8 signs that tell you it’s time to wear prescription glasses

It’s not always easy to figure out that you need glasses. If you have regular eye tests, then you know when you need to start using specs. But, if you don’t take regular eye exams, it becomes tricky to know whether you need glasses or not.

Vision problems are subtle and can be asymptomatic. And even there are symptoms, it’ll be too late for you to notice them.

If your vision gets poor, you won’t wake up one day with blurry vision or eye pain hinting that you need glasses. Instead, there’ll be a gradual decline in your vision that might skip your notice at first.

The classic signs of needing glasses include frequent headaches, eye strain and squinting. Other signs may include needing more lights to read clearly and also seeing halos around light sources.

Signs you may need glasses

It can be challenging to know when you need glasses if you don’t get regular eye exams. Everyone should get an eye exam every two years (if you don’t have eye problems).

Here are a few signs that tell you that it’s time to buy your first pair of prescription glasses.

Problems while focusing on distant objects

Those who work on computers or laptops for long hours can experience this problem. Several studies have shown that prolonged usage of display screens and exposure to blue light can give rise to myopia or nearsightedness or loss of distance vision.

If you experience that objects at a distance have become blurry to you, then this could be a problem of myopia.

If you aren’t able to focus on something that’s merely 20 feet away from you, then this definitely signals myopia.

Get an eye test to get an expert’s opinion and seek early treatment. You would either need glasses contacts or eyeglasses to correct your vision. You can buy contacts or prescription glasses online to save money as vision correction glasses tend to be a little expensive.

Problems while focusing on close up objects

When your eyes aren’t able to see nearby objects clearly, this problem is known as hyperopia or farsightedness.

This is a type of refractive error where your eyes can focus on objects at a distance but struggle to perform close-up tasks such as reading a book or reading something on your computer screen.

Single vision lenses are apt to correct your vision in case of myopia or hyperopia.

Blurry vision

This is one of the most common signs of vision decline. When the functionality of your eyes decreases, they become unable to focus on objects as properly as they used to.

Thus, the images formed in front of your eyes are rather blurry and undefined.

Blurry vision means that you need corrective glasses. However, if it is mild and rarely show up, then it could be a sign of digital eye strain. But, if your vision is often blurry and unfocused, then you should seek help from an optometrist. They will identify the problem and prescribe corrective glasses for your vision problem.

Your vision is poor at all distances

If your vision is poor no matter whether you’re reading a book or a road sign, then it’s a sign of astigmatism. This problem arises due to an unusual shape of the cornea that doesn’t let the light fall properly on the focal points on the retina.

As a result, you get blurry vision no matter where you look at. This problem can’t be corrected with single vision lenses. Thus, you need varifocal glasses that have different vision powers on the lenses.

Where the upper portion of the lens helps you see clearly at distance, the lowermost part improves your vision at a reading distance. The middle portion is reserved for intermediate vision so you can see the people you interact with clearly.

Trouble seeing at night

Our eyes are not engineered to give us a clear and crisp vision in the dark. However, if you have normal vision, you would still be able to see silhouette is not the details in the dark.

But, if you can’t see anything at night, then this hints towards a potential eye problem that affects your visual acuity at night. If you’re driving at night and seeing halos around the street lights, then you need glasses.

If you’re struggling to see the road signs or the pavements at night, then it’s a clear sign that your vision has gone worse and you need glasses.

Squinting

Squinting is a common thing we all do when we look at bright light sources. Even if you’re in a brightly lit room, you’ll squint your eyes a little bit to control the amount of light that penetrates your eyes.

However, squinting is what you do when your eyes are having a hard time focusing. And if you also start to hold things at a distance to help your vision, then you definitely have a refractive error or your eyes are ageing.

Holding things further away

If you’ve started to hold your books at an arm’s length just to see a little clearer, then it means that your eyes are ageing and you have developed presbyopia.

Presbyopia refers to a problem where your eyes aren’t able to focus on nearby objects. Many people confuse this problem with hyperopia or farsightedness. But in presbyopia, your eyes lose their flexibility and can’t change their shape to focus on nearby objects.

This usually happens in your 40s. Take an eye exam to check up on your eye health and wear reading glasses if you develop presbyopia.

Double vision

This is different from blurry vision. This happens when you see two images of the same object. This could happen in one or both of your eyes. To check, you can close one of your eyes and try to see with the other one. If the vision is clear, then the problem is in one eye only.

If you experience double vision, you should get an eye test to see what’s causing it. If you need to wear glasses, then you should start using them as soon as you can to prevent further vision decline.

These were the signs that tell you that you need glasses. However, don’t leave hanging on these signs. Get regular eye exams to catch any problem in your vision as soon as it develops.