Teach me about contact lenses, please.

[scrapquitler]

My 16 year old daughter went this week for her eye appointment, and decided to get contact lenses. She has a pair to use for a week and then has to go back and have another check up with the doctor. She went to the appointment with Dad, who didn't thin to ask any questions and they came home with no paperwork or anything. I assume she'll get more paperwork and stuff next week. I wore contact lenses for a short time, but that was about 20 years ago, and the whole deal has changed since then so I need to learn about contacts all over again so I can help her.

Her prescription is for Accuvue Oasys lenses, they are good for 2 weeks and then she uses a new pair. The prescription for each eye is different, and I understand that I need to buy two boxes at a time, so two boxes will last her about 3 months. Where is the best place to buy them? What will I expect to pay for them?

What extras do I need to buy? I know that during the short time I wore them, I had to have drops and cleaning solution and solution to keep them in overnight. I looked at those things at Walmart today, and there were so many kinds, I wasn't sure what was what. Is it best to just keep using the same as the trial size solution she was given? I'm curious if different types of lenses required different types of solutions?

Thanks for any advice.. I do plan to ask some of these questions when she goes next week, but it would be nice to have some idea ahead of time, and if there's anything I should be asking about, please let me know that, too.

 

[RitaE]

In my experience Acuvue is a really good mid-range brand. It seems like everybody I know and everybody in our family started out with the Acuvue 2 week lenses and then moved on to more expensive products as our eyes changed. I now wear the daily contacts that I throw away every night because my eyes were getting more sensitive and because it is much more convenient to not have to mess with cleaning and storage. My husband has some really expensive brand because his eyes got very particular about what was in there.

I usually find the best prices at Wal-Mart/Sams etc. Most convenient is VisionDirect.com which always has a coupon code out somewhere and just delivers to your door. Walgreens also usually has really low prices. The best answer there is don't be afraid to Google around for the best price when you need to order because it changes.

We always with the first order of the year buy as much as our insurance will reimburse and then order as we need throughout the year. There's usually a multi-box discount but there is no rule that says you have to buy a certain number of boxes at a time. The lenses she has now are supposed to last two weeks but if they get extra gunky she might find it sometimes more comfortable to pitch the pair she is wearing and break out a new pair. Sometimes there is just no cleaning off what gets stuck on those lenses.