I’ve heard a lot about digital lenses. That would be because I work in the optical business. I'm no expert in optics - I’m a marketer who works with digital marketing and communication.
That means I work on screens and hang out on screens all the time in both my work and personal life. During the day I’m working at screens and checking my phone, and at night I still have to get my TV show fix.
Because of the time I spend at a screen, I’ve finally gotten myself a pair of digital lenses after hearing so much about them at work. I even bought myself a pair of new frames after years of commitment issues to any new set of frames. It’s always tricky for me to choose what style I prefer.
My First Day with Digital Lenses
I’m typing this on my phone and experiencing my eyeglasses and a new lens prescription for the first time. I am walking and typing. I have to say it’s pretty cool, and also a little weird.
I left the optical store wearing them and immediately noticed a visual difference. Objects appear larger than they used to appear. The lower part of my lenses, where the ground and my shoes are visible, make items in view slightly larger. I chose a new type of lens which is supposed to offer more relief to my eye muscles when viewing digital devices. What I decided might not be right for you; there are a variety of options of lenses and coatings, so ask your optician what choices are most relevant to your needs and lifestyle.
Even the subway escalator metal that I’m standing on appears larger, yet it is not blurry. I’ve taken a photo of what I see, but you can’t see nor experience what I do right now.
Right now, my eyes are undergoing something new. Even what I see on my phone screen looks better. My eyeballs have been an expensive duo since 4th grade. I have nearsighted vision and major astigmatism. I cannot see far without my contact lenses or glasses, and my new lenses are already making a difference, even if I’m still getting used to it.
Why I Made the Switch to Digital Lenses
From my optician (not from my workplace), I learned that I was overworking my eye muscles when I’ve been looking at my computer screen all day long. This happens because our eyes are structurally meant to be looking farther away. We evolved from hunter-gatherers; our ancestors did not have to work close to their eyes like many of us do today. The technological age has graced us with tools which challenge our natural human physics.
The prescription on my old glasses, combined with my phone and computer screen usage time, was causing eye strain symptoms. I have been ending my workday with red and tired eyes more than I ever should have. My red eyes were the reason I stopped wearing contacts and switched to glasses. But, I still ended my days with tired and red eyes after long days at work. As is common with many people, I never realized the cause because digital eye strain is still a relatively new idea.
I’ve been misinformed for some time now. I also thought that wearing glasses instead of contact lenses at work all day would be healthy enough for my eyes. It turns out I was wrong. The advances in lens technology now allow us to support more specialized lifestyles, such as a lot of screen time.
My optician explained to me that the amount of time looking at screens was like making my eye muscles run a marathon, Monday to Friday, all day and evening. I’ve run marathons, and I know the price of that pain. It’s a dimension of strain that is not supposed to be experienced regularly, at least for non-super humans.
I’ve been overworking my eye muscles without realizing or knowing it.
Now I’m excited to understand what these digital lenses are about and if they will bring me relief or comfort of any kind.
Tomorrow is my first day wearing them at work, and I shall report back.
For now, I see things in ways I had never before seen, and I even stopped to smell the flowers. And take this picture.
An Evening Update:
After thirty minutes of my evening TV series binging I can confirm, I forgot about my new glasses. (I recently started watching ‘Billionaire’ on HBO.)
It is time to call it a day. And hopefully, put all screens away until I wake again and repeat.
Stay tuned for my first day back at work with them on. If you are interested in a digital pair of lenses, ask your optician, or find one below:
