Prescription Eye wear on the playa

[snowflake916]

Hi Everybody,
This will be my first year at burning man and I would like to know how those of you who are visually impaired like me deal with it on the playa. I'm sorry if this topic has already been discussed, I couldn't find a search feature to look through old threads.

I have a pair of glass but I do not want to bring them because 1. they are expensive 2. I only have one pair 3. too big of risk of getting lost/stepped on/ broken 4. don't bode well with goggles 5. worried about effects of dust on hinges and lenses

I asked my optometrist to try out daily contacts (I currently use bi-weekly contacts) and they gave me a 10 day trial, which is enough to get me through burning man. I figure it would be easier if I could just throw my contacts away at the end of the day rather than try to store them with all the dust and what not.

Does anyone have any advice on wearing contacts out there? Is it possible to get them in without dust, say inside my tent with a mirror while there isn't a dust storm.
What about getting your hands clean enough to put them in or take them out. I was thinking baby wipe, then hand sanitizer then water to rinse of the alcohol, then a clean dry towel.

If my vision wasn't so bad I'd just scrap the prescription eye wear for a week, but the DMV does require me to wear glasses/contacts to drive and I'm afraid if I don't bring anything I'll spend the weekend blurry eyed and squinting, missing out on much of the beauty and spectacle around me.

Thanks for reading and thanks for any feedback.

[robrob]

it's my first time as well, and i will be bringing daily disposables as well, but not as my only options. Be aware they are pretty flimsy, and at least for me they start to wear down after a "session" (8 hours or so- ; i usually keep some around for days i go swimming, or to an amusement park, etc) It feels good to take them out, and I wouldn't be stoked to have to rely on them 24/7, especially in a harsh environment.

luckily my daily wear glasses are built like a tank (wayfarers).



i made sure my goggles would go over them, plus i am paranoid of not being able to see/make an emergency eye doctor run, so I am bringing a second backup pair as well. (I have a third, brand new pair at home; i thought i was losing my insurance so i went a little nuts at the eye doc last year).

[lambert13]

Another idea is to buy a cheap pair or two of glasses to use out there from one of the websites that sells prescription glasses for cheap.

[AntiM]

Bring the glasses for the drive in, then leave them in the car and wear the contacts. My glasses have held up just fine out there.

[MissNev]

I'm blind and wear contacts. Just be sure to wear your goggles over your contacts or it can be very uncomfortable. I usually bring 2 or 3 extra pairs, but I usually don't need them. I'm very careful about washing my hands before I put them in/take them out. I do it in my tent and I haven't had a problem. Year before last, I brought brand new glasses out there and accidentally stepped on them. Last year I was VERY careful about where I put my glasses...always in their case when not on my face. It can be difficult in the wind and dust, but not impossible. My tent stays pretty dust free.

[Eric]

I bring my glasses "just in case", but they've never come out of their sealed ziplock. I get the extended-wear contacts & use those; I never take them out & keep my eyes well lubricated with drops.

It's a little blurry when I get up, but with some drops I'm good to go within a few minutes- and the blurryness isn't enough to actually blind me, it's just like being a little out of focus.

I had to switch a pair one year when one got ruined somehow. Nightmare trying to get my hands clean enough to deal with everything. If you can deal with it I say go for the extended wear.

[Stickygreen]

I wear my glasses at night time only. I have done this for the last 3 burns. they hold up just fine. during the day I wear perscritin goggles, or sunglasses.

[phil]

Hi, snowflake, I'm not sure why you are concerned about damage to your gasses. You've got that solved with your contacts, but I see people out there every day with their glasses. I wear contacts, but I bring my glasses and wear them daily. I can't remember how many years I've had this particular pair, but they've held up fine.

I don't wear them all day (I wear contacts during the day and my glasses at night to give my eyes a rest from the contacts), but they have no signs of wear or damage from the dust. I don't know of anyone who's suffered damage to their glasses just from being on the playa and getting dusty. I'm sure someone breaks their glasses at BM; it happens every day all year round. I don't know why you're concerned. Do you break them often at home? What specifically is your fear?

[robotland]

I've worn contacts out there, even with some pretty rough dustups, for years without a single problem. Especially if you're a noob you'll want to arrange to have some place in your tent/car/camp for a Whiteout Hideout where you can sit out a big dust storm, or just know that it's somewhat dust-free for contact removal. Bring spares of contacts AND glasses if possible, and either don't leave 'em all in the car OR bring a spare key!

[trystanthegypsy]

I got dust in my contacts once and I was very unhappy. This year I'm getting the kind you can wear 24/7 for about 2 weeks straight, then you throw out and change them. eyedrops are essential but i'd rather do that then take the damn things out.

but i suppose it worked fine the other 5 nights, i just like complaining about that one time :):)

[Elderberry]

My partner wears contacts 24/7, doesn't even use drops.

I was new to my contacts last year, so I took them out every night. This year I plan on wearing them 24/7 too.

We both bring glasses and additional contacts just in case.

JK

[CorvusMechanicus]

My glasses have been fine on the playa. Dust wipes off easily and you can just get some military surplus goggles that fit right over glasses for pretty cheap (with both dark and clear lenses)

I personally wouldn't mess with contacts out there just because dust everywhere, etc.

