Contacts & Glasses Specialist

What are the advantages of contact lenses?

Compared with glasses, you may find that contact lenses offer clearer, less distorted vision and feel more natural. Contact lenses move with your eyes, allowing for a wide field of vision, including clear peripheral (side) vision. Many people who switch from glasses to contacts appreciate that there are no frames blocking their vision.

Contacts are a favorite of people with active lifestyles. You don’t have to worry about your contacts breaking or falling off your face in the middle of a game or a hike. If it’s raining or foggy outside, your contacts don’t get wet.

Many people wear contacts because they prefer the way they look without glasses. If that’s your reason, contacts are likely to be cheaper upfront and less of a commitment than laser eye surgery.    

What are the advantages of glasses?

Though contacts are a popular option for people with refractive errors, there are still plenty of advantages to wearing glasses. It comes down to what’s right for you.

Eyeglasses are an affordable, safe, comfortable way to correct blurry vision from refractive errors. Though contacts have advanced so that there are specialty lenses for most eye health concerns, glasses are still far less likely to cause side effects.

Glasses require less maintenance work than contact lenses. To safely wear contacts, it’s necessary to clean and disinfect them. If you have health conditions that affect your hand-eye coordination, you may find the routine of wearing contact lenses challenging. Or, you may simply find glasses are less of a hassle.

How do I know which glasses or contacts are right for me?

Your optometric physician at Stockdale Optometry goes over your corrective lens options and helps you decide on the best option for your eyes, vision needs, and lifestyle. At your contact lens fitting, your optometrist determines your lens prescription and evaluates your eyes for conditions like dry eye and allergies that can affect your ability to wear contacts.

Stockdale Optometry offers a selection of specialty lenses, including lenses designed for “hard to fit” eyes with astigmatism or irregular corneas, as well as lenses for people with chronic dry eyes. The team uses an imaging device called a corneal topographer to detect irregularities in your cornea and recommend contacts that fit your eyes perfectly. You can also order cosmetic lenses, which cover up certain irregularities.

If your child has myopia (nearsightedness), Stockdale Optometry can fit them for ortho-k lenses. These are special contacts that your child wears overnight. They reshape your child’s cornea, allowing for clear daytime vision without the use of corrective lenses, and can even control the progression of myopia. 

If you and your optometrist determine that glasses are best for you, Stockdale Optometry offers a range of frames that can complement your face shape. The optician also offers specialty eyeglass lenses, including bifocal, trifocal, and progressive lenses for complex refractive errors.

To schedule an eye exam at Stockdale Optometry, call or use the online booking tool.