So, do you think wearing glasses make your eyes worse?

[Happylady]

At this message board I visit there is a thread where several people are convinced that wearing glasses are making their eyes worse.

What do you say to people when they ask you about this? How do you handle it?

[CuriousCat]

Tell them to refold their aluminum hats.

[BMH]

I usually tell them that vision problems are a result of improper shape of the cornea or length/size of their eyeball. Then I point out that eyewear can not physically change either of these things. I then usually follow up by telling them what they are experiencing is their eye adapting to the crisp vision that the eyewear gives them and they only percive their vision is worse because now they can compare it to clear vision.

They usually respond "Yeah Right, I think they make your eyes worser."
:D

[chip anderson]

When a new glasses wearer takes them off he seems to see worse.
The reason is all his life he has been used to seeing blurred images.
To some degree his brain has adapted to interpreting blurred images.
With the glasses the images are clear. His brain now expects clear images.
He takes his glasses of and the world in blurred again but his brain no longer accepts them at least not immeadiately, they may become acceptable after a period of time. But immeadeatly on removing the glasses he can't accept the blurred immages. Hense, he thinks his eyes have gotten worse as a result of wearing glasses.

Chip

[Uncle Double]

They usually respond "Yeah Right, I think they make your eyes worser."
:D

here in Alabama they say "more worserer":shiner:

Try explaining it like this: because you "see" with your brain, not your eyes, your brain is used to seeing things blurry and fixing the image. Once you get new glasses, your brain is still trying to fix the image. After a week to 10 days of wearing the new Rx, the brain figures out that it doesn't need to fix the new image anymore. If you take off your glasses, your brain says everything is blurry now without the Rx. Leave them off for several days and your ability to "guess" will improve with practice, back to the level prior to wearing the glasses (but once you change the frame of reference, most people now realize that their vision is blurry because they now know they can see better with glasses/contacts, thus the complaint that they became dependent on glasses). Make sure you go slow with this (like you're telling a 5 year old why the sky is blue), make sure they follow each part before you start the next part, expand if needed (ie. the eye is like a camera, the brain is like the film, where the image is developed ...or something like that, I haven't had much luck explaining it like a digital camera...I guess if they understand a digital camera, they don't ask the question to start with.) Good luck!

[Jubilee]

It seems we are try to explain the same concept, but differently. When a patient asks me about it, I just explain that their brain now knows what crisp vision should be, and craves it more. Prior to the glasses, so many details were missing but we thought it was complete. Now it knows that something more refined exists, and wants it. Sorta like people after they experience digital cable and try to watch tv from the antenna :)


I haven't had one refute me yet...

[cocoisland58]

In my experience you can explain until you are blue in the face and they will look at you blankly whilst putting their glasses (that they should be wearing) nicely in their case. I get the same look when I try to explain presbyopia. Most of my friends are over 45 and still think the light is dim in the restaurant. Then they pass around the readers that someone has thought to bring while I do my "party trick" of completely removing my glasses and reading the menu with my naked eye. Depending on the amount of alcohol already consumed I may try to explain or I may just smugly read my menu. ;)

[Chris Ryser]

What do you say to people when they ask you about this? How do you handle it?

Glasses are an axternal vision aid to correct an internal default of the eyes optical system.

By wearing them patient can see clear, wthout any internal optical eye change.

By not wearing the glasses they see what their own optics produce wthout correction.

No harm done either way..........either see clear or not.

[KStraker]

Only after I turn them upside down for a few nights on my bedside table and all the medicine runs out. :bbg:

[EyeFitWell]

LOL, this is one of my favorite pt questions and one which my coworker has frequently miseducated our patients about (yes, it does change your vision).
I just tell people like BMH said, no, looking through a magnifying or minifying lens does not change the shape and length of your eyeball. If that were the case, every person who ever looked through a magnifying glass would have to do that anytime they want to look at close-up things. Anyone who ever looked through binoculars would have to wear them permanently...please, come on.