I can tell you I can hit a soccer ball, maybe a softball sized target with progressives, but I want a quarter size group, I use my shooting glasses. The plastic in mine gets a little funky 15 feet out or so. But this screen is sharp.
Did I waste money on progressive glasses?
- Thread starter Bailey28
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I tried a cheap pair, got cheap results. No surprise but no real desire to change. Just getting to where I need readers for close up, but can still go without, but prescription single rx for reading is becoming nice to use. Just really like the wide field of vision.
Oddly enough, in 1995 the last pair of "non-bifocals" I ever got were polycarbonate and were the BEST eyeglasses I ever had.
My dog gnashed them into an artistic ball of scratched plastic and twisted metal.
Progressives were to me as stupid and useless as contact lenses.
Do keep in mind how much of the impetus for contacts and progressives comes from vanity a/o style.
I've been comfortable with 38mm (the longest they make, I believe) lined bi-focal lenses.
However, I went shopping with my sister (a dangerous thing) and allowed myself to succumb to the combined pressure of her sincere efforts to modernize me and the shop owner's superb selection.
Let's just say SIs don't shop lackluster.
Remember, each side of the "mushroom's stipe" is a dead zone. This is where what posters here have called "the fish bowl effect" originates.
It may be that I have a really good set of lenses and/or a really good optician. But I have no fish bowl effect and I can see quite clearly at progressively increasing distances, just as is supposed to happen with progressives. And I don't have to think about it either, I just see well at every distance.
When I first got progressives I found walking and especially walking on stairs a problem. I may have just adapted to them or maybe the lenses are better now, but I haven't found that a problem in decades.
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IF they have beem made right (the optician did measure plenty of stuff between your eyes with a ruler to the point you started wondering if they are doing ok) - you'll get used to them. If not - you might not.
This is however for bifocals where your regular vision needs glasses too.
I was given reading glasses reports for years, all were stating that my farsight vision is perfect. I kept complaining that it is not.
Eventually I borderline forced my then eyedoctor to measure my farsight otherwise than looking at letter charts, and it turned out - "Oh yeah, your farsight was so good in the past that even now, when it dropped by half, it still registers at 20/20. You used to have 40/20". Or whatever xx/20 that it was that was better than average.
They got me the bifocals and I feel reborn - after the adjustement period.
For readers only, you might not need them though.
One specific reason I'd advise you to get used to them - at some point your eyesight might drop to the point where glancing at the info on your car dash will require readjustment between dash and view at infinity. In the right conditions (by night, with opposite headlights and so on), this adjustment might become bad enough to matter for safety.
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I switched about 3 years ago. Not 100% happy but I have adjusted to them. The biggest problem I had during the adjustment was distortion in my peripheral vision when driving - I'd get tricked into thinking there was a vehicle or something there when there wasn't.
I wonder if being nearsighted or farsighted has an effect on how hard it is to adapt to progressive lenses.
I'm nearsighted, and it only took a few days to get acclimated to progressives. My optometrist, however, did keep the "add" power low on my prescription, as he knew it was my first set of progressives. The lower the "add" power on the prescription, the less difference there is between the top and bottom portions of the lenses. The milder change means wider viewing corridors. (The same should happen for taller lenses; anything you can do to make the change less drastic means wider viewing corridors.)
The important part is that you now have your prescription and frame size. You can feed both into an AI and have it adjust the "add" power if you want something milder, or even convert it into single-vision if your left and right eyes are different. (That's the one thing drugstore reading glasses cannot accommodate: differences between the left and right eye.) Once you have your modified prescription (double-checked by your optometrist, of course - as you shouldn't trust me or an AI), you can enter it into an online store like Zenni and order inexpensive lenses and frames. They’re cheap enough that you can experiment.
To me, the main benefit of going through the optometrist is that they have access to high-end “digital” lenses, where I believe they can tailor the size of the corridors to suit your preferences. For example, my first set of progressives had a larger distance zone and compressed the mid and near. If you mostly use glasses for reading and close-up work, you may wish to do the opposite.
