Health Issues Varifocal glasses

[Ann Chovie]

Bit mundane this but...
I am short of cash and am (either way i decide) going to have to shell out a large amount of money. Can't decide whether to opt for varifocals glasses (expensive) or two pairs of normal glasses ( marginally cheaper).
The optician was very helpful explaining how varifocals work but I have heard so many negative reviews of them that I am worried about ending up with glasses I can't wear and broke!!!
People have told me that they trip because they cannot judge pavements and most people I know that wear them spend their lives bobbing their heads and down to work out whether to use top or bottom lens. But the optician did a good sales pitch . I do see the usefulness of being able to drive and then stop and read directions without fumbling to find another pair of specs in the glove compartment!!!
But.. Most people seem to give up on them.
Anybody wear them and like them???

 

[Mischief]

I got my first pair last year. I had always resisted because of the expense and because I had heard bad things. I have had zero problems with them, but then, I have lived with strong prescriptions and strong changes in prescriptions since I was a kid, so I may adapt more readily than most.

 

[Ann Chovie]

I got my first pair last year. I had always resisted because of the expense and because I had heard bad things. I have had zero problems with them, but then, I have lived with strong prescriptions and strong changes in prescriptions since I was a kid, so I may adapt more readily than most.

Thank you mischief
What I have found is that people pay out for then and end up buying new glasses and pay out twice! I just can't afford to do that. This will be expensive enough!
I think I will have to pass this time as I cannot afford to gamble on that happening!

 

[Calliegirl]

Have you looked into buying them online? It's the only way I was able to afford mine. The quality does vary between the different vendors, but they aren't too bad. The prices were low enough that I was able to get two pairs for less than the price of one in an optometrist's office.

 

[Ann Chovie]

Have you looked into buying them online? It's the only way I was able to afford mine. The quality does vary between the different vendors, but they aren't too bad. The prices were low enough that I was able to get two pairs for less than the price of one in an optometrist's office.

Hi Callie
Yes, funnily enough I am just online now exploring that possibility! Do seem to be a lot cheaper

 

[Clueless Git]

Hi Callie
Yes, funnily enough I am just online now exploring that possibility! Do seem to be a lot cheaper

I looked into that after my eye test, if you remember?

The opticians don't put the frame measurements and a thing called 'pupilary distance' on the prescription.

You need that stuff to get online glasses that will be a proper fit.

 

[shyvas]

It takes a few weeks to get used to them. You really do have to have the right kind of frame for these kind of lenses and they should be measured by an optician.

I've never encountered any problems with these kind of lenses and I think that they are worth the extra expense.
I'm lucky that my health insurance covers the cost ; €600.

 

[Mischief]

Yes, I think that you would end up with something that doesn't work well at all if you tried to order such glasses online - the measurements need to be very accurate. I order contact lenses online, because with the soft lenses now, the only thing that matters is the prescription. I would not order online for regular bifocal glasses, much less varifocals.

 

[SummerRain]

My dad wears varifocals and he likes them, he said you just need to get used to moving your head when you want to look in the distance/up close, but that you get used to that pretty quickly and eventually it becomes natural.

He's also bought some online, he got most of the info from the opticians - I think he had to ask for some of it, and he might have made some measurements of his head size/etc at home... I'm not sure. Anyway they fit really well when they arrived, and he likes them a lot, but I think you'd want to research the place you're buying from first and make sure they ask for all the right information/etc, he spent a lot of time finding a good place. But the glasses were a lot cheaper.

I get my glasses from specsavers, because I get contact lenses from them too, which means the glasses are cheap - I think last time I got a £200 or so pair for £30. They often have some really good deals, if you ask them about them they can help - but they may be mostly for contact lens customers, I'm not sure. I think they also do buy-one-get-a-second-pair-free deals.

 

[Ann Chovie]

I have just been browsing the "specs avers" website . Their prices seem ridiculously cheap and they still have buy one get one free offers on top! They also have a facility to upload a photo so that you can see how each frame suits your face!! I am going to have a go at that and then go in there tomorrow and check out the deals before I do anything else I think!
Thanks everyone!

