Do I need glasses or is the eye doctor trying to make a sale?

[Daydreamer64]

I had an eye exam yesterday and need some advice.

I noticed that I have been having trouble reading. I've never worn glasses before and I am now 45 years old. My last eye exam was 17 years ago.

I knew that I have astigmatisms that were mild 17 years ago and needed no vision correction.

The doctor said the ast. was worse and that I might find it easier to see/drive if I got glasses.

Money is very tight, both of my older children do wear glasses and have for years so I charged their frames and so on.

While I could see better during the eye exam using the big thing that they have you look through, I didn't notice a big difference.

I have no idea howto read the perscription that he gave me.

If any of you understand this perscription, please tell me if I need to get glasses or if I can wait for a while to buy them.

Here's the perscription:

OD plus 0.25 - 1.00 x 090

OS PL - 0.75 x 090

ADD plus 1.50

I couldn't find the plus sign so I spelled that but he did write ADD on the last line- I guess these are for bi-focals?

Thanks for your help!

 

[kaytieeldr]

Okay, first, I'm seeing an ad on this page for eyebuydirect.com: prices start at $7.95.

I would guess, based on many many years of wearing glasses but I don't want to mislead you. What you might want to try, before spending who knows how much on prescription glasses, is the 'readers' you can get in just about any drugstore, discount store, etc.

 

[WDWAurora]

Try zennioptical. I haven't used them, but I've read great reviews on the budget board. I intend to use them, but really I've just been too lazy to do it! I don't wear glasses much (contacts), but I would like a pair with my updated prescription.

I'm one of the weirdos who has "developed" an astigmatism, which isn't really supposed to be possible, but I've been checked for years by multiple doctors, never caught before. I was checked and double checked this time to get the diagnosis. So...I should get new glasses.

 

[finallygoingtoWDW]

So, tell me again why you went to the doctor in the first place?

 

[SpecialK]

If money is tight you could start with a pair of dollar store readers in the +1.50 strength. Do you notice that oncoming headlights are hazy when you drive at night? My doc told me that was due to astigmatism. If your distance vision isn't impaired, start with the readers and get the glasses when finances improve.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Okay, look here http://www.webmd.com/eye-health/how-read-eye-glass-prescription or here http://opticalworld.wordpress.com/2007/01/25/how-to-read-an-eyeglass-prescription/ (but the WebMD one is easier to understand, I think - and to read )

 

[clutter]

If money is tight you could start with a pair of dollar store readers in the +1.50 strength. Do you notice that oncoming headlights are hazy when you drive at night? My doc told me that was due to astigmatism. If your distance vision isn't impaired, start with the readers and get the glasses when finances improve.

I agree. From my pre-lasik days (which were also my pre-reading glasses days), the negatives are for near-sightedness and the past plus 1.50 is to make them bifocals at a 1.50 strength. (I once told my eyedoctor that the numbers represented the armlenghts I needed, 1.5 meant that I could see at one and a half arm lengths. He said that, while technically incorrect, it did work in a practical sense.)

Try some inexpensive readers to see if that helps for now. Michaels sometimes has pairs for $1.00, and costco has them for 3/$18.99. I LOVE The costco ones (get a trial membership if you're not a member). Some Hallmark stores carried some cute readers for $5. Or get a Bed Bath and Beyond coupon and buy some there. Once you need readers, you need them everywhere. Upstairs, downstairs, in the office, in your purse, in your pool bag, in the kitchen....

Now, readers work best on CORRECTED vision. That's why people who are nearsighted can pull off their glasses and still see close-up. So if your astigmatism has gotten too bad, they may not help all that much, but it's an inexpensive way to test it out.

 

[Imzadi]

Yes, the ADD line is for bifocals or for reading glasses.

DITTO on zennioptical.com My vision was far worse than yours. I got a couple pairs of glasses there and they were excellent. Do a DIS search for Zenni over on the Budget Board.

I got Lasik eye surgery recently and still need reading glasses. I'm thinking of getting a good pair of reading glasses from Zenni as I go through the dollar store glasses really quickly. The dollar store frames are cheap & the coating wears off after a few cleanings. Even with shipping, the Zenni glasses would be cheaper than buying reading glasses from the drugstore, plus I can have a prescription made precisely for each eye.

 

[kirbsam]

So, tell me again why you went to the doctor in the first place?

glad i read the replies before posting. this was my first thought also.

 

[Plantlady]

Your eye doctor doesn't make money on glasses, unless you buy from him!

I don't think he would have anything to gain, by giving you a prescription. I get new glasses, even if it's changed by just one "notch".. and I always notice a difference. I've had glasses since I was 4, started with bifocals. They're helpful.

 

[Meriweather]

I just wear readers and buy the $1 ones at Target or other places that they are around....love to get the wacky patterned ones. They are just fun. I also have prescription ones, but even the eye doc said I could use the cheap ones.
I have about 10 pair laying around the house at the various places I usually need them.
I have not had a pair break or lost a pair yet.

they would be a good option to check how they work for you.

 

[Daydreamer64]

OP here:

I went to the eye doctor because I'm diabetic and have noticed that things far off are fuzzy. Night driving, well lets just say I avoid it as everything is blinding and fuzzy and I'm uncomfortable not being able to see clearly- that's apparently due to the astigmatism issue.

The doctor said this was the ast. as it had gotten worse and it went with getting older.

I was told that I have calcification in both eyes ( possibly from the diabetes ) and an anurism in my right eye.