By the way, I see people mentioning that you should avoid polycarbonate lenses. To me, the main problem with polycarbonate (and high-index lenses in general) is their low Abbe number, which means higher chromatic aberration (i.e., seeing blue or yellow fringes when you look at high-contrast items like mountain/sky boundaries). However, if you need shatter-resistant safety glasses for sports or shop use, they should be considered. For what it’s worth, my last set of glasses was from Zenni using Trivex lenses, and I am happy with both the lenses and frames—especially for the price I paid.
I'm nearsighted, and it only took a few days to get acclimated to progressives. My optometrist, however, did keep the "add" power low on my prescription, as he knew it was my first set of progressives. The lower the "add" power on the prescription, the less difference there is between the top and bottom portions of the lenses. The milder change means wider viewing corridors. (The same should happen for taller lenses; anything you can do to make the change less drastic means wider viewing corridors.)
The important part is that you now have your prescription and frame size. You can feed both into an AI and have it adjust the "add" power if you want something milder, or even convert it into single-vision if your left and right eyes are different. (That's the one thing drugstore reading glasses cannot accommodate: differences between the left and right eye.) Once you have your modified prescription (double-checked by your optometrist, of course - as you shouldn't trust me or an AI), you can enter it into an online store like Zenni and order inexpensive lenses and frames. They’re cheap enough that you can experiment.
To me, the main benefit of going through the optometrist is that they have access to high-end “digital” lenses, where I believe they can tailor the size of the corridors to suit your preferences. For example, my first set of progressives had a larger distance zone and compressed the mid and near. If you mostly use glasses for reading and close-up work, you may wish to do the opposite.
By the way, I see people mentioning that you should avoid polycarbonate lenses. To me, the main problem with polycarbonate (and high-index lenses in general) is their low Abbe number, which means higher chromatic aberration (i.e., seeing blue or yellow fringes when you look at high-contrast items like mountain/sky boundaries). However, if you need shatter-resistant safety glasses for sports or shop use, they should be considered. For what it’s worth, my last set of glasses was from Zenni using Trivex lenses, and I am happy with both the lenses and frames—especially for the price I paid.
Progressives work perfectly for me. Everything is sharp and in focus. I think the key is getting the progressive portion of the lens in exactly the right spot. AFAIK, the only place that does that first time every time is Lens Crafters. They have a set of frames that digitize points on your eyeballs and face. Then the computer determines the progression on the lens. Last time I checked, this was exclusive to Lens Crafters. LC is not cheap but few hundred dollars over three years or so is worth it where my vision is concerned.
Local suppliers of eyeglasses generally have a so many day replacement guarantee (usually 30 days). A few years ago I bought 2 sets of frames and 2 sets of progressive lenses, expensive frames and expensive lenses. I just couldn't get used to them. So I took the glasses to my optometrist who checked them and confirmed the lenses had been made correctly to my prescription.
The problem was that I hadn't filled my prescriptions for the last few years and this prescription was too much change from my previous set of glasses. So my optometrist adjusted my prescription a little, I had new lenses installed based on this revised prescription (at no cost to me), and all was well again.
My wife and I have gone to the same eye glasses place for 15 or 20 years. Over that time we have gotten to know the owner quite well. It's a large business with many staff so that's a little surprising. They take good care of my wife and I and get plenty of repeat business from us. That's how business is supposed to work.
The problem was that I hadn't filled my prescriptions for the last few years and this prescription was too much change from my previous set of glasses. So my optometrist adjusted my prescription a little, I had new lenses installed based on this revised prescription (at no cost to me), and all was well again.
My wife and I have gone to the same eye glasses place for 15 or 20 years. Over that time we have gotten to know the owner quite well. It's a large business with many staff so that's a little surprising. They take good care of my wife and I and get plenty of repeat business from us. That's how business is supposed to work.
Exact same thing happened to me. I like my readers for computer work and don't use my prescription glasses.
Get multifocal contact lenses - your life will change.
Being anal about the placement is a good thing. It will 100% make or break how they work for people.
You can also buy the frames somewhere else and have your eye doctor order the lenses. The labs have templates for common frames and if not, your eye doctor just sends your frame to them for them to measure.
