So today I got my bifocal eyeglasses, the first time I’ve ever had bifocals. I’m also nauseous as anything and it has progressively gotten worse throughout the day. Could the two be related?
Has anyone else ever experienced nausea when they’ve gotten new glasses? I’ve worn glasses since I was twelve and never experienced this, and I’m not sure if it’s because of the bifocal lenses, or if it’s just a fluke.
It’s nice being able to see, but dang, I don’t like feeling as if I could puke.
I’ve worn bifocals for years. My eye doctor had me try no-line glasses. Said to try them for two weeks. If I didn’t like them I would go back to regular bifocals. They made me sick to my stomach within three hours. Hated them. Went back in two weeks for the normal glasses. Thank goodness I had a pair of my older glasses for those two weeks.
" Some people have reported experiencing feelings of nausea when they wear their bifocals for the first few times. This is thought to be because the bifocals enable a rapid transition from distance to close-up vision correction. If a problem with nausea or balance persists, please consult your doctor."
I had a little nausea when I got progressive lenses a few years back - it went away after a few days.
I never had nausea with my progressives, but I was warned it was a possible side effect.
Well, crap, these are progressives.
I hope it goes away faster than a few days. I have dinner plans with a friend tomorrow.
The ones that I’m wearing now made me incredibly nauseated and dizzy for the first while that I tried to wear them. I’m used to them now, but it was pretty bad.
Take half a Gravol!
I just got my new progressive lens 6 days ago! Thing was I had been hobbling along with cheaters from the drug store, for too long. The biggest problem I’m having is breaking the habit of looking over them, as I did with the cheaters.
I was driven to get new glasses as I received an ipad mini at Xmas. Scrolling through stuff gave me headaches and a little nausea too! But, to be honest, I’m still getting used to the new lens nd it’s too soon to tell, but I still think I squint. Definite eye strain, still. Bummer.
I’m really hoping it will settle out with time. Maybe I’ll find the sweet spot, how far to hold it, what position is best, etc.
I wish you Good Luck, I feel your pain!
Yes, especially on steps. And down is worse than up.
Yep, I had this with my one and only pair of progressives. The footpath constantly swam under my feet and I was essentially travel-sick whenever I walked around with them on. After two weeks of “you’ll get used to them”, I didn’t, and returned them to the shop to have the lenses changed to proper hard-line bifocals. Which I’m wearing as I type this, a few years later.
The other problem with the progressives was the tiny area of glass that was good for any given distance, I was constantly tilting my head up and down to find the 2mm-high bit that was right for the book or screen or whatever I was looking at. I don’t know how anyone wears them.
If it’s still a problem tomorrow, just wear your old glasses during dinner.
When I got my first progressives I was told that if I couldn’t adjust to them I could bring them back and swap them for old-school bifocals. You might want to inquire at the place you got yours if you find yourself unable to adjust.
As it happened, I got used to them but it did take me several days instead of the usual several hours with previous prescription changes.
A work colleague of mine couldn’t tolerate progressives because they made her nauseated. Guess it’s not that uncommon.
I get nausea whenever I get a new glasses prescription and I don’t even have bifocals.
It does take some getting used to progressive lenses. Make sure that the glasses haven’t slipped down your nose, even a small move make a difference.
The eye doc told me that if I was prone to motion sickness (I am), that no-line bifocals would probably not be a good choice. As it was, I still had to adjust to my regular bifocals, as they did make me feel sick to my stomach at first.
Yes! With progressives. I felt like I was in one of those carnival mirror rooms. I had to switch to the old fashioned kind, which was a big relief.
This was less of a problem when “aviator” glasses were in style. The current trend in eyewear toward narrow (top to bottom) lenses doesn’t work well with bifocals, and is even worse with progressive lenses. I suspect that’s part of its appeal: it tends to exclude the geezers.
My eye doctor told me to NOT look at the steps when going down stairs the first time I had bifocals. So I did look at the steps. He was right! I got dizzy. However after a while you get use to it.
Tip: If you work behind a computer screen a lot and wear line-less bifocals, consider getting a dedicated pair of single vision glasses. With line-less you’ll find yourself constantly looking up and down to focus on the screen. Buying a pair of single vision glasses for work was one of the best things I’ve done.
As someone who will probably need bifocals in the future, this discussion’s given me some things to think about. It’s a real eye-opener!
(I couldn’t resist.)
As it is, any change in my prescription leaves me dizzy for a couple days.
don’t look through the wrong area of the lens for what you are looking at. with progressives you may have a larger area of unfocused image that you have to not look at or ignore.