Contact lense wearer's.....

[SeaSerpent]

Im thinking about getting contact lenses. What do they feel like, is it going to be like having something stuck in my eye....driving me nuts? Also, I hear about people getting eye infections, does this happen a lot?

 

[gentobu]

for the first few days you will probably feel them. I never had any infections, just some minor irritation in my eye lids, but that went away when I switched cleaning solutions. One thing you will find to be quite irritating about contacts, is the fact that you have to put them on and take them off everyday.

 

[ChrisIsBored]

After 4 years of wearing contact lenses i've recently gone back to wearing glasses. Maybe next time I get an eye exam i'll get contacts again, but after a while the they just got too irritating for me.

It didn't bother me having to take them off and putting them in everyday. It did bother me when lately after having them in for 6 hours or so they would dry up a lot and start to itch. Like I said, i've had them for 4 years prior though. A nice break from then should be soothing for my eyes.

 

[DumbQuestion]

They are real good if you get the ones that are right for you.. Try a few. I used Acuview but they were crap....

I now use 2 weekly disposables... They cost around $50 for 3 month supply.

 

The mistake that most people make when wearing contacts is keeping them in too long. I used to do it too. Now I try not to have my contacts in for more than 8 hours. If they're in for 10 or 12 hours one day, no big deal. But, I take them out whenever I'm home, even if it's only for 3-4 hours or so.

DON'T EVER SLEEP IN YOUR CONTACTS. I hate when people do that with non-permanent lenses. It's horrible for your eyes and can cause all sorts of nasty, goopy things to come out of your eyes.

This is what happens if you wear contacts for too long.

 

[DumbQuestion]

Kept them in 2 long... That is true! I have found the brand that suites me and have had them in for 24 hours no probs...

 

[spaceman]

just make sure and keep them clean,you may feel them the 1st few days.and like the person above said DO NOT sleep with them in under any circumstances.Ive been to the ER twice cuz of this, with pain in my eyes that was similar so someone throwing sand in them constantly.

 

[jemcam]

I wore contacts for 20 years, and the last 10 or 12 I wore the accuvue disposables. Those gave me the least problems and irritated my eyes the least.

I got lasik performed on both eyes now and went from approx. 20/650 vision to 20/15 in both eyes! Depends on how old you are, but ask your Dr. about it. If you are eligible, they can work out a way for you to pay them. It's well worth it if your eyes are very bad like mine were.

 

[iamwiz82]

I currently wear them. Twice in the last 4 years i have had cuts on my eye lid that really get aggravated by the contacts. It feels like there is something in it and you cant get it out. I want to get LASIK, but it's too much money.

 

[SinnerWolf]

i've been wearing contacts since 92 and i'll never go back to glasses. Depending on how rough you are with contacts, you may need more durable ones. They have thicker ones, that to me feel like a grain of sand stuck in your eye. Or they have the thinner ones which to me are unnoticeable and less obvious, which are obviously more fragile. I would personally advise staying away from disposables. A pair of contacts typically lasts me about 2 years, and runs between 140-300, mainly because i have a stigmatism and have to get a toric lense. But even so, disposables for the same duration would run twice as much and are much more susceptible to complications since you sleep/shower with them. Disposables are the ones typically associated with eye infections because you keep them in 24/7, and your eye is exposed to all the smoke, bacteria, etc...until you remove them. With regular contacts,I enzymatic clean them about every 3-4 months, which in case you don't know is a chemical process that strips away protein build ups from the lenses. You also get used to simply rinsing them off and gently massaging away any buildup. I've never had an issue with them.

 

[BigJohnKC]

I've been wearing contacts for seven years. I love them and would never go back. I recently switched to Bausch and Lomb's Purevision brand - they allow more oxygen to get to your eyes, so the contacts are actually designed to be worn all the time, even overnight. I take mine out every night because my eyes need it, but one of the guys I work with has the same brand ans wears them for a month at a time. They are perfect for me since I'm too lazy to rub and clean them every night, so I just wear them for about three months and throw them away. The last pair I had I wore for about six months before they ripped (from old age). Get them, you won't regret it.

 

[SeaSerpent]

Thanks for the responses guys, youve been very helpful

 

[xospec1alk]

woohoo 20/20!!

 

[Beau]

They don't bother me if I don't wear them for too long. The maximum wear time for dailywear contacts is like 8 hours -- try to not go above that and you'll be fine. I've never had an infection, either. If you wear your lenses for too long, it suffocates your cornea and you get a vessicle growth through your vision which could inhibit future surgical correction and cause irreversable blurry vision. Contacts are great, but you have to be responsible with them.

 

[dude]

I've been wearing contacts for 10 or 11 years. Never had an eye infection. I used to wear the same pair of contacts for a few months at a time but heard horror stories so I switched to a new pair every month or so. but still, after about 5 years of using the same contacts for months on end, never had a problem.

I now wear daily disposables because I hate cleaning the lenses at night. It will end up costing a little bit more but now I don't have to clean them or anything. At night, just take them out and trash em. If they irritate me in the middle of the day, just take another pair out of my pockets and put them on.

