New glasses. (1 Viewer)

[GWAYGWAY]

I have just had a pair of glasses prescribed owing to a very sudden change from good to short sighted , mostly in my left eye but now I find it VERY difficult to judge small gap when driving, fine without them but with the glasses it is weird and I find I headbutt things like the car roof getting in and put my foot on stair steps that aren't there , where my foot thinks they are.
Judging gaps in traffic is difficult and although everything is in brilliant focus they are not where I think they are, so I have to slow down a lot more. The prescription is only -1.25 dioptres in one and 0 -75 in the other. I'd hate to think what a greater prescription would feel like to wear. I take it that a lifetime of driving without needing any has tuned the brain and now it need reprogramming , but until I get use to them it makes me feel odd.
Anybody else had this effect with glasses? Or am I now a defective? The close the glasses are to my nose and eyes the better they are it just feels very odd so tight in, after wearing reading glasses to read I no longer need them. They were always perched on the end of my nose, professor style .

 

[CWH]

I believe there are opticians on the forum, so they could answer more professionally than I can, but - just in case they don't come across your post :

How long have you had the new glasses? - it shouldn't take very long for your brain to adjust (a couple of days or so). If it's not happening, then you need to go back to the opticians for re-adjustment to your specs - either the prescription, or the centre of the focus, or - if they're varifocals - the grading. I had a similar-ish problem with my 3rd pair of varifocals - I'd been fine up to that point, but with those, the optician had failed to take in to account a slight astigmatism with the result that I couldn't walk safely on a sidewalk, it wasn't where I thought it was going to be, and when I was washing down the stables, the water appeared to be running uphill. You can imagine how safe that felt too when driving! Easily sorted by the opticians - re-test, new lenses made.
(Also you need to make sure that you and the optician agree on whereabouts you will wear the glasses - it makes a huge difference to the focal length required.)

So - back to your optician I'd suggest.

 

[Larrynwin]

When I first had specs about five years ago initially I had varifocals and could not get on with the weird distortion so changed to bifocals, no problem.

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[irnbru]

I need some new glasses myself..the drinking kind cos they keep getting smashed

 

[Minxy]

Definitely go back to your optician and get them checked, I had some once and one of the lenses had the wrong prescription, I struggled for ages but in the end went back and got them checked when the error was found, once the correct lens was put it, all was fine.

 

[tofo]

I believe there are opticians on the forum, so they could answer more professionally than I can, but - just in case they don't come across your post :

How long have you had the new glasses? - it shouldn't take very long for your brain to adjust (a couple of days or so). If it's not happening, then you need to go back to the opticians for re-adjustment to your specs - either the prescription, or the centre of the focus, or - if they're varifocals - the grading. I had a similar-ish problem with my 3rd pair of varifocals - I'd been fine up to that point, but with those, the optician had failed to take in to account a slight astigmatism with the result that I couldn't walk safely on a sidewalk, it wasn't where I thought it was going to be, and when I was washing down the stables, the water appeared to be running uphill. You can imagine how safe that felt too when driving! Easily sorted by the opticians - re-test, new lenses made.
(Also you need to make sure that you and the optician agree on whereabouts you will wear the glasses - it makes a huge difference to the focal length required.)

So - back to your optician I'd suggest.

First pair of varifocals I had
Walking felt like climbing stairs
When walking on flat ground

I was told by the dispenser it may happen
But time would cure it been wearing varifocals
12 years now problem hasn't returned

And if you got them at specsavers
They have a no quibble guarantee

Go back and get them checked
Just in case
Nothing worse than poor defective glasses
Either fitting or vision wise

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[DavidG58]

I would suggest the glasses were made to be worn closer to your eyes, you are probably getting too much peripheral input

Were you wearing these when you had the issues with bright sunlight the other day?

 

[daveandsan]

Go back to your opticians and get them checked out.

 

[GWAYGWAY]

I would suggest the glasses were made to be worn closer to your eyes, you are probably getting too much peripheral input

Were you wearing these when you had the issues with bright sunlight the other day?

No I wasn't wearing them then, that was mainly the reflection from the flat side windows reflecting light and acting as a mirror blocking out the real mirror behind I happens when the sun is from the front at an angle. The similar effect occurs if the side windows have raindrops on them.

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[Bailey58]

I had a retina op on the right eye a year ago followed in June by the cataract op which is apparently brought on much quicker by the surgery. New varifocal lens in the right eye only as my left hadn't changed from a year ago but I'm having a problem focusing. Driving is ok as I'm not looking at a fixed point but looking from one thing, the tv for instance, to another point is where the discomfort comes. Straight lines appear distorted too with the new lens.

A return visit to the optician and the follow up at opthalmology has not produced any answers only "age degeneration" and possibility of laser treatment but not hopeful it will do any good. I was better of before the cataract surgery, at least the strong lens I had previously enabled me to see properly. I'm back in four months but even if they offer further treatment I think I'll leave well, almost well anyway, alone.

