From: utzoo!decvax!ucbvax!CAD:tektronix!tekmdp!markp
Newsgroups: net.med
Title: contact lenses (postscript)
Article-I.D.: tekmdp.1702
Posted: Thu Jan 20 16:34:54 1983
Received: Sun Jan 23 08:36:02 1983


In my article of a few days back, I left out some things...

In many cases with Permalens, and in some cases (like mine) with Soflens,
eyeglasses may be dispensed with ENTIRELY.  I have not worn mine AT ALL in
about six months.  This is not to say that you will NEVER need them, just that
you may never HAVE to wear them.  I last wore mine when I wanted to watch the
total Lunar eclipse last summer, because I wished to keep my eyes open for
longer stretches of time than are comfortable with contacts.

The biggest advantage (for me) of Permalens is that, in a sense similar to
that in which you forget that you're wearing contacts as you get used to them,
it is possible to forget that you have bad vision *at all*.  I've had bad
vision for as long as I can remember, so it was a real shock to me when,
after wearing my contacts for two weeks straight, and removing them overnight
for cleaning, I awakened the next morning and was confused for a few moments
because I couldn't see.  It took a second for me to remember that I wear
contacts!  That's a real experience for someone with 20/400 vision like mine.

Also with regard to the Thimerasol (sp?) and Ascorbic acid preservatives --
I strongly recommend that you simply make your own saline daily, if it's
okay by your doctor.  Believe me, it's not time-consuming or difficult, and
I know that my eyes are much happier, even though I am not allergic in any big
way to the other stuff.  What could be better than a solution of NaCl in
distilled water for your eyes?


Mark R. Paulin
...decvax!teklabs!tekmdp!markp