But seems a lot of people do contacts fine so whatever you feel comfortable with.

[kman]

I've tried contacts at least 5 or 6 times over the past 20 years. Never could get used to them, long term, and always went back to glasses.

I always wore my regular glasses at BM. No problem. What is that makes you think BM will instantly destroy something as simple as a pair of glasses?

Lots of goggles are specifically made to fit over glasses. That's a non-issue, as well.

Much better, IMO, to wear glasses than mess with sticking playa-fied fingers into your eyes every day... especially since you're new to contacts and still getting the hang of things.

[teardropper]

I've broken glasses in many places, once at BM. A goggle incident. The time I broke them before was helmet event. Not at BM. Don't wear contacts, so I will bring a back up pair of glasses. I also wear prescription sunglasses. Keeping glasses clean is a chore, not an issue. You have to work at it but they do clean up. . What was the question...?

[velocirafter]

I used daily contacts all last year and it was fine, just make sure you give you hands a good wash before and dont attempt put them in if there is a lot of dust storm going on.

[kman]

I've broken glasses in many places, once at BM. A goggle incident. The time I broke them before was helmet event. Not at BM. Don't wear contacts, so I will bring a back up pair of glasses. I also wear prescription sunglasses. Keeping glasses clean is a chore, not an issue. You have to work at it but they do clean up. . What was the question...?

It's possible to break glasses in your bathroom, too, but I don't worry too much about that, either.

Don't be stupid, and the odds are in your favor.

It does sound like an inexpensive spare pair are in order for the OP, however. Get some cheap frames, and RX lenses at Costco are only $75.

Either way, keep one set of contacts in reserve for the drive home, and there's only so bad things can get. (other than a wicked eye infection, I suppose)

[bluesbob]

I had been worried about my eyewear early on during my planning for BM. Then I came across this post and began to worry a little more about protecting my glasses

Then it dawned on me....I go to freaking concerts and dance for hours with people running into me, ride my bike 30 miles to the beach, run around shopping, going to movies, eating in restaurants, I've gone on desert hikes and traipsed through the local mountains, and I've played racketball and other hard sports. And not once have my glasses fell off my face.

[C.f.M.]

I wore the same pair of contacts all week, took them out at night for sleeping, wore glasses while around camp in the morning, didn't have any problems.

This year, I'm taking a spare pair of glasses and extra contacts to carry in my backpack, with the intent of maybe not coming home at night...

At Transformus my friend was helping another guy put some beer in the creek (to keep it cold) and his glasses fell into the creek. Like me, he's blind without them. Luckily, he had a pair of prescription sunglasses with him otherwise he'd have been screwed.

[Bling]

I got dust in my contacts once and I was very unhappy. This year I'm getting the kind you can wear 24/7 for about 2 weeks straight, then you throw out and change them.

It's really dangerous for your eyes to wear these. Anaerobic beasties (like bacteria and amoebas) can grow under the lenses and damage your corneas. There is no treatment for amoebas. I know three people who have permanently lost vision in at least one eye because of these lenses. Opthalmologists almost never wear contact lenses of any type.

[Bling]

I got dust in my contacts once and I was very unhappy. This year I'm getting the kind you can wear 24/7 for about 2 weeks straight, then you throw out and change them.

It's really dangerous for your eyes to wear these. Anaerobic beasties (like bacteria and amoebas) can grow under the lenses and damage your corneas. There is no treatment for amoebas. I know three people who have permanently lost vision in at least one eye because of these lenses. Opthalmologists almost never wear contact lenses of any type.

[C.f.M.]

I love my contacts. In my glasses, I have no peripheral vision. I mostly wear glasses, because I'm too lazy to put them in each morning - and I don't sleep in them. Never found a brand that wouldn't feel thick and sticky the next day.

[Bling]

I love mine, too. I only wear glasses at night after I've taken them out and in the morning before I put them in. We each got extra boxes of lenses so we can change them more often if they get dusty.

[lucky420]

I have to wear hard contact lenses, so no contacts on the playa for me. If you get ANY dust or particles at all in your eye while wearing hard contacts it feels like someone is eye stabbing you. I do have prescription oakleys for daytime and just got a second pair of glasses at walmart (yuck, i know) for under a $100.

[Savannah]

I wear contacts at the Burn and have been lucky never to have had a problem. (My campmate had the opposite experience; luckily, she brought glasses). I do bring glasses as a back-up plan, and extra contact lenses too, and I'm faithful about wearing my goggles.

I take the lenses out every night because if I sleep in them my eyes feel gummy in the morning, and I hate that. I do have artificial tears and separate redness reliever drops in my pack at all times. (I don't like to use redness reliever when tears will suffice.)

It is possible to clean one's hands prior to eyecare with sanitizer and wipes, (this is how I've done it in the previous burns) but I think this year I will do soap, water and nailbrush with a small bucket first. I never liked not-washing my hands in the traditional sense, it gave me the creeps.

[snowflake916]

thanks for all the feed back, this has helped me get a better game plan for my contacts/glasses and know what to expect.