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Comment by saghm | Hacker News Reader

I have an extremely strong prescription (and have been wearing bifocals since I was 16), so I basically need to wear them at all times other than in the shower and in bed. I really don't like not being able to see things without them if I want to look at something while in bed (or worse, when I accidentally drop them when trying to grab them after I wake up and then can't find them easily due to not being able to see without them), but contacts seem like they'd just make that worse by increasing the effort needed to put them on. The eye doctor I saw from when I was a kid until college apparently had laser surgery and suggested that I should get it whenever my vision stopped getting worse (which happened throughout my childhood but would be expected to stabilize in adulthood). For me, the motivation wouldn't be cosmetic, but quality of life; being able to see without an external tool is just inherently easier.

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>I really don't like not being able to see things without them if I want to look at something while in bed (or worse, when I accidentally drop them when trying to grab them after I wake up and then can't find them easily due to not being able to see without them)

I wear my glasses to bed, while sleeping. Avoids this issue entirely. Highly recommend. It's not uncomfortable and they don't fall off.

I also wear them during sports (including gymnastics when I was younger) & during sex. It's not really that big of a deal if you are really used to wearing them. I've been wearing glasses since before I could talk.

I'm guessing a lot of people just don't get used to them.

The few times I've fallen asleep wearing glasses, they've pressed against my face in several places to the point where they're imprinted and sore, and the glasses have gotten slightly bent. I do tend to aggressively toss and turn when sleeping though, so this might not be a common issue.

Or you turn over and break the arms of the glasses.

> arms

Temples*

> Highly recommend

Dunno, that all sounds more like great ways to break eyeglasses.

They don't break.

Oh they do

    I wear my glasses to bed, while sleeping.

Can’t tell if parody? If serious… how the hell do they not warp out of shape or lose hinges?

Why would they?

Literally every single time I’ve gone to sleep in my glasses, the weight of my head has bent the glasses into uselessness.

How? Can't you only really sleep on your back that way?

No, I sleep on my stomach.

How? Um, just lay down without taking them off? Idk what else to say?

Some eyeglass frames are very flexible. Are yours?

No, they are just normal glasses? I've had dozens of pairs over the years both metal and acetate. I'm currently wearing https://www.ray-ban.com/usa/eyeglasses/RX5169%20MALE%20rb516...

Are you far-sighted?

Yes. far-sighted with astigmatism.

In my experience, farsighted people tend to be very casual with their glasses, whereas us nearsighted folks protect them carefully.

My theory is that being nearsighted, I can see my glasses - every smudge or speck of dirt is immediately visible to me because it's not too far from my focal distance. For farsighted people, the glasses on their face are so far out of focus that those things simply disappear.

If I lay down with my glasses and they rub against my face or the pillow, I know they're going to get smudged and I'll suffer eyestrain until I find a lens cloth and carefully clean them. Any nick in the lens will drive me crazy until I can get it replaced. As such, I am very protective of them - any time I lay down I'm fold them closed and lay them face-up on the headboard so they won't need more than quickly brushing off a few specks of dust. I also buy very thin, light frames because I can see them pretty clearly in my peripheral vision.

The people I've known who are farsighted (including my husband), are oblivious to anything on the glass. He'll just roll around in bed with them, and maybe once a week ask me to clean them for him. We have to get him heavier frames because the lightweight ones would be a mangled mess in a month.

So yeah, I'm guessing you have the latter experience... Sturdy frames and you aren't too bothered by some smudges when you get up.

I've tried contacts and as a counterargument, I've found that there are few scenarios where contacts work but glasses don't and that it's way more effort and expense to use contacts vs glasses. People have mentioned sports, but there are probably more sports and exercise where glasses work better than contacts like swimming (sure you need special goggles, but contacts are simply a non-starter) and cycling. I actually prefer a pair of aviator glasses for cycling because they keep things like bugs and pollen from going into my eyes even if it's too dark for sunglasses.

However, I totally agree that eye surgery is probably the best option since then you don't have the downsides of either contacts or glasses. The only reason I'm hesitant to do it is because my prescription isn't that strong and I've heard it can mess with your close up vision later in life. But for someone with severe issues, fixing the myopia and then just using reading glasses as needed is definitely a huge QoL improvement.

Funny because I mostly use my contact lenses when cycling. PHotochromatic lenses are where its at if you encounter varying degrees of lightness, like going from direct sunlight to under the shade of a forest. And I prefer using clear cycling glasses over contact lenses than my regular prescription glasses even when riding by night as they have more coverage and protection.

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