Being a programmer, I have been using a computer screen for extended periods for the greater part of my adult life. I probably spend at least 4-6 hours on either my phone or laptop screen. As a result of this abuse that my eyes have been taking, I started wearing reading glasses in 2021.

I had been recommended to get reading glasses in 2017, but I felt there was no need at the time. In 2021 though, I started getting some headaches that just wouldn’t go away. The GP recommended getting my eyes checked out and immediately, I knew I couldn’t put it off any longer. The optometrist confirmed I needed some glasses and two weeks later, they were delivered.

It took a while to get used to wearing glasses. On numerous occasions, I forgot them either at home or at the office. Now, I might forget the access card for the office, but not my glasses. I have gotten accustomed to them, and they are an extension of my laptop.

At the moment, I can use the phone or watch TV just fine without needing glasses. For the laptop though, it’s a different story. If I use the laptop for 20 or so minutes without glasses, my eyes will dry up and get a little bit itchy. That is not the end though, at night I will just end up not feeling fine. Not quite a headache but I would just feel ‘off’.

What sucks the most about my situation with reading glasses is that they make things on the laptop screen clearer, but, they blur everything else. They make stuff that is further away blurry and this causes a huge problem for me. If I look away from the laptop, I can’t use the lens and usually, I end up looking over the glasses. Some people consider this rude and some consider it a ‘principal look’.

Another scenario is when I am doing a presentation using my laptop but then I also have to look at the people in the room. It becomes a challenge to constantly remove and then put back on the glasses. At one point I considered getting eyeware retainers (those strings that you wrap around your neck that allow the glasses to dangle when you are not wearing them), but those bring their own challenges. For now, I mostly do the presentation without glasses or use a the bigger screen if available in the room.

The last thing, but perhaps the most annoying about wearing glasses is smudges. Smudges seem to just appear out of nowhere. I can’t stand them and as a result, I clean the glasses a lot. Coupled with the smudges are dust particles or random stains.