I think I need to fire my optometrist.

[N80]

I lost my glasses recently. Freak accident. I need them for near and far vision...so, work, reading, driving, computer, TV, etc.

I go to a local optometrist walking distance from my house. They are friends of the family. Not close, but friends nevertheless.

I have some cheap, old glasses I got off the internet. They are a prescription behind and hurt my eyes and nose by the end of the day. That's what I've been wearing since I lost my good glasses on Saturday, March 3rd.

Called for an appointment because it was close enough to time for my yearly visit and want to make sure my prescription hasn't change again. They got me in on Thursday March 8th. The waiting room was full. Several of us had to stand waiting to be taken care of. Felt rushed through the whole process. I get my exam, no change.

I know exactly which glasses I want. They are outrageously expensive but I know that going in. They are rimless, super light with progressive lenses and quite durable. Total cost near $1000. Out of pocket around $350 with insurance, and flex spending kicked in etc.

They order them. I wait. Head aches everyday due to cheap old glasses. Eight days later, I call. Still no glasses.

I call today 12 days after my appointment. They say the frames came in yesterday and they Fed Ex'd them to the lab for the lenses today and they should have them by Monday or Tuesday of next week which would be 18-19 days after my appointment.

Now, right now I'm not complaining about the busy office or the insane cost of these glasses. I'm just wondering if this sort of wait time is typical for nice, progressive lens glasses? Almost 3 weeks? What if I didn't have these back up glasses? If this is normal, I'll address the sloppy office service with the optometrist, again, a friend of the family. If not, I'm going to call them, cancel the glasses and go find someone else. I'm fairly new to this glasses stuff and they are the only place I've ever been. It just seems nuts to have to wait almost 3 weeks for $1000 glasses. Just curious to hear other's experience.

 

[Redbug]

I have been wearing Gas Permeable Contacts, (hard contacts), since about 1974. It has been about 8 years since I have been to the Eye Doctor. I went in at the beginning of March. I had some minor changes to my contact prescription and the Doc asked if I wanted glasses as well. I have not had a pair of backup glasses since I entered the Air Force back in 1980. Anyways...I got new contacts and glasses with progressive lenses in about 6 working days...they don't count weekends. I think the place you are using is slow. Did you notice if they have a hitching post out front and a pitcher pump in the bathroom for water?

 

[bunyip]

Our Optician is on a farm about a mile away and we know him quite well but he doesn't do deals, he generally quotes about a week and a half for new glasses but more often than not he drops them of for me at home about 3 days later.
Same deal as you I want to buy new glasses and I think I am putting a deposit on a celebrity mansion, mine are bifocal and photochromic with magnetic polarised sunglasses that are the same style and don't look like clip ons.
My wife has worn glasses for most of her life and used to wear contacts but she developed a bad reaction to them and can't wear them any more, I can't wear them because I have bifocals so I can use them for distance and the computer which is where I spend a lot of my day when not driving.

 

[Jim Nelson]

I lost my glasses recently. Freak accident. I need them for near and far vision...so, work, reading, driving, computer, TV, etc.

I go to a local optometrist walking distance from my house. They are friends of the family. Not close, but friends nevertheless.

I have some cheap, old glasses I got off the internet. They are a prescription behind and hurt my eyes and nose by the end of the day. That's what I've been wearing since I lost my good glasses on Saturday, March 3rd.

Called for an appointment because it was close enough to time for my yearly visit and want to make sure my prescription hasn't change again. They got me in on Thursday March 8th. The waiting room was full. Several of us had to stand waiting to be taken care of. Felt rushed through the whole process. I get my exam, no change.

I know exactly which glasses I want. They are outrageously expensive but I know that going in. They are rimless, super light with progressive lenses and quite durable. Total cost near $1000. Out of pocket around $350 with insurance, and flex spending kicked in etc.

They order them. I wait. Head aches everyday due to cheap old glasses. Eight days later, I call. Still no glasses.

I call today 12 days after my appointment. They say the frames came in yesterday and they Fed Ex'd them to the lab for the lenses today and they should have them by Monday or Tuesday of next week which would be 18-19 days after my appointment.

Now, right now I'm not complaining about the busy office or the insane cost of these glasses. I'm just wondering if this sort of wait time is typical for nice, progressive lens glasses? Almost 3 weeks? What if I didn't have these back up glasses? If this is normal, I'll address the sloppy office service with the optometrist, again, a friend of the family. If not, I'm going to call them, cancel the glasses and go find someone else. I'm fairly new to this glasses stuff and they are the only place I've ever been. It just seems nuts to have to wait almost 3 weeks for $1000 glasses. Just curious to hear other's experience.

The poor service and outrageous prices are what drove me to Zenni on line glasses. I still have to go to the thieving local place for the exam but that's it. I've been real pleased with Zenni and will continue to use them.

 

[Streetcar]

Most decent sized cities will let you get glasses the same day.
Just got pair of progressive bifocals with transition tinting for my mom. $300 ready in one hour
Frames were $100 lenses were $200

 

[nybirdman]

Kind of went through the same thing a year ago;I was months before new glasses were right,ordered a frame that was no longer produced(the optician's fault).When you get a eye exam you own the prescription and get your glasses any-where.$1,000 for new glasses is insane.

 

[N80]

To be fair, the $1000 is just on paper. And with insurance the exam costs me nothing. But, the actual cash price of these is about $600. Still insane. But, they are insanely light and insanely good optics. The frame pieces are titanium. Made in Austria. I know, I know....sounds ridiculous but regular glasses by the end of the day have my nose sore and these hardly weigh anything.