 

[Pirate]

I used to be with Vision Express and they quoted me £269+frames for single-vision lenses (my eyes are so bad i need the ultra-thin ones). Specsavers quoted me £90 for the same lens (and the lady almost fell off her chair when I said my previous quote) so it's worth shopping round. I havent bought any yet (need to drag a friend for frame opinion) so can't say whether they are really the same quality although i've been told they are.

I would probably want to buy my first pair in-store in case you have any problems you can go back to them, then if all is hunky dory can get more online. I have heard good things about www.glassesdirect.co.uk but my prescription is too strong to buy online.

 

[Ann Chovie]

I used to be with Vision Express and they quoted me £269+frames for single-vision lenses (my eyes are so bad i need the ultra-thin ones). Specsavers quoted me £90 for the same lens (and the lady almost fell off her chair when I said my previous quote) so it's worth shopping round. I havent bought any yet (need to drag a friend for frame opinion) so can't say whether they are really the same quality although i've been told they are.

I would probably want to buy my first pair in-store in case you have any problems you can go back to them, then if all is hunky dory can get more online. I have heard good things about www.glassesdirect.co.uk but my prescription is too strong to buy online.

Thanks Liz
I am really pleased! Been to specsavers they were helpful and incredibly cheap!! I too had a quote from vision express in excess of £380 in total made up of two lens at £89 one frame and then one free frame. Quoted £450 for varifocals . I just got two frames with free lens all for total of £125!! I could have paid as little as £89 but I wanted rimless glasses which I can never usually afford! If I had varifocals they were only charging £150 a pair for those!
Wow !!! Am really pleased with my purchase!!

 

[Ann Chovie]

My dad wears varifocals and he likes them, he said you just need to get used to moving your head when you want to look in the distance/up close, but that you get used to that pretty quickly and eventually it becomes natural.

A woman at work finally made my mind up not to have varifocals . She bobs her head up and down like a chick checking whether his mum is back with a worm!!! She told me that they are fine when you learn not to move your head about.???
She obviously thinks she has got used to them but clearly hasn't!

 

[ledboots]

I have what they call progressive lenses here; they have three different prescriptions in the lenses, without lines. I thought I would have trouble getting used to them, but it was an easy transition for me. I've had them a couple of years. I don't need to bob my head to see, either lol. I'm extremely nearsighted, so switching glasses wouldn't work well for me; I wouldn't want to read not being able to see anything when I looked up from the book.

 

[KLS52]

I am very nearsighted as well. I simply remove my glasses to read. I did purchase a second pair of glasses for the computer at my job. I usually leave those on all day since I'm mostly at my desk.

 

[Ann Chovie]

Well new glasses finally arrived ..

Decided against varifocals and am now the proud owner of a pair of driving glasses and a pair of reading/computer glasses which is great. Ish..but even putting aside all the vanity issues there are the practicalities or indeed impracticalities of spectacle ownership.

I have now joined the ' where do I perch/hang/rest/ drop my new glasses when they are not in use' game.

We were discussing at work the akwardness of needing glasses to peer at your screen but then not needing them to wander across the office to the copier.

We all have various techniques..

Mine is propping my glasses on top of my head. Apparently not suitable if you have flowing locks which wind around the arm of your glasses and need untangling.

The said long locked apparently go for the casual 'swing your glasses casually in your fingers 'look which is ok unless you need both your hands to carry something.

The other option is leave your glasses on the desk..simple.

But you can bet your bottom dollar that as soon as you are glassless your boss will approach you carrying a document that he wants you to look over.

Trying to leave them on to avoid this awkward situation only results in terrifying magnification of the filing cabinet which you inevitably will stumble into.

Whatever technique we use we were all in strong agreement about one thing..we will not give in to the chain. Or for that matter the string .

They add nothing to a woman but take much away. They age you the instant you put them over you head. They are not feminine and they are not sexy.

Unless anyone knows different? Is there a rakish, flirty way of wearing them that we could pull off?

Or are we resigned to wandering round blind treading on each others glasses and bruising ourselves on cabinets?