Daily Wear Contact Lenses

[Greenside]

I've tried switching to monthly wear and a cheaper brand (Duna) but both proved hopelessly uncomfortable so unless anyone can suggest an alternative, I'm stuck with this good but pricey solution. I've been paying about 1200 a month for the past couple of years (I chose the cheapest of two shops originally) but have just managed to find a better deal at three month's supply (6 boxes) for 3000 baht. I wonder has anyone seen them for less before I go and fork out the cash?

[iainiain101]

Not trying to be facetious, but have you considered glasses?

[Greenside]

Not trying to be facetious, but have you considered glasses?

I do have to wear glasses for reading in poor light (even wearing lenses) but years ago when I did wear them in my early twenties, I found them incredibly uncomfortable and was always aware of the frames and weight. I've had titanium ones and bendy memory metal ones and photo-reactive ones and hated them all - I don't even wear sunglasses unless I really have to.

If you can find contacts that suit you it's a pretty liberating experience and they'd be way down the list of things I would choose to give up. UBC got the elbow in our house this week and that wasn't at all difficult to give up!

[jcon]

I use focus dailies and I pay 550 per box in Bangkok. It's the best price I've seen - I've seen some places charge almost 700 per box. So I'd say 500/per is a good deal. It does add up over years and years, god knows how much I've spent on contacts, but I just keep thinking about that kid in the usa who killed himself because he went nuts after his lasik surgery because he was seeing double/halos... that would easily drive a person insane... so i will keep paying for the contacts.

[djk]

Greenside, where is it that you buy your contact lenses for the reduced price?

I've had enough of blurry vision so am going to give contact's a try, it would be good to know where the best deals are to be had.

Cheers!

Edited January 31, 2009 by djk

[Greenside]

Greenside, where is it that you buy your contact lenses for the reduced price?

I've had enough of blurry vision so am going to give contact's a try, it would be good to know where the best deals are to be had.

Cheers!

So far I've been buying at Beautiful Optical, first floor at Kad Suan Kaew, next door to Bata shoes but the price was 605 baht a box after discount. I did have an eye exam here which didn't reveal any changes to my prescription but after the UK did seem a little perfunctory. The shop offering a better deal is a few doors further on but I couldn't tell you anything helpful about them other than the price.

Daily wear is the most comfortable and trouble and hassle free but also the most expensive option. You can get bi-monthly, monthly, three monthly and yearly renewable lenses all of which require daily cleaning and these suit some people without any problems. If I could find a bi-monthly or monthly brand that I could tolerate I'd opt for that. Maybe you could have eye exams in those two places and see what they suggest.

Good luck.

[femi fan]

I purchase bausch and lomb monthly contacts. I pay 550 baht for three boxes, ie three pairs. So that's less than 200 baht a month! Very comfortable too. The only place i've found where they don't need ordering is on the corner just before you go down the bit to worawot market, ie if you turn left there (coming down chang moi road) to where kasem is.

At the intersection between chiang moi road and the road from france, you know, the one where you have to drive on the right!

Edited January 31, 2009 by femi fan

[realthaideal]

Howdy Greeensides. As you n I have spoken b4, I'm a proponent of monthly wear lenses and not dailies as I don't tend to have much build-up w/ my monthlies, and also I just can't budget for the more expensive daily throw-aways. I finally dug up the info on m lenses for you, and maybe it'll lead to something helpful. With the increase in heat n sweating, glasses are out again, and contact lenses back in by necessity.

I used to wear Focus Monthly back in the USA, but I just can't find them here for the last 4 years. I tried many disappointing Thai brands and was finally about to try Bausch n Lomb's soft lenses when I wandered into Tokyo Optic at Central Airport right next tow the Dairy Queen. They explained that the other brands I'd picked up at Top Charoen were curved wrong for my eyes and that they had a Thai Equivalent for Focus Monthly. They're called Ultra Flex (aspheric, visibility-tint, monthly disposable soft contact lenses), and they work great. They are soft n flexible; I don't even notice they're there, and they last a fair bit longer than the advertised 'one month' which was another reason why I'd loved Focus. My eyes don't match, so I bought one box for each eye's Rx for maybe 150B or 200B /box. The gamble was totally worth it. Me eyes n I are so happy now!

Forgive all the blah blah above. Here's my point: Maybe you've always had the wrong kind of monthlies and that's why you always preferred dailies, so maybe go give these a try. Tokyo Optic Airport Plaza has friendly staff n lots more choices than I'd seen at other places around town. I'm betting you'll come up with something worth a few hundred bahts' experiment if you go talk to them - daily or monthly. Remember to bring in your eyes' Rx, and maybe a sample box top of your old preferred lenses so they can try to match the best equivalents for you.

Good luck!

Edited February 22, 2009 by realthaideal

[mnbcm]

The Central Airport Plaza as a nice selection on the 1st floor (or is it the ground floor?). Anyway, there's maybe 6 or 7 shops all in one area. When I buy my Acuvue contacts, I just walk through each store quickly to do a price check and usually find one cheaper than the others. Not sure if they have your daily wear brand.

You might consider trying the Acuvue's. I believe they are supposed to be 2 week contacts, but I've worn them for a month/pair since I started wearing them 12 years ago and never had any problems. Wearing for a month certainly saves the money too. They are the only contacts I've been able to wear. Monthly's are too hard or something.

I'm finding it very difficult to wear contacts in this environment right now. The smoke and smog just gets to my eyes too much. I can only wear them once in awhile for exercise or a night on the town now.

Have you considered LASIK? For the price you pay in contacts, LASIK pays for itself in roughly 10 years I calculated. I'm very seriously considering it now. Just FYI. Cheers!

www.lasikthai.com

www.stpeter-eye.com/

[Greenside]

Thanks for the tips everyone. I'll check out the curvature spec on my existing brand and give the Ultra Flex a try.

I've thought of surgery but my eyes are going downhill in my old age so I'm not sure that I'm a suitable candidate and I'm reluctant to even take a small chance that poking around them with a laser will leave me worse off.

[oMega69]

You can use your daily contacts 1 month ! . .

No need to trow them away every day ! . . .

I done this now 8yrs. . i use 1 daily for 1 month . No problem at all . . save a lot of cash ! !

[Greenside]

You can use your daily contacts 1 month ! . .

No need to trow them away every day ! . . .

I done this now 8yrs. . i use 1 daily for 1 month . No problem at all . . save a lot of cash ! !

Brilliant! Why didn't I think of that?

[anonymouse]

You can use your daily contacts 1 month ! . .

No need to trow them away every day ! . . .

I done this now 8yrs. . i use 1 daily for 1 month . No problem at all . . save a lot of cash ! !

Brilliant! Why didn't I think of that?

If you can get them for 500 baht a piece I would stick with them, the monthly disposables are around 200 a month and then factor in around 150 for the fluid, your only going to save yourself a 150 baht.

Not only that if your anything like me your ending up losing one down the plug hole every couple of months after a night on the town