This is What Happened When I Realized I Needed Driving Glasses

Thank you, Visionworks, for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.

When I was in elementary school, I thought glasses were so cool. Fast forward to my 20s, I knew I needed them for distance, so I got a pair. But I never wore them. I actually still have those glasses, collecting dust in my nightstand, I think. On a recent trip to LA, I realized the time has come to finally invest in good glasses, especially driving glasses.

One night, I was driving on the 10 freeway in Los Angeles, on my way home from an event, and I realized the experience was less-than ideal. I actually felt unsafe, for the first time. Something about driving at night – all the lights create these glares for me that does make it hard to drive. Since I am near-sighted (difficulty seeing clearly far away), it’s difficult to read street signs or freeway signs until I’m right up on them. Given my nearsightedness, it’s finally time to get driving glasses.

My friends at Visionworks hooked me up! They gave me a complete eye exam, with the new OptoMap, which is ultra wide-field optical imaging. The benefit of this type of image is that it captures more than 80% of your retina in one panoramic image. Traditional methods typically reveal only 10-15% of your retina at one time. The OptoMap allows the eye doctor to see a whole lot more. They are able to detect even the earliest sign of disease that appears on your retina. Another major benefit of this imaging is that you don’t have to get your eyes dilated, so none of that blurry vision for hours afterward.

Once my exam was complete and the doctor determined my prescription strength, I started trying on all the different frame options they had available. I settled on a couple pairs of Ray-Ban frames {1, 2} for both glasses and sunglasses. I wanted more than one pair so I can have driving glasses in my car at all times. I’ll keep the other pair of glasses in my backpack for the occasion when I need to read something at a distance when I’m at work or traveling.

Overall, I love the frames I got. I think they look chic and modern and definitely will still be in style in a couple years. This is the first time I specifically have driving glasses. I’m really excited to be able to keep them in my car. I never want to have another scary driving experience like I had in LA.