Shooting with contacts

[raydog]

I have pretty bad eye sight. I can't stand glasses so I went out and bought contacts. They really help a lot, but I have a problem when shooting my bow. When I draw back I can barely see the target through my right eye. The pins on my sight look extremely bright compared to when I don't wear contacts. It's like looking into a light when your eyes are watering. It helps to cover the prism part of my sight but still does fix it %100. Maybe it is a focus thing. I can look at the target clear or the pin clearly but not both. Maybe I'm SOL until I can afford the laser surgery. Anybody have these issues with contacts?

[kentrek]

How long have you had the contacts

[AKBowman]

Ray dog. It sounds like you would do best in a progressive lens and go with spectacles over the contacts.

[Bean Counter]

How long have you had the contacts

+1

There is a curve to contacts.  Particularly for your tear ducts learning that your eyes now want more moisture. I've had soft disposables most of my adult life  and shoot fine.

Do yourself a favor and don't be stupid like me. If they're two week disposables, don't make them two month disposables. The contacts fill up with proteins from your eye and lose gas permeability after 2-3 weeks. Your eyes will them start to form new blood vessels around the edge of the contacts and you could wind up with redder eyes than normal. I was fortunate to wise up before too long.

[raydog]

How long have you had the contacts

+1

There is a curve to contacts.  Particularly for your tear ducts learning that your eyes now want more moisture. I've had soft disposables most of my adult life  and shoot fine.

Do yourself a favor and don't be stupid like me. If they're two week disposables, don't make them two month disposables. The contacts fill up with proteins from your eye and lose gas permeability after 2-3 weeks. Your eyes will them start to form new blood vessels around the edge of the contacts and you could wind up with redder eyes than normal. I was fortunate to wise up before too long.

I have had contacts for about a year. I bought a year worth of them, but have only worn 6 months worth. I skipped like jan-jun basically. The ones I have left were never opened so I assume they are still good? I don't like putting them in is why I don't wear them often, once they are in I have no issue with them. my vision is just good enough I don't need them to drive.
 Bean counter- are you saying that I should try putting a couple eye drops in. Oh and I don't wear the contacts longer than one month, as that's there "life span"

[Bean Counter]

The expiration date for UNOPENED contact lenses is pretty generous. You can see it for yourself on the box/lens containers but I'm pretty sure that they're still good. Its when you open the contacts, and also when yous tart wearing them, that the safe, usable lifespan of them precipitously declines.

My eye doctor was bustin my balls about over wearing them so I get rid of them more. Here's the thing:i don't usually wear them on the weekends and wear glasses once a week or so--usually when I need to look smart  So if they're two week lenses and that's 14 days, I figure stretching them to 3 weeks with weekends off isn't too bad.

Eye drops wont hurt and aren't habit forming, just make sure they bottle you buy is good for soft contact lenses.

One other thing to consider: If you're only going to wear them once or twice a week, consider getting daily disposable lenses. Individually they're more expensive than getting biweeklys, but you may be better off financially. Just ask your eye doctor for a trial pair--they feel markedly thinner and more flimsy in the eye than your biweekly/monthly lenses.

[Bean Counter]

Another plus for daily disposables is if you shoot guns. Theres lots of blowback of powder and dust and crap at  the range and it sure would be nice to be able to just toss the lenses at the end of the day. I try to schedule shooting times at the end of a couple weeks of my contacts. Sometimes it works out, sometimes not.

[270Shooter]

I think your eyes just have to get used to them. Also different brands are better for certain people. I have monthlies and I usually wear them 1 1/2 to 2 months per pair. I even told my eye doctor this and he said that it is not a good idea to do that, but he said my eyes looked fine and i didn't have any excess redness so he said if they are working for you there's really no reason to stop.

[raydog]

Another plus for daily disposables is if you shoot guns. Theres lots of blowback of powder and dust and crap at  the range and it sure would be nice to be able to just toss the lenses at the end of the day. I try to schedule shooting times at the end of a couple weeks of my contacts. Sometimes it works out, sometimes not.

O.k. thanks for the advice guys. I'm not planning on buying any more contacts at this point. I hope to have the laser surgery next year. The contacts still help, they just seem to make my pin "brighter". It make sit like the pin is much larger. I'm hoping that if I start to wear them daily soon my eyes might adjust better.
 

[Tacbeav]

 

One other thing to consider: If you're only going to wear them once or twice a week, consider getting daily disposable lenses. Individually they're more expensive than getting biweeklys, but you may be better off financially. Just ask your eye doctor for a trial pair--they feel markedly thinner and more flimsy in the eye than your biweekly/monthly lenses.
[/quote]

I wear glasses most days but wear contacts for outdoor activities so this is what works for me. Daily disposables are also easier to deal with when you doing some kind of primitive camping.  I have noticed that shooting with glasses vs contacts changes my point of impact some so practice accordingly.

[raydog]

Thanks for the heads up. I have been trying to practice everyday with them in

[scotsman]

I switched from the monthly to daily one use contacts. Having a brand new, fresh set every day makes my eyes happy. And I can see like an eagle with these.

I have tow prescriptions. I use mono vision (one close and one distant ) for work and distance vision in both eyes for outdoor stuff. Try it!

[Bean Counter]

Two more points for the OP:

Another mistake I made for the first several years was to wear the contacts sun up to sundown. Now i usually put them in and take them out at work.its good for your eyes to get a few hours a day to breathe.plus in the sunny southwest I like having transitions lenses--very convenient.

If you're considering laser eye surgery, you should wait until  your perscription has been stable for at least a few years. That way, you can be confident that your eyes wont likely decide to change on you again after you get the surgery. I think mine have finally stabilized and I am going to consider the process myself in a year or two. Back when I first looked into it I couldn't keep the same prescription year to year. Lasers in the eye isnt' somethign I want to do more than once.