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Lenses
- There are different brands of progressive lenses, and they really are different. And how they fit is much more important with progressives than with single-vision lenses.
- There are different kinds of lens materials, for any kind of lens.
- It’s much too easy to get bad lenses (either inaccurate or just badly made), especially with progressives. In the United States, only 22 states even require that opticians be licensed. There can be a big difference in the quality and accuracy of lenses you can get.
- Progressive lenses are a compromise. You might be happier with separate reading or PC glasses (or both), in addition to progressives.
Computers and Vision
- In addition to how your eyes focus, how they work (your eye muscles) might also affect how comfortably you can see your PC monitor. Here are some articles I found worth reading. Changing where you sit in relation to your monitor (both distance and height) can help a lot in some cases.
- You can get PC glasses, either single vision, or special multifocals designed for using with PCs. Some people find these helpful.
- Many people find LCDs more comfortable to look at than CRTs. But look out – LCDs have a fixed pixel size. You can’t adjust the resolution to be bigger or smaller like you can with CRTs. So get one with the resolution you like. If you use a CRT, be sure your screen is set to the highest refresh rate – it will be much more comfortable to look at.
My Own Recommendations
- Find a good optometrist. Don’t settle for for glasses you’re not comfortable with: lens prescriptions are at least somewhat subjective, and you might be happier with another opinion. Or go back to your optometrist if you’re unhappy; they expect a certain amount of revisits. Most (if not all) opticians will remake lenses with no charge for a prescription change within a certain amount of time.
You probably won’t see as well when you’re over 40 as you did before, but it doesn’t have to be that bad. - Find a good optician. The best prescription in the world isn’t going to help you if your glasses aren’t made accurately.
- Wear sunglasses outdoors all the time; the sun is as bad for your eyes as it is for your skin. These are good because they fit right over your glasses, so you don’t have to buy another pair of expensive prescription glasses.
I am not any kind of medical professional. This just is information I’ve learned over 5 years of bad experiences. I’m writing it in hopes that someone else won’t have to go through what I did (or at least for as long). Here are links to articles I found that I think might be helpful to other people.
If you’re having problems with your glasses, especially with “lineless bifocals”, (progressive lenses) or working at a PC, you should know the following:
Info on this site either based on my experience, or stuff I’ve I’ve picked up reading online. I think it’s accurate, and hope it might be helpful to some people, but don’t intend it as any kind of authoritative or documented info. I’m not any kind of medical professional or even informed user – just someone who had a lot of trouble with glasses for a few years after hitting my mid-40s and learned some stuff as a result.