Speaking of Vision -- How 'bout Progressive Bifocals?

Jay Honeck wrote:
I have been forced to face the fact that I can no longer read a
sectional chart with my current glasses.


Jay - I ended up with bifocals after enjoying a couple of years that I
technically didn't even need glasses - after needing them to see
farther than about 6 ft, for about the last 30+ years. Even passed the
driver's license "eye exam" without them the last time around. So it
was a bit of a change, to say the least, to go the bifocal route. I,
too, picked the progressive lens.

Be prepared to get accustomed to them for a week or three or more.
Going back to your old pair "just for this one thing..." will just make
it take longer to get used to the new ones.

The first time I walked out of the eye doctor's office with them on, I
just about got motion sickness (and I am not one prone to such things.)
- every horizontal line, from sidewalk curb to dashboard in my truck
appeared curved and varied in curvature as I moved my head. The
curvature distortion went mostly away (still can see it, if I look, but
I think my brain has built a "filter" for it for the most part.)

Periphial vision is still fuzzy - I have to turn my head way farther to
the right or left and adjust the elevation of my head to make out
detail to the side. I am not a pilot (wish I were....) but just the
simple act of looking at my gps mounted on top of my truck dash tells
me that I wouldn't want to fly a plane with this particular pair of
glasses.

I expressed these concerns to my eye doctor, who said that next time,
he'll adjust the ratio of near to far lens and how fast they
transition, to address my complaints.

You may have a completely different experience, so I relate my
experience so you won;t be surprised if things look strange.

Best Regards,

Randy

Periphial vision is still fuzzy - I have to turn my head way farther to
the right or left and adjust the elevation of my head to make out
detail to the side.

Thanks, Randy -- but this doesn't make sense to me. The "progressive"
part of the reading lens starts below the half-way point down the lens
-- so why would they have ANY effect on peripheral vision?

Well, unless you're looking down, I suppose?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Jay Honeck wrote:

Periphial vision is still fuzzy - I have to turn my head way farther to
the right or left and adjust the elevation of my head to make out
detail to the side.


Thanks, Randy -- but this doesn't make sense to me. The "progressive"
part of the reading lens starts below the half-way point down the lens
-- so why would they have ANY effect on peripheral vision?

Well, unless you're looking down, I suppose?

Jay, I'm not Randy, but I'll reply as I have progressive lenses. Mine
don't have the prescription in the bottom uniformly across the bottom as
with more conventional bifocals. The different presecription is more of
a circular shape and things read through the lower half of the lens are
only clear if nearly centered in the lens. The prescription on the elft
and right sides of the lower halves of my lens is about the same as the
prescription on the top half of the lens. So, my peripheral vision,
whether looking through the top half or the bottom half, is through my
distance prescription.


Matt

Over 10 years ago. Erg...gad. More like 20! Dang, how does this keep
happening to me?

Jay, you wan't to keep that happening to you! As long as it keeps
happening, you 're alive. When it stops happening, you got a problem.

vince norris

Jay,

Poked around and found these links - seemed to have some good
explaination....


http://www.allaboutvision.com/over40/progressive.htm

http://www.eyeglasses.com/progressive_lenses.page
(Scroll down aways. Gets into how to read a prescription, too.)

http://www.optiboard.com/forums/arch....php/f-51.html
(way more info than you or I need, but skimming though some of the
posts, I learned there are many different types of progressive lenses
and they all have their pros and cons. (high-wing vs. low-wing/ side
stick vs. yoke kind of thing...)

FWIW

Randy

"Jay Honeck" posted the exciting message
oups.com:

I have been forced to face the fact that I can no longer read a
sectional chart with my current glasses. It's been getting worse for
some time, but lately I've realized that it has become downright
dangerous. (Moreso driving a car, actually.)

So, it was off to the eye doctor, who said I would definitely benefit
from progressive (the ones with no lines in the glass) bifocals. When
I asked her about flying, she said that they would be excellent for
viewing the panel (one distance) *and* the charts (another, closer,
distance).

So, I ordered them.

Now, of course, I've talked to a pilot friend who tells me that
progressives totally suck, and will make me nauseous in the plane,
thanks to the eternally variable prescription!