 

[Viper GTS]

I started wearing contacts almost a month ago after being diagnosed with keratoconus. Contacts are not considered optional, glasses simply don't help me. I wear RGP lenses since soft contacts again do nothing for me.

Some thoughts:

- They don't get in the way like glasses do
- My eyes hurt like hell from the sun, I need to get some good sunglasses (I spent the last year wearing photo-fade glasses, so they've led a sheltered life)
- Putting them in/taking them out gets annoying, you have to use a plunger to pull the lens off the surface of your eye. Imagine an iris sized suction cup that spent the last 16 hours on your eyeball. Now pull it off. Ouch.

That having been said, they have been nothing short of miraculous for me. When the contact specialist at Casey Eye Institute (part of OHSU) put a contact lens in my right eye I spent the next 5 minutes in awe - I could see detail I had NEVER seen before (or maybe I saw it and didn't remember it since my vision had been bad for so long). I now feel hopelessly blind if I don't have them in, even though my vision has not truly changed. Because of that I tend to leave them in longer than I probably should, but I haven't had any problems yet.

Viper GTS

 

[J0hnny]

Originally posted by: xospec1alk
woohoo 20/20!!

Dammit, I can't even remember the last time I had 20/20 vision. I started wearing glasses in the 2nd grade!

I don't like contacts but I do have disposable contacts that I would use on extreme occasions such as paintball or snowmobiling.

 

[vi edit]

How well will my eyes adjust if I just use contacts for a couple hours one or two days a week for things like biking and golf? I like to wear sunglasses when I golf and bike, but can't because it requires me to ditch the glasses for the sunglasses. I have some clip on shades that I put on my glasses for driving, but they are not designed to work well in any sort of athletic activity.

I'm looking to get contacts that I can pop for an hour or two bike ride, and maybe for a couple hours while I play 9 holes or 18 holes of golf. Would my eyes adjust well enough going from glasses to the contacts to be usable in those short durations of time?

 

[Beau]

Originally posted by: vi_edit
How well will my eyes adjust if I just use contacts for a couple hours one or two days a week for things like biking and golf? I like to wear sunglasses when I golf and bike, but can't because it requires me to ditch the glasses for the sunglasses. I have some clip on shades that I put on my glasses for driving, but they are not designed to work well in any sort of athletic activity.

I'm looking to get contacts that I can pop for an hour or two bike ride, and maybe for a couple hours while I play 9 holes or 18 holes of golf. Would my eyes adjust well enough going from glasses to the contacts to be usable in those short durations of time?

Your eyes will adjust just fine. You may even want to start wearing contacts more often. Imagine having your full peripheral vision in focus, it's amazing the difference contacts make.

 

[SinnerWolf]

I'm looking to get contacts that I can pop for an hour or two bike ride, and maybe for a couple hours while I play 9 holes or 18 holes of golf. Would my eyes adjust well enough going from glasses to the contacts to be usable in those short durations of time?

easily! It only takes a minute or two for your eyes to adapt to contacts, if even any time at all. Although i seriously doubt you'll be popping them in for a mere hour or two once you start using them. Only reason you'll have to take them out is sleep or swimming activities.

 

[Beau]

Originally posted by: SinnerWolf
swimming activities.

I swim with mine in.... Gives them a nice disinfecting chlorine bath

 

[BL0RT]

- Putting them in/taking them out gets annoying, you have to use a plunger to pull the lens off the surface of your eye. Imagine an iris sized suction cup that spent the last 16 hours on your eyeball. Now pull it off. Ouch.

dar i use my fingers, what's this plunger thing i've never heard of it before? mebee i should get one heh

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

i can only suggest that you be willing to keep trying out different brands until you find one that is comfortable. You have to wear each brand for about a week b/f you will know how they fit. I just recently got fitted and the optometrist ended up having me try out 4 different brands. I have finally settled on the Biomedics 55. I have relatively large and flat corneas so it made the process a little more complicated than usual.

Don't settle for uncomfortable lenses or poor vision.

 

[Viper GTS]

Originally posted by: BL0RT

- Putting them in/taking them out gets annoying, you have to use a plunger to pull the lens off the surface of your eye. Imagine an iris sized suction cup that spent the last 16 hours on your eyeball. Now pull it off. Ouch.

dar i use my fingers, what's this plunger thing i've never heard of it before? mebee i should get one heh

Plungers

Viper GTS

 

[ucdnam]

I've worn contacts for 8 years and learned quite a bit. First, carry lubrication drops with you, in case your eyes get dry because that's a horrible feeling. Second, if you can, wear sunglasses if there's a breeze to keep them from drying up, this also works for driving with windows down

Also, like others mentioned, try not to sleep in them.

Finally, wash and rinse them suckers good. You won't feel them in your eyes if you keep them clean. The moment they go dirty, you'll feel icky and stuff. You'll know it's time to get a new pair, which is usually around time when they've run their course anyway.

I have toric lenses for my left eye for astigmatism and regular lenses in my right eye. If you can, get your perscription and try different types of contacts, to see what is right for you. You can buy them online and save a little too

They'll range from one day wear, 2 week wear, month wear.. etc. Depending on the type of person you are, if you're stringent with cleaning and maintenance, you can choose one that'll fit your lifestyle.