Do you mean having the near vs far flipped from standard ? If so, I asked multiple places about doing this and none were familiar with this option. Maybe no one asked as I'm sure the labs can do it to the lenses just fine.
You have to wear them all the time in order to get used to them.
At 47 I finally went to see an eye doctor at my primary care physician's recommendation. Never worn glasses or even had them checked so figured OK. I can read things fine at all distances etc but in recent years either the printing on things like pill bottles has gotten smaller or my vision is starting to go. The guy did all sorts of things and at one point while I was wearing a pair of glasses with little swappable lenses he asked me to take out my phone and look at it, I pull it out and said "heh that's much better."
So hear I am with two pairs of glasses (from Costco), one the "computer" type progressives people have mentioned that are optimized for near (like in your hand/lap) in the bottom part and sort of arms length/desk distance in the main part. I like these and wear them a lot. There's a very slim zone at the top for distance but I find it better to just peer over the top.
The other pair is supposedly for general use with zones for far/medium/close and I find them very difficult. Can't drive, walk around, etc due to the distortion. They make 10% of my field of view better at the expense of the other 90%. I will wear them if I'm sitting still looking at something far away. I'll either skip these next time or get something just for distance viewing.
jeff
So hear I am with two pairs of glasses (from Costco), one the "computer" type progressives people have mentioned that are optimized for near (like in your hand/lap) in the bottom part and sort of arms length/desk distance in the main part. I like these and wear them a lot. There's a very slim zone at the top for distance but I find it better to just peer over the top.
The other pair is supposedly for general use with zones for far/medium/close and I find them very difficult. Can't drive, walk around, etc due to the distortion. They make 10% of my field of view better at the expense of the other 90%. I will wear them if I'm sitting still looking at something far away. I'll either skip these next time or get something just for distance viewing.
jeff
I am no owl! I am a man! lol
People don't realize that an eye doctor does more than check vision. Does anyone's family doctor even look at your eyes other than seeing if they're bloodshot or not ?
I think they had a near vision zone at both the top and the bottom of the lens. I've heard of them but have never actually seen a pair. Maybe no longer available.
I diagnosed a case of acute leukemia on clinical grounds when I was an intern by looking in a guy's eyes. He was a rough looking middle aged man who was vomiting blood (but said he didn't drink alcohol) and also had flame hemorrhages in both retinas.
What would give you bleeding in 2 different areas of the body? Most likely a platelet deficiency. And what would lead to not making enough platelets? Something occupying the bone marrow - and acute leukemia was the most likely culprit. And that's exactly what he had. Unfortunately his leukemia was of a type that did not respond well to treatment and he died within the year.
After watching this with others and doing it myself it seems like the longer one wore single plane, or dual planes the longer it takes you to merge.
It took me longer than many to normalize progressives, but once that happened I have no desire to go back.
At first life appears through distinct bands of focal planes never in the right place, but after a while your brain stiches the panes together and fills in the middle and life appears in one large plane thats all in focus.
It takes a while to tweak your zones 2-3 pairs I was able to dial in the zone heights on the lens.
It took me longer than many to normalize progressives, but once that happened I have no desire to go back.
At first life appears through distinct bands of focal planes never in the right place, but after a while your brain stiches the panes together and fills in the middle and life appears in one large plane thats all in focus.
It takes a while to tweak your zones 2-3 pairs I was able to dial in the zone heights on the lens.
With my most recent glasses (progressive), I was 100% convinced they were wrong. The RX was wrong, the progression was wrong, and so on. I go to a private doctor for my exam but buy the frames/lenses from Walmart Optical so when I tried them on, I sat there for a few moments, looked around, and said "they're not right" but they convinced me to go walk around the store to acclimate to them (my RX actually decreased so that was an adjustment too). I felt drunk walking, had zero peripheral vision, and so on but straight-ahead was okay and they convinced me to try them over the weekend. In ~2 days, everything was good.
As for line bifocals, both my wife and her aunt (the optician we go to) said "no" when I suggested it.
As for line bifocals, both my wife and her aunt (the optician we go to) said "no" when I suggested it.
