Bifocal Blemish

Three weeks ago I made a long overdue trip to the ophthalmologist to get my eyes checked and pick out new glasses.

The office did a great job of incorporating safety precautions, starting with a large sign on the door telling people they could not come in without an appointment. At the front desk the receptionist checked my temperature and asked how I felt. A retinal photograph was mandatory so the doctor didn't have to reach in close to examine my eyes.

When it was time to pick out new frames, there were additional safety features. Only one customer could be in that area at a time. The chair I sat on had been sterilized, and a sign said they would do it again before the next person used it. Each frame I tried on and discarded went in a special tray so they could be disinfected before going back on the display.

When my glasses came in I couldn't just stop by at my convenience. I had to make an appointment to pick them up. That happened last Friday.

 Based on my past experience, I know there's a breaking in period for the no-line bifocal lenses I wear because differences in frame shape and size put the two portions of the lenses in a slightly different spot. However, this time things were even more distorted. The distance vision was fine, but when I got in the car to drive home the center portion of the speedometer visually stuck out like it was in 3D.  Hours later the issue had gotten better, but there was still a portion of the left lens that made things look wavy and fuzzy. The problem was subtle, though, and I couldn't really describe what was wrong. I just knew it wasn't right.

I called the office first thing Monday, but they couldn't get me in until today. When I arrived at the office the technician had me move the glasses around on my nose to make sure the near and far distance portions were in the correct places. (They were.) He escorted me to a room to wait for the doctor.  The doctor checked my prescription against his notes, and for comparison the old prescription too. He had me wear my glasses, held trial lenses in front of them, and asked me which looked better. In the end, he told me that he was stumped as to why I was having a problem, and suggested I try for a couple more days to see if things got better. I was pretty frustrated and angry, but didn't know what else I could do.

As I was getting up to leave I turned my head, which made the handle of the door fuzzy for a couple of seconds, and I pointed out the issue to the doctor. He asked to see my glasses, then spent 30 seconds looking through the left lens from different angles and finally agreed that something wasn't right. At the front desk he handed over the glasses to the technician and asked him to look through the lens. The technician said it was like looking into a fun house mirror...which was the perfect description of the problem!

They're going to send the glasses back and have the lens corrected. It will be worth the wait. In the meantime I'm temporarily back to wearing my old pair.

Five years ago today: Need A Cloth?