I'm so afraid to wear glasses in public

Post Reply New Topic

I'm the same age as you, and I recently got glasses myself. I still have my contacts, and use them on some days, but 5 days a week I now wear glasses.

If you're worried about how you will look, then don't be afraid to consider contacts or even do a 2 week trial with them and see how you go.

I have not been picked on since getting my glasses. I don't imagine I will be either. I know other girls my age who also have them, and it doesn't make them appear weaker. Some of the prettier girls I know wear them, and they suit them very much. So far people have commented that mine suit me really well, I haven't had any bad comments, apparently they make me look a tad more scary (I assume because they draw attention to my eyes, which can be intense - I used to get that complaint before the glasses anyway).

As far as the general look, what Sora said below is very relevant. Most of the girls who looked good with their glasses on managed to pick the right frame for their faces and a color that suited their skin tone.

Actually teenagers do actually pick on random people in the street. When I first left school, I thought they only picked on others in school, but I've found they don't. I often attract teenagers (in a negative way), like girls would glare at me and boys would make silly noises at me.

I think it's a stereotypical thing that I worry about with glasses. I know a lot of people wear them, but how come so many Aspies wear them? I'm not being critical and I don't think glasses are geeky because I'm way passed that, but when I watch films about young people and there's a character that's supposed to be the ''plain'' one or the ''clever'' one, they always seem to put them in glasses, as though glasses give of a stereotypical impression to say that this person is plain.

I honestly think people don't judge glasses wearing. If you need them, wear them - it's like coats in winter. It requires more explanation as to why you're not wearing something you need than to explain why you are. I have sensitive ears, so I wear earplugs at clubs sometimes. Big visible orange things. It's no biggy, and people understand/don't care when I tell them why.

If you feel vulnerable or shy when wearing them, that might be the 'vibe' people are picking up on. It could be in your head - you think people pick up a vibe when you're wearing glasses, so you give off that vibe when wearing them.

I know a few people (around my age) who need glasses and as far as I can tell, none are on the spectrum. However, my cousin is younger than me, is on the spectrum, and requires glasses. But my other even younger cousin (to same parents) requires glasses too, and she isn't on the spectrum (As far as anyone can tell). I don't always like it when people say this to me, but don't worry about it.

I am thinking logically, I always do. As I said, I've been wearing glasses constantly for about 20 years and my eyesight hasn't changed at all. Short sight does worsen in the teenage years. It starts in the early teens or thereabouts (I was 10 and had perfect eyesight until then, as with most people with myopia). It gradually gets worse, until it settles in the early 20s. This is how myopia progresses, whether you wear glasses or not. It actually gets worse more quickly in people who don't wear their glasses. The worsening eyesight is not cause by the glasses, it's caused by the myopia. When I said, 'Your eyesight may worsen when you start wearing glasses', I'm referring to the fact that if you're just starting to wear glasses due to myopia, you will need regular stronger prescriptions for a while until your eyesight settles into it's adult state - but it's not because of the glasses.

I wonder if it's because you never see chavs or thugs wearing glasses? Regardless, I think you are on the money that's it's just irrational thinking and there's no evidence to back up your concerns about wearing them.

====

Last edited by smudge on 08 Jun 2012, 7:41 am, edited 1 time in total.

====

Last edited by smudge on 08 Jun 2012, 7:41 am, edited 1 time in total.

My glasses are the same thickness as bulletproof glass in an inner city bank.

Who says being an aspie and wearing glasses isn't sexy?
*poses*

I wear my glasses all the time except for in the shower and when I am sleeping. I don't wear them if I go swimming.

When I first needed them, I was not happy. It just didn't feel like me and I never wore them before and then there was a change to me of needing them and I didn't like it. I was also worried I'd get teased about it in school. I used to only use them to read or use for distance to read things further away and then I started to wear all the time. I liked being able to see more detail and see things more clear and not have to squint my eyes or having to walk up to signs and read it. I can even read road signs. It didn't take long for me to adjust to the change.

I don't see anything wrong or unusual about wearing glasses. If you need them, wear them. I've never felt self-conscious about wearing glasses. I do have to admit I would feel a little self conscious wearing my 'geek specs' in public:

They may look odd but they are brilliant for keeping out grinding and welding sparks when I am working on one of my project vehicles.

I love my glasses. For real, I have crazy acute attention to detail and my glasses give me 20/15 vision.

I'm really hard on my wearable stuff. I bump into things and break stuff accidentally all the time. Used to snap the arms off my glasses with great frequency till I bought a pair of kids frames that have these hyper-articulated arms, haven't broken them yet. Even better is they came with colour matching really dark magnetic clip on shades, very handy for blocking out sunlight, fluorescent light, hiding behind etc.

Sorry about the grainy pic

I don't have ASD but I certainly have "mild" myopia (visual acuity is 20/300 - 20/400 while my glasses are mild -2.5) which was untreated in my mid-twenties (psychological issues...). I couldn't hold eye contact at all because of this. Very mushy face in front of me and eye strain and reading facial emotions was very hard.
It hinders you more socially. Makes you look more tense, destroys the rest of the eye contact you are able to make etc. I guess you don't want be any more awkward in that area, right?

I've needed corrective lenses since I was seven years old, and there was a time as a teen and young adult when I preferred not to wear glasses, more for vanity than anything else. I was self-conscious, had social anxiety and low self-esteem, and wearing contact lenses helped me feel more confident and attractive.

If I'd been able to wear soft lenses (couldn't because of an allergy) I might still be wearing them to this day, because glasses can be sort of a pain, especially in rain or when I do something that causes me to sweat, or for very close work. (I'm near-sighted.) As I get older my glasses don't correct well enough for up-close such as for needlework, so I have to take them off.

I was never worried about feeling that I appeared less tough or more vulnerable with glasses, but we all have our reasons.

Have you looked into contact lenses?

As I've gotten older, I don't feel nearly as self-conscious about my glasses though. I have the type that darken in sunlight, and I find that's so convenient, as I need dark glasses to help prevent migraines. I even like the way they look. But I've dropped a lot of my vanity with age.

Maybe you could try contacts.

I always wear glasses, i really can´t see without them, i get accustom to it but over time there are many things to carry, if i could i would get rid of them