Contacts when you have astigmatism.
Plenty of people are told once that astigmatism rules out contacts, and never ask again. For most prescriptions that has not been true for years.
What astigmatism actually is
A cornea with no astigmatism is curved evenly, like the side of a basketball. A cornea with astigmatism is curved more steeply in one direction than the other, closer to the side of a football. Light entering it focuses at more than one point, which is why the blur is smeared or doubled rather than simply soft.
It is extremely common, it is not a disease, and on its own it is not a reason for concern. It is a shape.
Why a standard soft lens does not handle it
A standard soft lens is the same power all the way around, so it does not matter where it sits. Correcting astigmatism means the lens has different powers in different meridians, and that only works if the lens stays in one orientation.
A lens free to rotate will rotate, every blink. The correction turns with it, so vision drifts in and out of focus. That is the experience behind “I tried contacts once and they never felt right.”
What a toric lens does differently
A toric lens is built to stay put. The design is weighted, usually thinner at the top and heavier at the bottom, so your eyelids settle it back into the same position every time you blink. The correction stays where it is supposed to be.
- Daily, two-week and monthly toric lenses all exist, so the replacement schedule is still your choice.
- Multifocal torics exist too, for astigmatism and reading glasses at the same time.
- High astigmatism may do better in a hard (RGP) lens, which does not rely on staying oriented at all.
Why the fitting matters more here
With a standard lens the fitting checks that the lens sits well. With a toric it also has to check that the lens settles back to the same place after a blink, and it does that on your eye, not on paper. Two lenses with identical prescriptions can behave differently on the same eye.
This is why a trial pair is normal rather than a sign something went wrong. You wear them in real life, for the hours you would actually wear them, and the fit is judged on that.
If you were told no once
Ask again. Toric designs, materials and fitting sets have moved a long way, and a prescription that had no comfortable option ten years ago often has several now. It may still turn out that glasses suit your eyes better, and your doctor will say so plainly, but it is worth finding out rather than assuming.
Our Guaranteed Contact Lens Success Program means that if the lenses turn out not to be for you, we credit what you paid toward glasses. More about contact lens exams and fittings.
Prefer to talk to a doctor than read another article?
Schedule a comprehensive eye exam at the clinic closest to you: Scottsbluff, Alliance or Bridgeport.
Request an Appointment