From glasses to contacts: anyone made the change and been happy?

EB85

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First off, my vision is downright terrible. Anything beyond an arm's length away and it's blur. So, needless to say, my prescription might as well be for binoculars. Most people can only wear my glasses for a few seconds before they get a headache. On that note, I have worn glasses day in and day out since about 7th grade so somewhere nearing 20 years. I have been contemplating contacts for a couple years and even tried to wear them once but couldn't get used to it. Granted, it was for all of an hour I tried but still. I honestly think my specs are part of me. They make me look like me. I try to find some kick ass frames with each new pair to enhance my style a little and I always get compliments. OTOH, contacts seem like less maintenance (considering disposable) and if a pair gets fudged, swap new ones in and go versus spending how many hundreds on new frames. Any opinions one way or the other?
 

Never_Enough

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I prefer my contacts to my glasses, but I don't bother putting my contacts in if I'm just lounging around the house.
 

ssj4sadie

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If your vision is that bad what is the cause? I have keratoconus and contacts (granted they are RGPs) give me the best vision. I just haven't had the time to commit to them at the moment. They are a mother ****er for sure. During some trial wearing, I had a hybrid lens get stuck to my left eye. **** my life did that suck. When my wife came home and saved me it felt like she was about to pull my eyeball out...
 

99-venom

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Try a few different types. Usually your optometrist will carry a few hand out contacts that he/she can give you. I found that certain ones didn't fit my eyes right and would bug me throughout the day. At first, they take time to get used to.
 

EB85

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If your vision is that bad what is the cause?

Just shitty vision as far as I know. I've gone to various optometrists over the years and last year did the dilation thing. No defects of any kind. Just really crappy eyesight. My mom has piss poor eyesight, too, so I think it runs in the family. I'm at the point in my life where it's stabilized and not gotten any worse in some time.
 

jbs$

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I wore contacts for years, a far better choice than glasses. Recently I had the Tecnis lens implants, I now wake up with 20-20 vision in both eyes and no longer have the hassle of contacts or glasses. Also, if there is a change in your vision at some point in the future, the Tecnis lens can be changed to accomadate the change.
 

Thump_rrr

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I have moderate nearsightedness with some astigmatism.
The astigmatism has only been present the last 5 years or so.
I have been wearing contact lenses for over 30 years now.
I have always worn soft contacts and since I cannot fall asleep without watching tv I wear extended wear lenses.
I wear air optix Toric extended wear (6 Day) which I replace monthly.
These are not cheap but at around $250 per year for 12 pairs beats the crap out of the hassle of glasses and prescription sunglasses.
I do not feel them the least bit and have no problem recommending them. I also swim with them on but you cannot dive or you may lose them.
If they are available in your prescription most opticians will order samples in 2-3 different brands to see what you prefer.
Normally the optometrist will charge a nominal charge for the fitting but no cost for the samples

The Air Optix Night and Day and the Bausch+Lomb PureVision are Silicone Hydrogel while other extended wear are gas permeable.
I prefer the Silicone Hydrogel for comfort
 
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silver03svt

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I have worn contacts for the last 19 years with zero issues. Looked into Lasik, but my brother-in-law had it done, and it really messed him up. I wear a 30 day disposable lense. Daytime use and sleep in them for 30 days, then throw away. Get 4 lenses to a box. During heavy pollen season, I normally take them out daily and soak overnight, otherwise, they come out once a week for an overnight soak.

Never had any issues since day 1.
 

Need 04 Wine

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I don't wear glasses or anything

Two good friends had laser eye surgery, their only regret....they waited
 

jbs$

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Would never consider Lasik as you cannot reverse the process, with the Tecnis implants, if you wished, in 15 minutes, you can have them removed.
 

Thump_rrr

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I don't wear glasses or anything

Two good friends had laser eye surgery, their only regret....they waited

Although Lasik has reduced the long term chance of the halo effect it has not eliminated it.
I have a friend who has had Lasik done nearly a year ago and still has difficulties driving at night.
 

Sirhc7897

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I wore glasses most of my younger years. Switched to contacts in my mid 20's. Have just recently bought a pair of glasses again.

I still prefer contacts but every couple weeks now I will wear my glasses around for a few days to give my eyes a break...

