To See or Not to See Clearly

There is no doubt about it: reading glasses are a pain. They are an obstacle that must be overcome. How exactly does one overcome one’s reading glasses you may be asking? With a set of lenses — not lenses for your specs, but lenses for your eyes. A pair of contacts may be just the ticket you need to hop on board the youth train. After all, there are few items, short of a cane or walker, that belie a persons age more than a pair of reading glasses perched at the end of the nose.

The condition is innocuous enough — indeed it translates to “old man eyes” — but presbyopia is one of the more irritating. Squinting and holding items at arm’s length to read them is a tremendous hassle. Moreover, it really makes a body feel old. Just as contacts help self-conscious people avoid the “four eyes” stigma, a pair of multi-focal contacts can help keep age-based guesses a decade off.

What casues presbyopia is not known. The specific mechanisms at work with presbyopia are still a relative mystery. We know the eye cannot see fine items at close range, but we do not have a definitive explanation of why this happens. It is generally accepted as an age-based manifestation of decrepitude. Whether it is a deterioration of the cornea, iris, or rods is not known.

Between the ages of 40 and 50 the eyes begin to go. It is as simple as that. Think of it as comparable to graying hair or the loss of bone density. Though many sufferers would appreciate a surgical solution, the simple fact its causes are not quite understood makes surgically treating presbyopia impossible. There are two viable solutions, however, neither of which requires the use off a scalpel.

First off most people hit the local drugstore to buy a stodgy pair of reading glasses. To be sure, they work, and work well, but seldom do wearers hail their comfort or “elderly” connotation. There is nothing young or attractive about a pair of reading glasses clinging to the bridge of your nose. A second solution is a pair of multi-focal contact lenses. These can be worn all day, require no fuss and are designed to allow for smooth visual transitions from “regular” vision to close-range fine print.

Renew Old Man Eyes

Time has a curious quality of never stopping. Seasons pass, the days wind down, and the years accumulate. It is inevitable and we march on towards our fate always somehow three steps ahead of ourselves. The moment is never enough as we are constantly striving to plan, pressure and cajole a brighter future for ourselves. It seems one of the tenants of Zen Buddhism may have it right when it claims now is all we ever have.

Being in the moment is crucial. But even if we were to embrace the moment, it is the small tells that let us know about times passage. Our bodies know the present very well — our minds may well be elsewhere, but our bodies are keenly aware of decrepitude. As the fourth and fifth decades come to fruition, one of the most common irritations in the blurring of vision.

The Greek word, presbyopia, carries with it a kind of ominous, tragic connotation. But the word simply translates as “old man eyes.” It is an adequate, if not sexist, description of the condition. Though this is not a serious condition, it is a very vexing one. There is nothing more irritating than having to hold a menu at arm’s length in a dim restaurant.

There two paths you can go by. The first is investing in a pair of bifocals or reading glasses. This will require some substantial trial and error phases as a pair of stylish reading glasses are few and far between. Indeed, even if you find a stylish pair, wearing them is as good as standing and proclaiming the march of time. A far more discrete solution is buying a pair of multifocal contact lenses. Like normal contacts, multifocal lenses cover the entire iris, but whereas regular contacts affect your entire scope of vision, multifocal lenses will only bring items toward the bottom of your vision into focus.

Each pair is customized for an individual. This requires an appointment with a licensed optometrist. Once fitted, however, you can wear them all day, like normal contacts. They will have to be cleaned and soaked like normal contacts as well, though it is possible to have daily disposable multifocal lenses ordered on your behalf. Furthermore, like all soft-contact lenses, multifocal contact lenses are made from oxygen-permeable materials that allow the iris o receive vital oxygen.

The Multifocal Fight

The signs are slight. In fact, they are so imperceptible you may think nothing of it. It is the slow, steady blurring of the fine print that is a sure sign you have passed over into a new reality, a new phase. Welcome to presbyopia. As middle age progresses towards upper-middle-age, you may begin to notice that irritating blurring and begin to conjecture a more serious condition than the one actually affecting you.

Cutting to the chase: this is a case of age-related farsightedness. It is far from a serious condition, but it can seriously hamper your reading enjoyment. Most people who suffer are still very active and involved in sports and social activities. Hiking, biking, climbing will not be affected. The only problem is when the lights are low and there is small print to read.

There are two possible treatments for presbyopia at present. The first and most common is investing in a stylish pair of bifocals. This can be problematic, as most people hate the idea of brandishing a pair of bifocals to read a menu or the newspaper. The second, and far more discrete treatment for presbyopia is being fit for a pair of multifocal contact lenses.

These prescription lenses are designed to fit the shape of your eye, providing the same benefits as a pair of glasses. They are designed in such a manner as to allow the wearer smooth transitions from regular vision to reading. Most multifocal contact lenses are made of gas-permeable materials that allow oxygen to reach the eye while resisting debris and the accumulation of irritating proteins.

In summation, ailments like presbyopia are easily treated with simple solutions. Whether you decide on a pair of cumbersome reading glasses or light-as-air multifocal lenses, the menu will become easier and easier to read. The days of eye strain will be a thing of the past. Though getting older is inevitable and is not without its quick fixes.