Eye Sensitivity

[Bfree]

My mum suffers from myopic degeneration amongst other eye problems she is blind in one eye and has very little sight in the other . Amongst coming to terms with going blind my mum has to deal with very sore painful eyes which she gets from the sun but even from a white room or too much screen time . It’s a vicious circle as she needs light to help her see but ends up wearing a cap and sometimes wears 2 pairs of sunglasses to cope . She says the eye hospital can’t do anything but it’s sending her back into depression. Does anyone else have this problem and found a solution ?

[Hidden]

Call the RNIB, I'm sure they'd have good advice and something to help.My hubby wears tinted eyeshields,indoors and out. There are different tints so I'm not sure what would work for your mum.

Also sterile soothing drops are good. Can be bought from any chemist but our gp gives us ours ( Hylotear) on repeat prescription - might be worth asking yours.

[Lizty]

My mother also suffers from MD etc. I have just spotted some sunglasses on a site called Talking Products which are for people like our parents. I have ordered her a dictaphone from the same site, as she wants to record some memories of her childhood for us, and is struggling with writing now. She has an Alexa Echo Dot which gives her great entertainment. There is so much available now for people who are partially sighted/blind. I do hope you find something to help your mother's eyes feel more comfortable.

[Kelly_macularsociety Partner]

Individuals with a macular related condition tend to develop a heightened sensitivity to glare. The glare is produced by the blue light in the spectrum. Ordinary sunglasses protect against the UV but not the blue light. Therefore, individuals can find that they can end up trying to eradicate the discomfort from the glare by wearing ordinary sunglasses which are too dark for the lighting conditions, thereby obscuring their vision. The way to potentially address this is to choose spectacles from the anti-glare protection range, as they both protect against the blue light in the spectrum and the UV, and come in a range of shades. Therefore, an individual can either choose to purchase one shade or various for different lighting conditions. Anti-glare protection comes in a variety of styles of frames; however, fit-overs are handy when an individual already wears spectacles.

In terms of colour choice, as an indication, e.g. yellow anti-glare fit-overs are generally good for indoor use as they do not reduce the amount of light coming in; reduce glare, increase contrast and definition. They are also suitable for outdoor use on a dull day when glare may still be an issue, but there is not adequate natural light to wear a darker shade. On a brighter day out an orange pair of fit-overs may be advisable, followed by an amber pair on a very bright day out.

The RNIB sell a range of different anti-glare products, they can also be purchased by another company that specializes in low-vision products called Optelec.

Best regards,

Kelly

Advice and information

Macular Society

[Hidden in reply to Kelly_macularsociety]

Kelly, do you know if any of the anti-glare ranges or shades you have mentioned now have an anti-reflective coating on them please? There seems, from my experience, to be a misunderstanding that anti-glare glasses stop you getting reflections in the lens. I tried anti-glare glasses when I first was diagnosed with dry md and didn't find that they helped my condition . I suffer with bounce back glare that is glare you get in the back of the lens and makes you get a lot of reflections in the lens. If innovative sunglass companies now have a standard a/r coating on all of their sunglasses and optometrists and ophthalmologists have advised me to always have an a/r on all glasses why are not low vision optical companies not addressing this condition.

[Hidden]

I have had severe light sensitivity for nearly 20 years now. I thought initially it was glare from having dry md. Every time I have had my eyes monitored at the eye hospital I have told different ophthalmologists about the problems I have with light sensitivity, it is unbearable when the winter sun is low in the sky and have got no help at all. A few years ago a very helpful, locum ophthalmologist said it sounded as if I had Sjogren's Syndrome (dry eyes and dry mouth) and I had positive blood tests. Unfortunately even having been diagnosed with this condition hasn't helped me cope with light sensitivity. In the last couple of years the only advice I have been given is to wear sunglasses and to have an anti-reflective coating on my glasses. I have been wearing polarized wrap-around sunglasses, with an a/r coating for years and all my glasses have an a/r coating. I sometimes wear overglasses over my sunglasses but cannot find any filter or overglasses in the country with an a/r coating. I do not understand why ophthalmologists cannot be more pro-active in advising the optical manufacturers that people with eye conditions should be able to get anti-reflective coating on all eyewear to stop glare - it is quite shocking how this condition is dismissed. I am sure your mother is older than I am but it is a condition that so many young women and men have too.

