Contact Lens/Glasses Question

[Bickle]

Hey People,

I'm a contact lens wearer. I have absolutely no problem with my contacts for my day to day activities. However, when I was practicing for the soap carving for the canadian dat, I found that when I wore my contacts and focused on my carving for extended periods, my eyes would dry out and I'd get blurry vision, which had a significant impact on my work. I then took my lenses out and wore my glasses, and was complety fine. From then on, I'd always wear my glasses, and my work improved.

My question is, do any of my fellow contact lens wearers out there experience this problem in the clinical portions of dental school?

Also, do loupes have prescription lenses in them, or do you just wear your glasses under them?

Thanks

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[aphistis]

Originally posted by Dentaldream
Hey People,

I'm a contact lens wearer. I have absolutely no problem with my contacts for my day to day activities. However, when I was practicing for the soap carving for the canadian dat, I found that when I wore my contacts and focused on my carving for extended periods, my eyes would dry out and I'd get blurry vision, which had a significant impact on my work. I then took my lenses out and wore my glasses, and was complety fine. From then on, I'd always wear my glasses, and my work improved.

My question is, do any of my fellow contact lens wearers out there experience this problem in the clinical portions of dental school?

Also, do loupes have prescription lenses in them, or do you just wear your glasses under them?

Thanks

The loupes companies will include a prescription in the lenses for free, as long as you put it in the original order. I wear contacts with my loupes, so I don't have to get the lenses reground if my eyes change during school.

 

[Bickle]

Bill, do you find that your eyes dry out more often when you wear lenses as opposed to glasses?

 

[gryffindor]

Dentaldream, I too found my contacts giving me lots of trouble the past year while I was in clinic - drying out, shifting around, etc. I had no problems with these contacts for the 6 years I had previously worn them.

My optometrist gave me a new brand of contacts and the problem is now solved. I really like the new brand and it's working great.

I too got the non-prescription loupes like Bill so I could just wear my contacts when I wear the loupes. On occasion, I have thrown the loupes over my glasses and that has worked fine too.

 

[aphistis]

Originally posted by Dentaldream
Bill, do you find that your eyes dry out more often when you wear lenses as opposed to glasses?

Definitely. I generally don't wear contacts any more often than I can help.

 

[3rdMolarRoller]

I wear contacts and do not experience any problems what so ever. The only pain in the rear was that I had to take them out before anatomy lab.

 

[trypmo]

I'm a glasses-wearer who stays away from contacts. From what I've heard, you can also get loupes that have a headband and flip down in front of your glasses so that you don't need to be changing pairs of glasses (Even with the same prescription, unless each lens is ground perfectly, I've always found some variability from one pair of glasses to another unless they were done at the same time). I think I'd prefer the headbandy kind (unless they turn out to be heavy & uncomfortable); I guess I'm already used to having laser goggles perched constantly on top of my head, so it won't feel that different.

 

[msummar_smc]

I am a pre-dent student who will be applying for the Fall of 2005. I need glasses/contacts and will be getting them soon. With some of you experiencing issues with contacts, would you suggest that I get glasses for the next 4+ years or just deal with contacts? Money will be scarce and I don't want to flop back and forth. Thanks.

 

[aphistis]

Originally posted by trypmo
I'm a glasses-wearer who stays away from contacts. From what I've heard, you can also get loupes that have a headband and flip down in front of your glasses so that you don't need to be changing pairs of glasses (Even with the same prescription, unless each lens is ground perfectly, I've always found some variability from one pair of glasses to another unless they were done at the same time). I think I'd prefer the headbandy kind (unless they turn out to be heavy & uncomfortable); I guess I'm already used to having laser goggles perched constantly on top of my head, so it won't feel that different.

Flip-ups are a good option, but they're heavier than fixed (TTL, or through-the-lens) loupes, and they can be a little more troublesome when it comes to issues like working distance and such. You'll get plenty of exposure to all the ins and outs when the sales reps come visit you at school.

 

[aphistis]

Originally posted by msummar_smc
I am a pre-dent student who will be applying for the Fall of 2005. I need glasses/contacts and will be getting them soon. With some of you experiencing issues with contacts, would you suggest that I get glasses for the next 4+ years or just deal with contacts? Money will be scarce and I don't want to flop back and forth. Thanks.

You'll definitely want glasses no matter what. There are times when you don't want to go to the trouble of putting in contacts, and you can get an extra set of glasses cheap. You'll be glad you did.