Contact lenses

[chriscastle46]

Can anyone share their experiences of caving while using soft contact lenses? I can't get on with glasses, they steam up, fall off, get broken, etc.

 

[Stu]

I'm short sighted to a point where I shouldn't really drive without them. I don't cave with glasses and don't get on with contacts.....

What rock??

Interested to know which type of contacts you mean? Are they soft as in disposable etc?

 

[kay]

For what it's worth, one of my caving mates wears glasses mot of the time, but uses disposable contacts for caving. He's never had any obvious trouble with them. Basically novice stuff, though - I don't know whether that makes any difference.

My experience is that I can't cave in varifocals - my feet are out of focus. Doesn't matter in ordinary life, but it does in a cave.

 

[Katie]

Hello,
I cave with soft contact lenses as i could not get on with caving in glasses for the same reasons. (steaming up, becoming covered in water droplets to the extent you cant really see)
So far i have never had a problem with caving in them. Although wearing lenses does make me more paranoid about getting dirt in my eyes (ie. rubbing your eyes underground)
But i have not yet ever got mud in my eyes and enjoy caving with them alot more then glasses!
In case you are interested i tend to use daily disposible ones on weekends away so i can just take them out and throw them away as this is easier in huts but when i am coming home after caving i use monthly ones.
Hope this helps...

 

[Hughie]

Hi Chris. Caving with soft contacts is no problem - even in wet caves. Have to agree with Bat girl re getting mud in your eyes, but you soon realise it doesn't happen very often at all. Entertaining Mr & Mrs Brown tonight - Robin says you're too old to go caving, besides which, he thought you were dead! I can readily imagine your reply and will pass it on immediately!

 

[andymorgan]

I have always caved in soft contact lenses (I have never tried wearing glasses underground). Dust and grit has never been a problem despite going to mucky places like our club dig. The only problem I had was the first time I went through sump 1 in Swildons I lost one of them, so I had to exit the cave one eyed, so to speak! This problem is solved by wearing goggles or a face mask. 8)

 

[Melanie lloyd]

Chris love, i'm sure all your eyesight problems would be sorted out if only you'd lay off the viagra for a while.

 

[dunc]

Been using them for years when caving (I figured they had to be better than glasses) - not had any trouble, even in wet caves..

 

[chriscastle46]

Thank you, everybody; the feed-back was useful and I'll give them a go.
Hugh, tell Dobbin Drown he can do his own bloody sherpering, and if he thinks I'm too old to cave let him seek the opinions of local cavers John Stafford (aged 70) and Robin Gray (127).
Mel, why should I need Viagra when I can crawl behind you?

 

[potholer]

With disposable lenses, you can always duct tape a few to the inside of your helmet in case of any loss.
I wear lenses on some trips, particularly for long, wet or sweaty ones, and have had no problems, though I always wear glasses above ground.
Peak vision quality for me is slightly less good than glasses, but they maintain the quality despite mud and humidity, and even with my fantastic home-made light, it's hard to illuminate things more than 30/40m away anyway.

Even for the odd 2-3 day camping trip, I have sometimes left lenses in without any discomfort, probably because they don't dry out in the humid air underground.

Switching around, I do notice just how much crap glasses keep out of my eyes when digging in confined dusty spaces while lying face-up, occasional bolting, etc.

 

[DaveL]

Thanks guys! I've just got back from a trip (to Pant Mawr Pot as it happens) where my glasses got so steamed up I couldn't see a thing, mainly because I was already worn out from doing an hour's walk-in in blazing sunshine carrying half a ton of gear and I was sweating like a pig. I swore I'd ask around and find out what experiences people had had with contact lenses - and now, coincidentally, this thread appears. I think I'll be making a trip to the opticians for some disposable contacts, then.
8) ---> :shock:

 

[Brendan]

I use monthly disposables and have not had a problem with them. I have done plenty of wet trips, and dived Swildons sump 1 with them in, as well as swimming underwater in rivers with my eyes open. They are surprisingly hard to lose. As Batgirl says, the only problem is if you get grit in your eye, but if you don't rub then youir eye will clean itself. Obviously if you are camping underground you may want to use glasses as sleeping in contacts is about as painful as smacking your nuts with a large hammer!

 

[mudmonkey]

sleeping in contacts is about as painful as smacking your nuts with a large hammer!

Have you tried both for comparison?

If not, we will be at Crem tonight with a hammer just for you....

 

[potholer]

Though not *recommended*, the few occasions I have slept in daily disposables have been fine. I certainly wouldn't try it if my eyes felt at all dry or painful before going to sleep. I think the daily disposables have a very high water content and are rather softer then monthlies.

In my case, it was really a balancing act between exceeding the recommended wear time, and trying to put in new lenses the next day in a passage floored with fine white rock-flour that gets absolutely everywhere, and where getting really clean hands would be very difficult.

 

[tubby two]

Depends how bad your eyes are but i find it easiest caving without glasses. My vision is pretty blurred without but when underground i dont tend to notice after a few minuites, and get along fine- the only thing i struggle with is reading guidebooks at times, generally about 1/2" from my face! I've tried caving in glasses (by forgetting to take them off) and found it truly infuriating. Optician says i cant use soft lenses so its blurred or steam- blurred wins. Difference is even less when your light's a bit crap like mine....

tt.

 

[graham]

I have caved in gas permeable hard lenses for years. The odd piece of grit has been a slight problem, but I have succesfully removed one, cleaned it and put it back in the middle of the G.B. boulder choke.

 

[Brendan]

tt - have you considered hard lenses?

 

[tubby two]

Yeah, but was told i cant wear them on and off, i.e. only at weekends. quite like glasses the rest of the time. can you wear them intermittently?

tt.

 

[muffled]

Hey, I used to wear glasses underground and found they always got steamed up when I least needed it! A trick I learnt is to smear grease from the side of your nose over the lenses. You lose a little clarity, but it stops the steaming up at the critical moment!
I've swapped to disposables these days and had very little trouble (lost a lens a couple of times and once got 'mud in the eye'). I'm holding off from going for laser treatment because I've heard too many stories of problems and I don't think anyone really knows the long term effects yet.

 

[graham]

I'm holding off from going for laser treatment because I've heard too many stories of problems and I don't think anyone really knows the long term effects yet.

Eye surgeon friend (inactive caver) pointed out, when I asked about this treatment, that if he wanted to do it, it would double his MDU (insurance) premiums. That's when I decided not to bother.