 

[TheBig1]

my trust in opticians has really failed in the last few weeks. Turns out specsavers fitted the wrong lenses to my grand daughters glasses in august and want us to pay to correct their error

 

[Stretto Boy]

I have been wearing spectacles for more than 50 years. I often find that when I have a new prescription, if there is a significant change from the previous one, my vision is a bit odd for a few days until I get used to it. I imagine it must be worse for you if you have not worn glasses before. I would give it a few days (certainly no more than a week) to see if things improve. If not, then back to the opticians to have it checked out.

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[GWAYGWAY]

Well that seems to tell me that it is a common thing and I need to get used to it. Just felt so odd. I only wear them for driving as everything is fine doing everything else.

 

[PORKSTER]

Well that seems to tell me that it is a common thing and I need to get used to it. Just felt so odd. I only wear them for driving as everything is fine doing everything else.

I am sorry but that just dosnt sound right your struggling with specs but not without ? 2nd or 3rd opinion required. Someone mentioned specsavers well a guy at work has a horror story to tell about them and that would and has put me of using them.

 

[Shrimp]

Go back to the Optician and talk to him/her, tell them the problems you are having, they may find the type of lens does not suit your eyes/sight!
I had new a new prescription the other week & had new frames as well. I kept the new glasses on as long as I could but I found by tea-time everyday I was itching to get them off my face, then I got headaches and sore eyes, when out walking the ground seemed to 'swim' and straight edges bowed (I wear varifocal lenses and people say they distort but my old lenses never have) I went back to the Optician and he found that a few years ago we had a similar problem with my glasses and he had resolved it with a different type of lens. This time he hadn't re-read his notes so I got the wrong lens, they are away now being sorted!
A decent Optician will try & sort this out for you, but your glasses must sit on the bridge of your nose so you look through the lenses not round it!
Tried to put an Emoji on but it wouldn't work!

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[Neilfg]

When I first had varifocals I could not get on with them and had to stop using them. After a year or so at the next test I decided to retry and got a new frame with deeper lenses. This made a massive difference and varifocals are now working well. The original lens depth was officially fine for varifocals but for me no good needed to be deeper, I presume this has something to do with where they sit on my nose.

 

[CWH]

Well that seems to tell me that it is a common thing and I need to get used to it. Just felt so odd. I only wear them for driving as everything is fine doing everything else.

Having a problem is not uncommon, but no, you don't need to get used to it - you need to GO BACK TO YOUR OPTICIAN!!!
If they distort your vision for DRIVING then that makes them unsafe (and I don't know, but possibly illegal???).
A decent optician will listen to your explanation of what's going on and will RESOLVE it.

 

[pappajohn]

New varifocals. ....why is the step in a different place to where my foot thinks is.
Made me looked drunk at times.

Soon got used to the new glasses and no problem now.

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[Neckender]

When I first had my varifocal glasses 12 years ago I walked out of the opticians and went up the road like John Cleese and ministry of funny walks, the kerbs seamed to jump up to me and so Iwas really lifting my legs to mount the kerbs.
The next day I was working upstairs in someone's house and when I finished I attempted to come down the stairs with my tool kit and nearly through myself down as the stairs appeared to be there but weren't.
After a couple of days everything became fine with my varifocals.

John.

 

[BobtheBass]

When I last had an eye test the optician got fed up with telling me to cover my left eye or my right eye to read the chart as I kept covering the wrong one. In the end he cut a hole in a cornflake box and shoved it over my head and told me to read the chart, whereupon I burst into tears. He asked me what was wrong and I said 'I wanted a pair of gold rimmed ones like my brothers'......

 

[scotzsue]

Definitely go back to your optician and get them checked, I had some once and one of the lenses had the wrong prescription, I struggled for ages but in the end went back and got them checked when the error was found, once the correct lens was put it, all was fine.

Wonder if it was the same Hull optician which put wrong prescription in mine.
Well worth going back for a check, had this problem once when my, new optician decided i needed 'prisms', had 3 minor mishaps, hit a kerb, a sandwich board which was jutting out onto the road slightly and can't remember the third thing. Put my old specs on went back and got the new script without prism.

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[Minxy]

Wonder if it was the same Hull optician which put wrong prescription in mine.
Well worth going back for a check, had this problem once when my, new optician decided i needed 'prisms', had 3 minor mishaps, hit a kerb, a sandwich board which was jutting out onto the road slightly and can't remember the third thing. Put my old specs on went back and got the new script without prism.

I think it was Bright Eyes on Percy Street ... but it was a long time ago!

 

[scotzsue]

Mine not so long ago, happened twice, 2 separate opticians. Still got a pair of driving glasses for free, as proper lenses wouldn't fit the frames i had chosen. Moved on a couple of sets since then.

 

[GWAYGWAY]

These are the second set inside 6 months, the first were OK but slightly out of focus on the left, second set brilliant focus but the spatial unawareness , go back to the first ones is next step.

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[gus-lopez]

When I first had distance glasses I had the same problem.Could not judge gaps at all at speed. Found that it needed me to actually move my head to look at the mirrors. Very disconcerting. As I only wear them when driving I didn't bother. They were only basically giving clarity and sharpness to my vision. Even now nearly 18 years and a few prescriptions later I still only wear them when driving. I never find any need for them in day to day use. There is no requirement for me to even wear them to drive. The op also didn't say he was prescribed varificals.