The Road goes ever on and on; Down from the door where it began;
Now far ahead the Road has gone; And I must follow, if I can;
Pursuing it with eager feet; Until it joins some larger way;
Where many paths and errands met; And whither then? I cannot say.

[JRR Tolkien, Lord of the Rings]

Tuesday 9 September 2008

The All-Seeing Eyes - Update

When the woman in Specsavers last week laughed at my enquiry as to the availability of same-day appointments and told me that I would have at least a two-week wait for a contact lens fit, I didn’t, at the time, think much of it.

Later, it struck me that such a long wait was abnormal and way outside of my previous experience with other opticians. So, I rang a different branch and today had a nice man poking fingers in my eyes and doing revolting things like turning my eyelids inside out (I hate that bit; had I been forewarned about it before my first foray into contact lenses, I would have stuck with glasses).

The result of the fingers-in-eyes experience is that I now have a pair of “continuous wear” contact lenses in my eyes. I will be going back for a further appointment to see how I’m getting on with them in three weeks. Theoretically I don’t have to take them out before then, although it is recommended that you give your eyes a break for at least one night a week.

It’s too early to give any opinions yet. My eyes don’t feel dry after six hours use, but that’s not unusual. They’re not yet red either, and that is unusual for me.

I’m a little tiny bit freaked out at the thought of sleeping in them and being able to see in the morning, but if they don’t get uncomfortable and I suffer no adverse reactions (I’m fully expecting both), then I’m sure that I’ll get over that.

And, if they do fare well over the next week, then they’ll have a good and proper test whilst I’m walking the coast to coast from next Tuesday (eek, that’s coming up quick and I feel thoroughly unprepared).

4 comments:

  1. So far no cost, because I have them on a trial. I wasn't expecting that, but didn't complain.

    But, my research tells me that, at Specsavers:

    Contact Lens Fit: £20

    Monthly Scheme: £15.50 per month

    Buy over the internet: £49 for six months.

    You can get them slightly cheaper at other places that I googled, but there didn't seem to be an awful lot in it.

    (hmmm, thinking about it, I have no idea what brand I have in my eyes at the moment; hopefully it's the same brand as they have on their website and thus the internet prices stack up, because I certainly won't be signing up for a £15.50 monthly charge.)

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  2. Jeez!

    I change my 'eyewear' (I love that term!) about every two and a half years usually at about £500 a pop.

    By having those all day lenses for the same period it would only come to £270.

    Makes you think....

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