Contact Lenses Discussion Area

Davidboy

How you lot can wear those bits of sandpaper in your eyes I will never know. I tried the old hard ones 30 years ago.... jeepers were that bad, then a couple of years ago tried the modern soft type not too bad, but gave up.

Perhaps it's just me. yes I know I'm a baby!! <This what I used to look like most days!!!!

George_Bray

Can anyone help me please? - sorry so long but wanted to try to give as much info as possible

I'd recommend you post your question at Google Groups i.e. on the the sci.med.vision group. Use the following link to get there. I'm sure you'll receive at least one or two responses from eyecare professionals in the USA. Just mention you're from the UK.

http://groups.google.co.uk/groups?hl=en&lr=&safe=off&group=sci.med.vision

George_Bray

Can anyone help me please? - sorry so long but wanted to try to give as much info as possible

Chloe

The 5 mins you report for your first (recent) contact lens consultation sounds brief enough to be almost unprofessional.

I understand that standard non-disposable soft lenses have a water content of about 35%, compared to 55% or more for typical monthly contact lens. I understand more water means more oxygen to the cornea, but I’m no expert.

I wear both standard non-disposable soft lenses, and monthly disposables on occasions. I find the standard lens at least as comfortable as monthly lens (from dawn to dusk, say 16 hours each day). The standard lens, which last me up to 5 years each, are also easier to handle. Perhaps the higher water content makes the monthly lens thinner and more liable to curl up on ones fingers.

I recently posted a question to sci.med.optical about the relative powers of glasses and lens prescriptions. Someone mentioned that astigmatism can come into it but, otherwise, the contact lens might be 0.25 dioptres below, i.e. down to -2.25 in your case.

The monthly lens I sometimes use are Coopervision Frequency 55 (non-aspheric) even though I have some astigmatism in one eye. I pay £6 per month by mail order. I’m interested to hear your comments about the CIBA Optix O2 and may try them.

Re. your focus problem, you say you can only read text easily up to a couple of feet, when with glasses you can read more. Do you mean you can’t read text closer than 2 ft, or further away than 2 ft?

Regards
George

chloe99_2

Hi George - thank you for your comments. I can't read properly further than a few feet away with the lenses in. Does that tell me something?

Have phoned opticians and they say that because it's a trial (I guess they want you to sign up at the end of the day!!) I can go for my one week checkup and they'll give me torics to try free of charge - so I guess I'll give them a go.

They cost a lot more than I wanted to spend. However, when searching internet, if I calculate cheapest mail order lenses plus cheapest solutions plus one annual opticians consult - I don't save any money - so may as well use the monthly scheme for convenience. Anyone else found this?

George_Bray

I can't read properly further than a few feet away with the lenses in. Does that tell me something?

Chloe

I can't tell from your glasses prescription how significant your astigmatism is, but an eyecare professional will know, like at google groups as suggested earlier. Leaving out the astigmatism, it simply sounds like the contact lens aren't powerful enough but how can that be, if you can read perfectly well with your glasses? I don't know. The torics trial would be useful, I guess.

Yes, they certainly want you to sign up at the end of the day!

My cost for monthly lens would be £70 per year (if I only wear them a month each) plus about £20 per year for solutions bought locally. Plus about £25 for a local annual consultation. Total £115 per year.

My question: it's easy to find free or cut price eye tests. These are 'general' eye tests aimed at glasses. But, surely, if your eye was damaged from wearing DIY mail order contact lens, they would notice. No? Why pay another £25 for a 'contact lens eye test' unless you know you have a problem, discomfort or whatever?

I save money by making my lens last longer, e.g. standard soft lens from 1-2 years to 5 years and monthly lens (I hope) from 1 month to 6 months or more, with thorough cleaning and great care. So my total annual cost for monthly lens, solutions and contact lens eye test would go down from £115 to less than £60 a year.

Small print: I am not recommending that you wear monthly lens for longer than prescribed. I am not qualified to do so. Most people would be horrified. But it works for me.

Regards
George

edmundli

Hi, Im wearing torics atm, seen some coloured torics advertised on a few websites, wondering if I would be suitable for these too, or I need to go and get myself tested?

filigree_2

I have read this thread with great interest because I find myself short of cash to pay for lenses. For years I used my Westfield health scheme to pay for them and because they were "free" I didn't shop round for bargains. Bad Filigree. I used up my optical benefit on glasses recently and now I need cheap contacts.

I tried to buy just 30 lenses/15 pairs, ie one boxfull from Vision Express. They insisted I HAD to buy 60 lenses minimum and I would be charged £40! They refused to sell me any more than that, insisting they wouldn't let me have any more until I had yet another checkup.

I understand the concerns about customers buying any old lenses without proper care, but I have had a recent sight test and full contact care consultation. I've had the full services of an optometrist so why should I keep going to a high street supplier? No offence to the sales assistants, but all they do is take money off me and online suppliers can do that just as well, but cheaper

I wear daily contacts but only 1-2 times a week. I can order 90 pairs for about £65 (would cost double that in Vision Express) and not need to spend another penny for a year or more. By then I will need a full sight test/contacts consultation and start over again.

Blow paying extortionate High St prices and compulsory quarterly checkups, I'm off to the Internet ;D

FruGal_2

well having some technical understandings I viewed disposables as a bit wasteful considering tolerances usually in products. I had started extending my wear of disposables beyond 30 actual days and became quite comfortable in this when one looked and worked perfectly fine after being misplaced into a scalding bath for long enough to cook boiled egg.

londonman81

became quite comfortable in this when one looked and worked perfectly fine after being misplaced into a scalding bath for long enough to cook boiled egg.

Such scientific testing....way to go MSE! Though I'd not think twice about doing the same...

George_Bray

I have read this thread with great interest because I find myself short of cash to pay for lenses... I need cheap contacts...I wear daily contacts but only 1-2 times a week. I can order 90 pairs for about £65.

I suggest daily disposable contacts are for people with money to throw away each day! If you seek low cost, as I do, the answer must be monthly (I'm trying these now) or standard soft lens (I swear by these).

If you only use a lens 1-2 times a week, let's call that 20% of the time. So a monthly lens should last you at least 5 months, even if you adhere to the "1 month" guidelines.

If lens are not being worn, they can't wear out or accumulate protein and other stuff from your eyes. All you need is thorough disinfection. As for me, I'm aiming for 6 months out of each 1 month lens at 100% wearing (16 hours a day, 7 days a week). If I only used the lens 20% of the time like you, my 6 months target would become 6 x 5 = 30 months or 2.5 years for EACH pair of "monthly" lens. That's cheap and at no increased risk to my eyes. In the unlikely event that the lens feel uncomfortable - which they should not with proper cleaning - then I would, of course, stop using that worn out lens.

The best place I now know for contact lens is Asda Opticians (their own staff) who do 6 pairs of monthly lens for only £33, plus a very fair £15 for a consultation. That's as cheap as the Internet but better because of the local eye care.

So in your position, one set of Asda lens should last 15 years. My costs would be £15 a year for the check up, plus
33/15 a year = £2.20 a year for the lens. Plus solutions.

Regards
George