There are numerous options available in the contact world these days. Get fitted for them and then try out lots of different options before committing to a brand. The fit and comfort can vary wildly from one brand to the next. I can't wear the Acuvue Oasis for more than about 8 hours without getting headaches, burning eyes and halos. However Cooper Vision makes a "bioinfinity" line that I have regularly worn 60 days consecutively without issue or discomfort...

Contacts are a much more viable option than they were even just 10-15 years ago...
 

nxhappy

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I wore glasses most of my younger years. Switched to contacts in my mid 20's. Have just recently bought a pair of glasses again.

I still prefer contacts but every couple weeks now I will wear my glasses around for a few days to give my eyes a break...

There are numerous options available in the contact world these days. Get fitted for them and then try out lots of different options before committing to a brand. The fit and comfort can vary wildly from one brand to the next. I can't wear the Acuvue Oasis for more than about 8 hours without getting headaches, burning eyes and halos. However Cooper Vision makes a "bioinfinity" line that I have regularly worn 60 days consecutively without issue or discomfort...

Contacts are a much more viable option than they were even just 10-15 years ago...

this...lol
 

Jaysin

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OP your vision sounds as bad as mine, there's no way I could drive or do much of anything productive without my glasses/contacts, and much like you, I have no specific cause, just a crappy set of stock eyes lol. I'm 26, and have been wearing glasses since the 3rd grade, got contacts around early 2001. I wear them 30 days, throw them away, and get a fresh set. I take mine out every night. I do keep a pair of glasses around as the contacts can be slightly irritating at times, and other times I just like giving my eyes a break. As far as any issues I've had, luckily I haven't had any. Save for the random times the contact flips overnight and you put it in the wrong way, you can't tell they're in. If you're used to glasses it will take a little time to adjust to the contacts, not having that break in your periphery throws you off a bit. I say go for it, I always hated working out, doing yard work, etc in my glasses, the sweat would cause them to slide down my nose a little, then then pads would get nasty over time. I'd pick my contacts over my glasses, but having both is the best of both worlds.
 

AfricanSnowOwl

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I wore glasses most of my life, then contacts for a few years before getting PRK. I didn't mind wearing contacts, except when flying. Then they would dry out and give me massive headaches.
The PRK was free by the Air Force otherwise I probably would have just kept wearing contacts. It was truly awesome though not having to ever wear corrective lenses again. At least not for a long time if at all.
 

DriftwoodSVT

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I had lasic surgery back in 2003. Best thing I ever did. Back then it cost me $500 to fix both eyes. Money well spent.
 

Blackoyote

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Switching from glasses to contacts was awesome, although it took getting used to (even though I started in 8th grade, I was still uncomfortable doing it at the age of 29). In second grade I got battery acid in my eye and was afraid of touching them, so it was a big hurdle.

Making the choice to finally get Lasik back in October was the real life game changer. Consider going to a very reputable place and there's next to no chance of a negative side effect. I can recommend Christenbury in Charlotte, NC...one of the most renown and something like 98% of his patients are 20/15 or better. I had my 6 month follow up on Monday and can proudly say I am one of the 20/15ers...no more waking up and looking for glasses to be able to walk around the house. No more worrying about putting shit in my eye every day...just 40 second under the laser and a drugged up night of discomfort was well worth it.
 

highdensity007

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1988 started wearing glasses and contacts in 4th grade. I wore soft contacts during my football games because of obvious helmet issues but preferred my glasses during my baseball games. My contacts back then were the ones you replaced like once a year. I basically only wore them for football reasons for several years. Back then I found them to be uncomfortable. I was a kid and hated having to put a contact in my eye, took me a long time to do it each time and I had more important things to do like play Atari.

Fast forward to HS, contacts became an everyday thing. Putting them in and taking them out was easy by then. Still had the old school replace once a year contacts. Only wore them for school. Couldn't wait to get home and take them out. Still wore them for football games but played better at baseball woth my glasses (same power lenses, maybe coincidence).

Fast forward to 2007, started wearing disposable contacts that replaced every month. A little more comfort but still had to clean them.

Fast forward to 2015, eye doctor gave me a trial pair of daily contacts. Flimsy, but I absolutely have zero issues. Can barely feel them, mostly can't feel anything. I don't have to clean them. I've had friends that have had LASIK but I'm perfectly fine with the disposable daily lenses. I love not having to buy solutions and carry them with me staying somewhere besides home.
 

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