"Glasses Free" -- 56 Years Later....

[Old No7]

WOW, this is COOL!!!

Following the detached retina problem I had after my first cataract surgery (link) I am optimistically hopeful that won't repeat on the left eye, as I'd had a tear in the right eye's retina 11+ years ago -- but today -- I am GLASSES FREE for the first time in 56 years and it feels great!

Now I get to go shopping for new sunglasses! Never did that before, except for clip ons...

I hope the left eye stays on track, as it was no fun being legally blind for a few weeks back in May...

But now I can see * without glasses -- and I'm lovin' it!

Old No7

* Well, OK, I'll need cheaters for fine print and I'll need safety glasses to shoot or hunt, but I can live with that!

[gamekeeper]

Good for you my friend, I will need my cataracts seen to soon and you have given me hope for a "brighter" future....

[Walt]

I'm having mine done in 2 weeks! I've worn a contact lens in my better eye for 54 years.

[Paladin]

Congratulations, I wore glasses from third grade until the GOV approved LASIC for PILOTS (and SOCOM) in 2002. I am now back into Bia-Focals but happy with that for the 20-15 vision I still have).

[Ysabel Kid]

That is AWESOME news!!!

[2ndovc]

Very cool!

I've been very lucky. I've only needed glasses for a few years for close up work and reading occasionally. Mostly due to recently becoming diabetic. If I don't behave, things start to get fuzzy after a few days. The holidays are a killer, Bubbles loves to bake cookies and I can't let the kids get them all.

Enjoy the new freedom!

jb

[Pitchy]

Congratulations buddy.

[.45colt]

We talked about this in PM'S some time ago..... It's been about seven years since my second torn retina surgery . I too had glasses since 1966 and My vision is the best it's ever been in My life. My Retina Specialist Group denied that shooting, lifting , boxing or any other activity had an affect on eyesight . I told them Your full of B.S. I still don't have the guts to shoot heavy rifle loads that I did My whole Life. Good Luck .!!

[piller]

I am still wearing glasses. 58, and nearsighted since birth. No cataract formation, no retina issues. Tried to get Lasik twice and was told that I was too nearsichted for it to work.

[Griff]

I never wore glasses until I needed readers @ age 21 for my job in the Navy. Reading 8pt type did my eyes in. Suffered from severe headaches for awhile until I got shipped to HI for an eye exam. My vision was still 20-15 in both eyes, but... eyestrain was a very real problem. After I left Midway Island and was transferred to a Destroyer the need to read such fine print was gone, I went back to glass-less living. Until about age 45 when my eyesight dropped to 20-17. Back came the readers, until about age 57 or 58. For those 12 or 13 years I wore lineless bifocals with clear glass on top. Afterwards I needed help with my distance sight... no more reading road signs, etc. at a half mile or more. Now I can't focus on anything without corrective lenses. Plus that's around the time I noticed my precision shooting also began to suffer. At my last eye exam the civilian eye doc said I'm starting to develop a couple of small cataracts, but recommended I forego any removal for at least a year. At which he would also recommend lens replacement, giving me glassless vision again. Fingers crossed! Yes, I'm jealous! But can really relate! Congrats!

[Old No7]

...At my last eye exam the civilian eye doc said I'm starting to develop a couple of small cataracts, but recommended I forego any removal for at least a year. At which he would also recommend lens replacement, giving me glassless vision again.

FYI, I went with the "Toric" cataract-replacement lens which is optimized for distance -- and shooting! -- but I will need cheaters to read fine print. One of our colleagues on this forum (and on this posting) went with the "multi-focal" replacement lens which provides close-in AND distance correction by using concentric circles (unlike regular bifocals which have a small rectangle at the bottom of the lens). He told me the concentric circles cause a lot of "scatter" from approaching headlights at night -- and he LOST maybe 40% of his night vision. To the point where he doesn't like to drive at night...

Based on his feedback, and the fact that I will drive, hunt, fish and boat in low-light conditions, I'm very glad I did not get the multi-focal option, even though it means I need to use the cheaters to read.

Sharing this info as it might help out a fellow hunter/shooter.

Old No7

[Griff]

Thanks, I didn't ever mind the readers... in fact, when I'm shooting I always wore safety glasses and when I used the clear lens above the corrective readers, I got very used to them. But, hate having to switch from glasses to corrective sunglasses,

[Grizz]

There is another option where the long distance lens is in one eye and the close in lens is in the other eye. I know someone who did this and he says it works fine and he doesn't need glasses. I think insurance wouldn't pay for that and he paid up for it out of pocket.

Something to think about tho...

[Old No7]

There is another option where the long distance lens is in one eye and the close in lens is in the other eye. I know someone who did this and he says it works fine and he doesn't need glasses. I think insurance wouldn't pay for that and he paid up for it out of pocket.

Something to think about tho...

Thanks Grizzz. Too late for me, but....

For others in the future -- and -- you can also buy small "stick-on" X-Power bifocal (1X, 2X, whatever) lenses that can be added to sunglasses, I did that on several pair so I won't have to switch glasses all the time. They are small and in the bottom of the lens, like "real" bifocals -- and work great. Look on ebay or Amazon for those.

Old No7

[Grizz]

that stick-on item might work good for sun glasses. for reading and screens i use a 2.0 cheater, but past that i thankfully don't need glasses.