations rather than hoping I'll remember to bring me with them. So one pair lives at home, one lives in my purse, and one lives at the office. But they're cheap enough that I can do that.
posted by FencingGal at 2:12 PM on July 17, 2019
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My distance vision is good enough for most daytime stuff but I find it's worse at night. The glasses help; this is one of the main reasons I'm probably going to stick with progressives rather than just dedicated reading glasses.
posted by jquinby at 1:23 PM on July 16, 2019