In 1887, Adolf Flick was the first to fit contact lenses. They were made of brown glass. Yikes! Fortunately, the day of glass in the eye has passed.
I don’t wear contacts. I used to, but then a scratch on my eyeball ruined everything. That was six or seven years ago, so maybe I could wear them again. I don’t know. Much like eyeglasses, you can buy prescription contacts online. You need one crucial piece of information to do this: your contact lens prescription. Your eyeglasses prescription won’t work. You need to have had your eyes spefically measured for contact lenses.
The basic prescription contains the following information: PWR (power): the amount of correction the contact lens must provide BC (base curve): describes the curvature of your eye DIA (diameter): the diameter of your contact lens CYL (cylinder): only applies if you have astigmatism AXIS: again, only if you have astigmatism ADD: used if you have bifocal contacts For each category, your prescription will have two listings, OS & OD. Those are latin abbreviations for left eye (OS) and right eye (OD). If you have been fitted for contact lenses by your eye doctor in the past two years, simply contact them and ask for your prescription. They are legally obliged to provide this information to you. If you haven’t been fitted, set up an appointment to have your eyes measured for contact lenses.
Be clear that you only want the examination and Rx (prescription) and that you’ll fill the prescription on your own. Once you have your Rx, check out the web. One popular sites for ordering contacts online is Lens World (use that link for free shipping on orders over $89.) The prices depend, of course, on what product you are looking for. Example prices are $25 for a one-month supply of daily accuvue contacts, $18 for six 1-2 week use lenses Freshlook Lite Tint (tinted contacts in a variety of colors), $37 (per eye) for a three-month supply of Focus Dailies. I used to wear Toric contacts, which are for people with astigmatism. I remember paying about $200 for a single pair. At Lens World , a 12-pack of accuvue toric lenses is just $60. I might have to think about wearing contacts again.
The author is a twenty-something Coloradan who works professionally in local government and blogs as a hobby. As a lifetime wearer of corrective lenses, the author is passionate about helping people from all walks of life afford quality eyewear at a reasonable price. His blog is online at GetBetterGlasses.