Afraid to wear glasses
I hate all these stereotypes of glasses being considered nerdy. I see it films, even adult films, so it's not just a kid thing.
I don't mind wearing glasses when I'm past 45 because most middle-aged and old people have to wear glasses.
I think glasses look OK and less nerdy if you are a girl who wears make-up and maintains a trendy hairstyle and is confident about herself. But I don't care for make-up (only lipstick), and my hairstyle ain't that great, just ordinary really. So I'm afraid about looking rather plain in glasses.
For some strange reason, about 99% of people I meet with disabilities, including Autism and Down's Syndrome, seem to wear glasses. It's as though glasses has become a sort of correlation with people with disabilities, and even NTs with glasses (who also look plain like me) have a sort of shy or nerdy or ''special needs'' vibe about them, even if they are not that shy or at all nerdy or obviously not special needs. Only well-done make-up and well-groomed hair can hide that sort of vibe with girls in glasses.
I already look socially weak, although I'm not nerdy. I just don't want to wear glasses in case it makes me look even more weak and ''special needs''. But I keep squinting when trying to read something from a distance, and I have to sit closer to the TV otherwise I can't see people's faces. I do sometimes feel in my own world with having such a crappy eyesight.
I'm worried about using contacts, although I suppose if I was shown how to use them I probably would have to wear them. I'd rather get laser eye surgery, but I've heard stories of people going blind from having that done. I will look into it though. But I do not want to wear glasses. They don't seem to suit me.
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Howdy. I hate glasses - I feel like a bug with no peripheral vision. You can see my age if you look over to the left - I try not to look over in that direction. I really wanted to start my midlife crisis when I got my glasses updated this time. I have an astigmatism so I can still see ok, but things are just not clear (like road signs but who needs those anyway, right?). This time I had to get BIFOCALS (ewwwww). I haven't changed my glasses for about 10 yrs so I guess it was time. They said my astigmatism was really bad (like 3x bad as what the normal astigmatism has been that they have seen - oh brother.) Before I had worn some black cat eye glasses and got a lot of compliments on them and they held up pretty well (they were Chanel). This time I went for big and black (I thought the cat glasses wouldn't work for bifocals) and got Prada. The guy actually said that bigger was better (the trend). He even said he has sold glasses without a prescription. Whatever. I'd like to wear contacts, but they don't think that I could have any secondary to my astigmatism. I had thought about the laser surgery, but the doctor said that because of my astigmatism they would be doing both eyes differently and I would see things weird if only one eye was open (and what if they did a mistake?) He said it also may not stay as I got older. So here I am with glasses and trying to get used to bifocals now too. Thank God people aren't able to know they are bifocal from just looking at them. I have received a compliment already - from a 25 yr old. Imagine that. I try to always get an expensive name brand pair of glasses because I figure I'm wearing them a lot and probably for several years. So that's my story.
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Me grumpy?
I'm happiness challenged.
Your neurodiverse (Aspie) score: 83 of 200
Your neurotypical (non-autistic) score: 153 of 200 You are very likely neurotypical
Darn, I flunked.
Yay hipsters! I love hipsterism. It means I can wear glasses and baggy clothes and pretend I think I'm cool.
The downside is that it is apparently fashionable to make fun of hipsters. That said, if you look hipsterish, it's totally ok to have long discussions about coffee culture with your local barista.
https://modaddictiondotnet.files.wordpr ... le-171.jpg
I wear glasses, and I think they look okay.
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lostonearth35
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I thought glasses were all hip and stylish these days. But yeah, stereotypes just refuse to die no matter what.
I even once read years ago that a study showed a link to nearsightedness and a high IQ. Apparently it's because intelligent people tend to read more and put a strain on their eyes.
Which makes me a little worried because not long ago I was holding a newspaper almost at arm's length while reading it.
And thanks for making feel old (I'm 41). I was in my twenties when I first got a pair of reading glasses to help me read things from far away. But if I wear them while looking at print up close it screws up my eyes, even if the print is tiny. I think I'd rather die than have my vision get so bad I can't even draw or play video games any more.
It's harder wearing glasses when you haven't needed them most of your life because you're not used to them. My mom and my brother have worn glasses for years. My mom also wears contacts but I can't imagine having to insert those things over two very delicate and sensitive organs and have them turn blood red and painful from having the lenses in too long. That's way worse than glasses! I read you can't feel them once they're in, but I get a tiny speck of something in my eye and it's like someone stuck a pin in there. And with my klutziness I'd very likely drop them on the floor and then *crunch*!
OliveOilMom
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I couldn't do contacts. Putting something in my eye is out of the question. I don't mind glasses though. I can take them off when I want to and put them on when it's important to see. Also, they come in lots of really trendy styles and you can even look on ebay and get cool vintage frames as well. Some people your age even buy the vintage frames and have clear lenses put in them if they don't wear glasses normally or just wear contacts.
The nerdy stereotype would be more along the lines of the big plastic frames and the glasses that don't sit right on your face (they make sure they sit right and aren't lopsided when you get them) and all that. The cool new frames cost upwards of $200 bucks at times and they make designer frames as well. It's not really nerdy anymore. But I do know what you are talking about. It used to be that way, but now it isn't. Especially since glasses became an accessory rather than just something you had to have.
