I have varifocals and so does my OH. He is long sighted and I am short sighted. Neither of us have had any problems with them and we have both been wearing them for several years now. They do need a little time to get used to, but as others have said, once your eyes adjust to them you will never want to use two pairs of specs again.

It is not that my sight is so bad [although my right eye has always been rather "lazy" and slow in changing focus] but that both eyes are totally different - short-sighted in my right eye and long-sighted in my left. I am also astigmatic but again at different angles/strengths in both eyes.

If the sight in both my eyes was the same, I probably would have been wearing varifocals years ago!

I've got varifocals and like you Malka I am long sighted in one eye, short sighted in the other and also have astigmatism. I also need to have prisms added to the lenses to keep me upright haha as I used to lose my balance quite a bit previous to getting them added.

I was told years ago I could never wear varifocals and the optician had spoken to some professor who said it would not be possible but I went to another optician and he said he didn't think there would be a problem. There wasn't and I got on great with them and have worn varifocals for years now.

I started off with the most expensive varifocals but now wear the cheapest and still have no problems with them. I love my varifocals. .

I would recommend varifocals to everyone, although I realise some people don't get on with them.

That's interesting Trisha I have similar eye problems to Malka and have had difficulties getting any specs of the right prescription .

If I wear the last but one pair and look at a computer screen it appears that the top of the screen is much narrower than the bottom . I only use them for sewing and reading because I feel oddly unbalanced when I take them off.

I am not sure I could cope with the hassle of trying VFs again and as I said in the earlier post muddle on with four different pairs .
You experience has given me pause for thought though.

I have worn spectacles since I was about 6 or 7 years old [I am now coming up to 72] and in those days it was very rare to see a child wearing specs because children's eyesight was never tested. Mine was because I had to go away to a convalescent home due to major problems following an appendectomy and I was a bit of a figure of fun because it was so rare then.

My daughter inherited her father's extreme short-sightedness and has worn spectacles from a similar or younger age, my son, who inherited my eyesight was even younger. Avigail does have contact lenses for rare extra-special occasions [such as her second wedding] but could not wear them for more than a few hours, and my son had laser treatment some years back so AFAIK does not wear spectacles any more. He did, apparently, try contacts once when but they were not suitable.

So - I have different spectacles with different lenses for each thing that I need to do. They suit me and swapping them is so second nature to me now that I do not even notice what I am doing, and if I am doing nothing in particular at home I manage fine with no spectacles at all, although I do have magnifying glasses just about everywhere for whether I am wearing specs or not!

Horses for courses - varifocals suit some people and do not suit others. They would not suit me so I am happy to stick to what does and what enables me to see what I need.

I had problems for years when doing close work suddenly losing my balance or at least thinking I did. I would feel as though I fell to the floor but bounced back up like those wooden russian dolls you get. haha Was shocked at work when no one came to help me but realised it was impossible to have fallen to the floor and bounce back up again. I went to numerous opticians over the years trying to explain what the problem was and eventually found one who decided I needed prisms. Not sure exactly what they are lol but they even out my sight so I don't go falling about.

When I closed one eye and looked at a point I could see, then opened it and looked with the other eye the point was lots higher and over to the side. Same as when looking at a car driving past, saw two cars one sitting on top of the other. I also used each eye seperately clicking back and forwards between near and distant stuff, this was solved by the prisms.

The problem with varifocals is that they must be sitting exactly right. If they are a little bit out it causes problems. My sister is blind in one eye and when she first got varifocals she couldn't get on with them, was dizzy and couldn't see properly. Her optician worked with her with the fitting of her glasses and now she has no problems. I am always careful where I go when I need mine adjusted as some people have no idea how to adjust them properly and I end up staggering about as though I'm drunk.

I would say if one optician can't help then go to another. I've tried all the high street opticians and they might be fine for 'normal' eyesight problems but have been no help to me, trying to get me to buy glasses which are too small to get all the prescriptions and prisms in, deciding to put the prisms in the opposite way, which cause me to fall about or making the prisms too strong. I now go to a young guy who is enthusiastic about what he does, he's helped me a lot and I wouldn't go anywhere else now.

Malka you must be much more patient than I am in swapping glasses but so glad it suits you and you have glasses for all ocassions.

Trisha - as long as I can see what I want properly, changing spectacles is no problem for me. With varifocals I would not get sufficient field of vision for each distance even with the large frames that I have. Also I am unable to move my neck much so need lenses where I can move my eyes and not my head and neck but still see top to bottom, side to side. I am sorry but I am not very good at describing this, but I know what I mean.

My biggest mistake last time was going to the Israeli equivalent of SpecSavers, where even with the "buy one get one free" I ended up with eyes that could not focus together and non-stop headaches. The testing optician swore that that was my prescription and refused to accept that it was wrong.

So I went back to the family run business in town and had my eyes tested again, and I was proven correct. Not only was the prescription wrong but the distance between my pupils had been incorrectly measured.

A rather expensive experience but a very satisfactory outcome in that I have spectacles which are perfect for me and suit everything I need to do. The fact that one pair does not do everything is of no consequence - and as far as my sight is concerned, neither is money, not that I have much. I just need to see what I need to see, without having to try to move my head and without getting headaches. And if by having a different pairs of spectacles in order for me to do so, then so beit.

As for "fashionable" frames, I am far too old to worry about fashion now!

Trisha I have prisms too , I was told it was to enable my two eyes to work together.

I have been to a few different opticians over the years and don't have a lot of confidence in any of them .
The thought of trying various options which may also be expensive scares me so I stick with that which I know even if it means juggling four lots of specs including some with bent arms held together with tape . I also use a large magnifying glass.

Kazz I hope you get on well with you new specs.

Have an appointment next week when I am not at work and not asleep.

Malka that's the problem with the varifocals not having enough space for each field of vision and having to move your head and neck especially if you have problems with them. I understood exactly what you meant

I think people like us with 'abnormal'? lol vision don't do well in the high street stores, we need someone like the family run business you go to. I feel lucky I found my optician and I know my sister also goes to a small independent one and would never go anywhere else. These opticians seem to still be interested in what they do and and really help whereas the others quickly do an eye test and try and sell you the most expensive glasses they can. They're only wage earners and aren't really interested.

Meg ah is that what they're for, to enable both eyes to work together. I think if you can find a small indepent optician rather than the high street ones you might be lucky but yes it can be an expensive mistake if things go wrong, although a lot now offer money back if the glasses don't suit.

I bought my last pair of glasses from one of those places where you get them cheap. They don't test eyes, aren't opticians but just supply glasses from the prescription. Of course the opticians warn you against using them but I got my varifocals for £110 instead of almost £300. I chose them myself without being harassed about which ones to buy, no one suggesting silly incredibly small ones which I knew would be too small for prescription and prism and they have been great.

You've got 4 pairs of specs like Malka. I thought juggling two pairs was bad. I suppose it's just getting used to it and being glad of clear sight but I am thankful for my varifocals even if I do have big dents in my nose and behind my ears hahahha