I also went because my youngest is allergic to eggs, soy, and nuts and I've noticed that in the last few months it was getting harder to read the food lables, something that is very important.

So, it became apparent that I might need to get glasses.

I was going to get reading glasses from the drug store but thought it might be wise to have an eye exam since it had been 17 years.

The perscription was for astigmatism correction and apparently for bifocals for reading.

I guess I was asking if I should get the glasses to correct the astigmatism with out the bifocals and just by reading glasses to save the difference in money?

Thanks for the discount order information- I will be checking into these services and I will have fun shopping for the readers.

Thanks again for all of the information.

 

[teacups]

I am almost your age and noticed they were printing all the medicine bottles small and dark! BLAST THEM! I just dont feel like going to the eye doc so I bought a pair of 1.25 strength readers and the difference was outstanding. Just like the old days when they knew how to print those labels.

 

[nephthys43]

i work for an optical lab, we make the glasses for the doctor's offices.

in all honesty, you script is not terrible, but with the astigmatism you should think about getting glasses. you could get reading glasses (the 150 ADD part), but that won't help with the blurriness while driving. that's the other part of the script. as others have said, there's a lot of places that do them for cheap.

or you can look in your phonebook for an optical lab and see if they'll do them up for you. you cut out the middle man and save yourself hundreds of dollars. i can tell you that most bifocal jobs leave my office costing around $100 with a designer frame and around $40 with a regular frame. in a doctor's office, you'll pay anywhere from $200-$400. it's crazy how much they jack the price up.

 

[TinkInPink]

I LOVE zinni optical. I have 2 pairs of glasses from there and my dads are from there too. and frames start at 8$ plus a bit of shipping (can't remember but it wasn't much).

 

[Daydreamer64]

teacups: I am almost your age and noticed they were printing all the medicine bottles small and dark! BLAST THEM!
I agree! Who do we write to get them to start printing those letters bigger again!

nephthys43:

I didn't think the ast. perscription looked bad at all from a laymens point of view!-get it "point of view"- lol but I was unsure if I should buy the glasses.

Anyway, thanks for the information- that was what I was trying to ask about, how bad was it and did it warrent immediate attention?

Zinni is asking for some measurement that I don't have -I didn't get it from the optical center- I think it's something to do with the eye distance apart or some kind of measurement???

Anyway, I feel better now and am only going to get the cheap reading glasses for now. When I go to get the astig. correction glasses, I will look for an optical lab to cut the price.

Thanks again friends for teaching me the in's and outs of eye wear perscriptions and glasses purchases.

 

[Belle0101]

I think the measurement you are after is called pupillary distance and very easy to measure.

http://zennioptical.com/cart/html/pd.html

"The PD or Pupillary Distance is the distance between your two eyes , center to center, the center of one pupil to the center of the other, in Millimeters.(1”= 25.4mm). Unfortunately most optometrists leave this quite necessary measurement off from your prescription, but you can measure this yourself.

You can measure this yourself in a mirror(not very accurate, and not generally recommended) or have a friend measure it for you by holding a ruler just under the pupils of your eyes and measuring the distance center to center. You should be looking straight forward fixing your focus at distant object, and not at the person measuring you."


Both my DH and DS9 glasses have come from Zenni. DH has an everyday pair and a tinted pair for sunny days. DS has a nice pair with a sunglass type clip-on and a play pair that he picked out - tinted lenses with a camoflouge frame.

Check Dollar Tree for cheap reading glasses too. Like a PP I have lots of pairs - fun colors, variety of frames, etc. I also picked up a cute pink Foster Grant at a surplus store ... $1!!! Love them!!!

 

[ksjayhawks]

I wouldn't mess with my eyes. If you haven't had an exam in 17 years and have astignatism, you would see many changes. If you have diabetes and astignatism, you really shouldn't wait that long between exams. Readers will not help that much and could actually make it worse on your eyes.

Get the glasses with the bifocals--get no-lines. I loved them; they will take awhile to get used to--watch depth perception when going down steps for a few days. Watch the sunday ads for coupons to lens crafters, sears, pennys, etc. Call around and check prices.

 

[Daydreamer64]

I wouldn't mess with my eyes. If you haven't had an exam in 17 years and have astignatism, you would see many changes. If you have diabetes and astignatism, you really shouldn't wait that long between exams. Readers will not help that much and could actually make it worse on your eyes.

Get the glasses with the bifocals--get no-lines. I loved them; they will take awhile to get used to--watch depth perception when going down steps for a few days. Watch the sunday ads for coupons to lens crafters, sears, pennys, etc. Call around and check prices.

I appreciate your advice. I wasn't diabetic until 6 years ago. I did notice enough change to make sure that I had an eye exam done.

The readers might help with the reading part but the ast. needs to be addressed also. It does affect my driving as I can't see well at night.

I'll probably go with an optical center to cut out some of the price hikes.

We are in the middle of moving to New York and my charge card has had a work out as DH moved to his new job last January, and the kids and I have flown to visit him a few times over the last 6 months. We close on our house 7/27 and will be able to at last, quit traveling so much.

I plan to get glasses but will need to save up over a few pay checks to get them credit free.

 

[Imzadi]

When looking for the drugstore reading glasses test out the ones that say +1.50. That is what is written on your prescription. They are only for reading, not for distance. So when you look up, it will be blurry when you look far away. You should hold up a package in the store with normal size writing on it and hold it at the distance you normally read at - about 14 inches away, and see which lens prescription works best for you.