You Can "Age Gracefully," But Your Eyes Don't Have To! Options To Explore
When you have been able to see most of your life, you really do not want to lose that ability. However, the aging process tends to take some of your sight with it. All of a sudden you have to wear thicker glasses, bifocals, or trifocals. If you want to age gracefully, but do not want your eyes and eyewear to show it, here are some options for you.
No-Line Bifocals and Trifocals
Your glasses do not have to have lines in them for you to see properly. In fact, glasses that do have lines in them tend to be somewhat distracting to your field of vision. It may cost you a little more, but the no-line bifocals and no-line trifocals are worth it. You still see clearly without the distractions, and your glasses do not scream, "Hey, look at me! I'm ancient!"
Thinner, Lightweight Lenses
On top of the no-line lenses, you can get thin, lightweight lenses too. Rather than correct your aging vision with Coke-bottle-bottom thick lenses, you can buy lenses that are barely noticeable. These lenses are engineered to provide the same amount of vision correction without the thickness and weight of traditional lenses.
Multifocal Contact Lenses
Bifocal contact lenses entered the market over twenty years ago. Since then, contact lens manufacturers have dramatically improved the design and engineering so that you can buy tri-focal lenses too. Because the lenses sit squarely on your corneas and move with your eyeballs, your peripheral vision improves too. If you really hate glasses, you can discard them in favor of multifocal contact lenses for older adults.
Laser Surgery
If you want to toss the contacts and glasses altogether, you can get laser surgery. (This is a very expensive option, and one which is not covered by Medicare.) Different types of laser surgery can correct everything from nearsightedness and farsightedness to total lens replacement surgery.
The total lens replacement surgery removes the aging and inflexible natural lenses from your own eyes and replaces them with contact lenses. It is a viable option for patients who can afford it and who do not mind the lengthy healing process. All of these surgeries dramatically improve your vision and remove the need for glasses and contacts.
Talk to Your Optometrist
Some older adults are excellent patients for contacts or laser surgery. Some are not. For example, if you suffer from chronic allergies or dry eyes, contacts may not be the best option. If there are some abnormalities with your eyes, laser surgery may be out. Talk to your optometrist to see which of these options would work best for you.
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