So, what's the verdict from my fellow "old farts" on this group? Do
you guys wear "progressives"? Or do you prefer the "lined" bifocals?
LensCrafters has a 30 day money-back guarantee (I don't actually have
them, yet), so I can change my mind.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"



I got my first pair a few years ago. I found them nauseating. I put them
away and continued to do without for a year or so. Then I got another
pair, thinking the first pair had been made wrong. I adjusted after a few
days, and even found that the original pair was OK. I've been wearing
them for about 3 years and they are fine. I fly with them so I can see
the charts and distance.

Moral (at least for me) - you can adjust but you may find them difficult
at first. Stick with them.

Great stuff, Randy -- thanks.

I guess I don't understand this part:
************************************************** *******************************
Progressive lens design
In order to create a no-line progressive lens, there are two large areas of
the lens that you cannot see through. Imagine what an hourglass looks like.
This is the shape of the area of the progressive lens that you can see
through. Objects seen through the areas of the lens to the left and right of
the narrow middle section are highly distorted and you cannot see through
them.

************************************************** *******************************

Why would the areas to the left and right of the middle section be "highly
distorted"? Why aren't those areas simply made to your "distance"
prescription?

Any eye doctors here?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Jay Honeck wrote:
Great stuff, Randy -- thanks.

I guess I don't understand this part:
************************************************* ********************************
Progressive lens design
In order to create a no-line progressive lens, there are two large areas of
the lens that you cannot see through. Imagine what an hourglass looks like.
This is the shape of the area of the progressive lens that you can see
through. Objects seen through the areas of the lens to the left and right of
the narrow middle section are highly distorted and you cannot see through
them.

************************************************* ********************************

Why would the areas to the left and right of the middle section be "highly
distorted"? Why aren't those areas simply made to your "distance"
prescription?

I don't fully understand the optics, but that's exactly what my
optician (who's a fellow pilot) explained to me, and when I got my
progressives, that's exactly what I experienced. I couldn't stand it,
and had him re-make the lenses as lined bifocals (which I'm still
struggling to get used to).

Jay Honeck wrote:
Great stuff, Randy -- thanks.

I guess I don't understand this part:
************************************************** *******************************
Progressive lens design
In order to create a no-line progressive lens, there are two large areas of
the lens that you cannot see through. Imagine what an hourglass looks like.
This is the shape of the area of the progressive lens that you can see
through. Objects seen through the areas of the lens to the left and right of
the narrow middle section are highly distorted and you cannot see through
them.

************************************************** *******************************

Why would the areas to the left and right of the middle section be "highly
distorted"? Why aren't those areas simply made to your "distance"
prescription?

Any eye doctors here?
Jay, I have stayed out of this subject but thought that I would now add
some of my experience if you are still considering progressives. I
started with bifocals but after a few years tried progressives. I found
them to be better (for me) than the bifocals. About 8 months ago I got a
new prescription and had the lenses made at LensCrafters. They never
worked very well (the hour glass was too narrow and so peripheral vision
was very restricted). I had a new pair made, but this time I told them
to use Varilux lenses and not their in house brand (my initial
progressives were Varilux). I am now happy again with my new
progressives. There was a recent article (Aviation Consumer Volume 36,
Number 2, 2006) that discussed the differences between the lens
manufacturers of progressive lenses, and offered their opinion about
which lenses to get.

Cary

Roy Smith wrote:

Jay Honeck wrote:

Great stuff, Randy -- thanks.

I guess I don't understand this part:
************************************************ *********************************
Progressive lens design
In order to create a no-line progressive lens, there are two large areas of
the lens that you cannot see through. Imagine what an hourglass looks like.
This is the shape of the area of the progressive lens that you can see
through. Objects seen through the areas of the lens to the left and right of
the narrow middle section are highly distorted and you cannot see through
them.

************************************************ *********************************

Why would the areas to the left and right of the middle section be "highly
distorted"? Why aren't those areas simply made to your "distance"
prescription?


I don't fully understand the optics, but that's exactly what my
optician (who's a fellow pilot) explained to me, and when I got my
progressives, that's exactly what I experienced. I couldn't stand it,
and had him re-make the lenses as lined bifocals (which I'm still
struggling to get used to).

The above certainly does NOT describe my progressives.

Matt