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Jacoby
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BirdInFlight
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I think the impression glasses can give is not only "nerdy" but also "intelligent" -- as has been mentioned, some people actually want to wear glasses because it's also a "brainy" intellectual look. You could look at glasses that way.
I know a very smart, trendy woman, she's highly educated, she has a good career, she's a wife and mother, and she also happens to be a natural stunning beauty. She doesn't wear much make up but she's a very pretty woman -- and she wears glasses! She doesn't seem upset about glasses or thinks they will make her plainer; I suspect she may even have some unconscious (or even consious) understanding that they solidify the impression she gives of an intelligent, educated person.
Personally I cannot tolerate glasses for two reasons:
One is purely physical -- I can't stand having something on my face for long periods of time. I'll be okay for a while and then suddenly want to tear the evil damn things off my f*****g face. Seriously I become the Incredible Hulk after a while of tolerating them on my face. I HATE them.
Another reason is optical -- I have been trying for six years now, but I still cannot adjust to the fact that there's a corrected field in front of me and a still-blurry field in my peripheral vision. I can't walk about or move about while wearing my glasses for near/short sightedness. Literally. What I'm seeing freaks me out and I stumble. Six years ago people said I'll get used to them. I still haven't.
I've been wearing contact lenses since 1988 and I LOVE THEM. You don't even feel them in, seriously. If you get dry eyes or if you wear them for too long in one day, they can feel a bit dry, but aside from that I don't have any sensory issues with contacts -- it doesn't feel like anything is in there. My entire field of vision is correct and I don't stumble or have weird brain inabilities to filter peripheral from ahead-vision like I do with glasses.
I only got glasses to give myself a rest from contacts, but soon realized I can only tolerate my glasses if I'm sitting very still looking straight ahead, watching TV. I take them off to get up and go to the kitchen or bathroom. I once wore them to the supermarket and I thought I was in Hades. My world was unbearable to look at. Seriously. I can't tolerate glasses.
Go and get an appointment specifically to see about contacts. They should usually give you a test pair to try out and see if you literally cannot tolerate them. Some people can't, other people find putting them in tricky but then after that they feel nothing and they're on their way to being happy contact wearers. It's worth going and finding out.
The only thing I am afraid about wearing glasses is that every glasses I tried on so far make the tip of my nose itchy. It's hard to stand. Do anybody else experiences this? Does it go away with time? Or perhaps the design of glasses I tried on just doesn't fit my nose shape? If that's the case I must need some individually designed glasses... I tried putting on every pair of sunglasses in shop as a test and every single one was itching.
However there is one more problem about me and glasses.
I need glasses (my eyesight is not so good anymore, I have trouble during lectures, I have to come up close to the schoolboard to read it ) but I have no idea how to get them and when I try to ask parents for help they tell me "Your eyes got bad because you use computer too much!" and tell me to go outside more. They refuse to sign me to a doctor and I have no idea how to do it myself. The health system here is confusing.
My mom's father, my mom's sister and my mom's nephew wear glasses for nearsightedness but it is genetic for them and they have it since they were small kids. My mom says it's not the case for me so I don't need glasses, just need eye exercise.
I tried going to glasses shop but they told me I need to go to eye doctor for prescription. And I have no idea where I can find eye doctor and how to set appointment with one...
I tried asking my aunt for help but she said the same as the people in glasses shop "You go to eye doctor for prescription and then can go to glasses shop for glasses". She fails to explain how I can get to eye doctor and when I try asking her to go with me and show me around she says "Go by yourself. Michael (my cousin) is 11 years younger than you and goes there by himself. Grow up.".
I don't know what to do anymore.
I tried asking my aunt for help but she said the same as the people in glasses shop "You go to eye doctor for prescription and then can go to glasses shop for glasses". She fails to explain how I can get to eye doctor and when I try asking her to go with me and show me around she says "Go by yourself. Michael (my cousin) is 11 years younger than you and goes there by himself. Grow up.".
I don't know what to do anymore.
I'm not sure about the first part (nose itch). Maybe bring a small alcohol wipe with you to clean the nose buds before you try on a pair of glasses?
I'd suggest going back to the glasses shop and ask them for some referrals. Usually they have friends who are optometrists, so they should be able to give you a name/phone number/business card of local optometrists. If you don't want to deal with your health system/insurance, then just say that you're willing to pay cash, and often times, the optometrists and glass shop owners will give you a discounted price. Well, that's how it is where I live. Another option is asking your aunt/cousin their eye doctor's name and clinic/business name. Then google the info for a phone number to schedule an appointment. Hope that helps.
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@Kiriae The store should have tools to change the width of the nose part of the glasses.
There are also different types of nose "pads". The ones that I'm using right now are very soft and together with the low weight of my glasses I don't even get a lot of imprint on the skin. Maybe something to look into.
My eyes are one of the few parts of my body that actually works and isn't defective. I wouldn't worry about having to wear glasses, nerdy is in. I don't think nerds are really alienated as they once were anymore. Just shop around and get some killer frames that suit you. My brother had laser eye surgery and can see just as well as I can now. All surgeries carry risk, and if you were to get laser eye surgery, I certainly would do my homework to make sure you get a good surgeon, its not something you want to go cheap on. You don't want Dr Nick operating on you lol.