Why Lenses Design Matters

My life in the optical industry began when I was three years old. 

Not that I remember it, however mum recalls it as beginning after I started complaining of headaches. After she considered enquiring about brain scans, she realised this issue may actually arise from something she was able to help with: my eyes. 

Turns out, I had an issue: I had a strong astigmatism. My right eye was perfect. My left eye couldn’t even see the big E. There was a definite discrepancy between the abilities of my two eyes and as a consequence they struggled to work together. My brain was (as I like to put it) prioritising my right eye to get the good vision and “switching off” my left. In terms of sight, this wasn’t an issue – I could see absolutely fine. But the problem was my brain was doing so much work to try and focus and see; my right eye was doing the work that two eyes should be working to do together.

Astigmatism is a refractive error where light is reflected from the front of the eye to the incorrect location on the back of the eye. (Don’t worry, mum checked this definition.)

Demi, Andrew, and the glasses which she definitely picked before he did. (They can’t both wear their glasses together in public together. It’s far too embarrassing.)

 However, this no longer was an issue– mum prescribed me some glasses which helped me to focus and my headaches were gone to an extent. I reluctantly (as any three-year-old would) did some patching and went about the next twelve years wearing glasses full time and seeing as I thought was normal.

 This all changed when I was 15. Mum has just set up the clinic and was trialling a new type of lens. I questioned how one lens would be any different to another lens – they are a piece of glass, after all, how different could it really be?

I had never been so magnetised to a pair of glasses. Ever. As soon as I put my lenses on, I actually said to mum, “Wow. That’s how I’m meant to see.” My ordinary glasses had served me well, but none had ever managed to “switch on” that left eye. These lenses did something that I had never seen before (very punny, ha) and completely changed my understanding of lenses and the importance of lens design.  

I was less tired, more focused and also became a lot less grumpy (mum might disagree with this one though!). Looking at the whiteboard had never been less of a challenge. I was able to sleep better and study more with less fatigue. 

There’s more to lenses than just being a piece of glass or plastic.

There’s measurements, progressions and graduations that personalise your lens to you and ultimately will benefit your vision and visual system. I’m no expert in lenses so I’ll leave the dispensing to the professionals, but from one glasses-wearer to another, lens design makes a difference. I would bet my lenses on it!

I’m looking forward to getting another pair of these lenses (these would be my sixth pair!) as soon as COVID is all over.