[Jazzywoman in reply to Hidden]

Good MorningMy eyes have become very sensitive to indoor lighting, P C screen, phone screen, up to a point that I just can't look at anything anymore and just need to close my eyes.

I have been getting a lot of headaches and ache behind my eye.

I phoned my oothalmologist and asked for advice they said about a coating to help with blue light

I am looking forward to trying them and hope that they take some strain off my eyes.

I will post on here the outcome and my findings.

Good look with your journey xx

[Hidden in reply to Jazzywoman]

I have been wearing blueblockers for a long time now, did he mean blueblockers or an anti-reflective coating? I have had a light sensitivity issue for years and have had to explore every avenue, so I would be very grateful to find out if there is another type of coating I haven't tried. BTW do you see your ophthalmologist privately if you can ring him for advice. Hope the coating works for you and let us know how you get on.

[Bfree]

Thank you yes please let me know how you get on

[pathologicallygill]

Hi I have myopic degeneration and some light sensitivity (though for me it is manageable at present apart for low winter sun)I also have headaches behind left eye which has had a bleed now resolved. What I have to do is to wear a big duck billed sports cap - they are great. Like your Mum wearing dark sunglasses is counter productive, driving sunspaces are a bit helpful , make sure the sides are as wide as possible. I am considering modifying a pair of old drivers with a product called Surge a mouldable glue to completely block the gaps but Ive not prototyped it yet. This post may encourage me! Anyhow big billed sports hats are a really good way, I even tip them to shield the eye to whichever direction the sun is coming at me. Inside my home I use soft warm colour apricot white is kind for me and north facing rooms. Obviously vertical blinds are essential for summer days when the sun comes in. Hope it helps.

[Bfree]

Mum RNIB sun glasses are good but she needs prescription ones . Anyone’s know of places in the UK that do prescription with colour tints and anti glare / blue blockers ?

[Hidden in reply to Bfree]

Asda opticians do tints and antiglare, I got my reactolite specs from them which means I dont need separate sunglasses.I'm sure Boots and other opticians do yhe tents etc too. Just give them a call.

[Hidden in reply to Bfree]

I have found that it is very difficult to get a comfort (colour) tint if you need to have an anti-reflective coating, as opticians do not understand that the a/r coating bleaches out the tint. The last time I took a photo of the green tint that I had chosen, (green is the best tint colour , for light sensitivity) so I could compare it with the colour of lens with the a/r coating. I explained to the optician that the a/r coating would bleach out the tint but he obviously did not believe me until I went to collect my glasses. They looked like there was no tint at all, and I got a full refund. It is not beyond the realms of possibility to get tinted lens with an a/r coating but it seems there are very few opticians that have labs that can do it. Vision Express has a large range of comfort tints but you do have to impress on them that the tint will be bleached out with an a/r coating so they can adjust the colour tint to allow for this.

[Bfree in reply to Hidden]

Thank you as we have asked local opticians and they didn’t do the green tint . Will cal RNIB maybe they can assist

[Hidden in reply to Bfree]

Hate to be so negative but when I rang the RNIB, granted that was years ago, about the difficulty I was having trying to get filter glasses with an a/r coating they ere not able to help me. Maybe they have changed their advice now but before the only advice they could give for light sensitivity was to wear sunglasses. Sunglasses are not always suitable for different light conditions, ie when it is overcast or cloudy or for indoors, you need to wear filter glasses that do not have a dark tint. I had to get a/r filter glasses from the States. As I said in my earlier post it is absolutely shocking that there is little understanding about this condition and both optometrists and ophthalmologists could be doing something to get lines of suitable eyewear for this condition, instead of just dismissing it.