And the back up glasses I have are from EyeBuyDirect. They are progressive, rimless and pretty decent for about $50. But they are heavy, in comparison, and the optical quality is noticeably less. So for now, I'm sticking with these expensive ones. The brand is Silhouette.

There are other optometrists in the area that carry this brand. Maybe it would take them all three weeks with this brand, I don't know. But too me, three weeks sounds like too much time for someone who wouldn't be able to do anything if he hadn't purchased some cheap back -up glasses off the internet....which only took one week to arrive.

I'll look into Zenni as well.

 

[bunyip]

There is the joke about the Jewish optometrist teaching his son the trade, how do you decide on a price asked the son, well, you show the customer the frame and then say the lenses are $250, if he doesn't flinch you then say each.
Typically here (me anyway) single focus lens about $200, bifocal $300, +photochromatic $200 so mine are $500 plus the sunglass attachment and the frames, last ones cost me about $700.
Wifes were $900 with graduated tri focal and frames with photochromatic.
Mine are a plastic tortoiseshell hers are titanium.
On a sidenote the difference between good sunglasses and cheap are the curve, a good lens will have what is called a 6 or 8 base curve which is roughly the same contour as the eyeball and the result is no peripheral distortion, cheap lens are flat or just a aesthetic curve that achieves little and you can notice distortion when looking around the frame moving your eyes only, Ihad a friend who used to manufacture sunglasses that were of exceptional quality, I used to write his ads for magazine advertising and never paid for sunglasses for about ten years, regretably he sold the business now I have to buy my own again but he showed me a lot about optics and materials.

 

[fried1765]

The poor service and outrageous prices are what drove me to Zenni on line glasses. I still have to go to the thieving local place for the exam but that's it. I've been real pleased with Zenni and will continue to use them.

I had cataract surgery, and no longer need glasses (except for $10 reading cheaters), but my ophthalmologist, who is a personal friend, recommends Zenni to all his friends.

 

[N80]

I've got prescription, progressive Ray Ban Wayfarer sunglasses that I love. I know the Wayfarer style isn't that hip these days, but its what I've always worn.

I started with these Silhouette brand glasses when I was looking at different frames for my first pair of non-reader glasses. I was about set on a typical, fairly inexpensive frame when the optician handed me a pair of the rimless Silhouettes. They were so light I was immediately sold....even after almost fainting at the price.

And since this thread is already rambling I'll tell you guys the back story as to what happened.

I was walking the property line of my land along a fairly high creek bank, about 6 feet above the water. This 'creek' only flows when its wet and we've had a fair amount of rain lately so there was water in it. Anyway, I noticed an old no-trespassing sign that my father had made years ago out of a license plate down in the leaves right on the creek bank. I leaned over to pick it up and when I went to take a step my foot was caught in some barbed wire and I fell forward onto the edge of the creek bank and then went head first into the creek right into about a foot of water. I have no idea where my glasses went. We looked but could not find them. It was cold that day and I was soaked and I went into the water with my Nikon D750 ($1800) and a 35mm Nikkor lens ($300). So I was focused on the probably ruined camera and the fact that I was freezing. My wife was there and dried off the camera after I bounced up out of the water and tossed it to her. We came back later that day and could not find the glasses anywhere.

I was lucky just to have some bumps and bruises and no serious injuries.

The camera was malfunctioning in a number of ways but there was never any water in the shutter box and after doing all the electronics drying tips it has returned to normal function.......so I was blessed in a number of ways.

Losing the glasses stinks but it all could have been much worse. If the camera and lens had been trashed it would have been about a $3200 tumble.

I've fallen in the woods more times than I can count but this one takes the cake!

 

[kthompson]

N80, makes me wonder if you used same one I have. But think you are in the upstate.

I meet a semi retired optometrist last fall who had his own practice but now has retired and working at Wal Mart. I asked about the product they offer and he said same as what he sold. Have friend how did use largest practice in my town and now brags on Wal Mart. No idea how price compares. I have bought pair of bifocals, from two different offices, was not impressed by either but certainly not with the no line ones I have now.
Met a lady who was manager for optometrist chain up north before retiring near me. She said one of the differences between the grades of the glasses was how wide of focus area there is in the no line bifocals. Makes me think my high price ones were way over priced. Either they did not get my glasses or exam right or my eyes have failed a good bit since getting them.

 

[Code54]

Get mine at Walmart (bifocals also)- mostly insurance covers everything and they've held up great (Wife and kids both go there also with no issues.)
Mostly have glasses in a couple days - always say a week but it is not unusual to have them in hand in 3-4 days.

 

[PILOON]

My eyeglass story:
Picked up a pair of prescription specs at Cosco on a Friday.
On Sat I was doing heavy work so I hung the nice new specs on a tree branch so as not to drop them due to sweating heavily.
Well the long and short story is they fell and a heavy rock kinda did them in.
Immediately called Cosco and asked them to order a replacement frame, meanwhile I taped them back to usable.
They called couple days later saying frame is in.
I suggested that I'd keep the damaged ones for 'spare parts' but was told that it would annul the insurance.
End result was a total FREE replacement under the Cosco warrantee**!

Also add that the Cosco optician discovered an eye problem* that 45 yrs of wearing specs that no other optician was able to discover.

*Not 'cross eyed' (common) but up/down eyed, in that I see. IE, 2 TV's one above the other.
No wonder I could trip over things.

**Warrantee is more an insurance policy built into the purchase price.

 

[MossRoad]

Why don't you go to one of those 2-pair for $99 dollar places and pick up a couple el-cheapo sets to keep in your dresser drawer or tool box in case you lose the good ones again? They're a good stop-gap while you wait for the good ones to come in.

 

[N80]

I've got cheapo back ups that I got online. They're just not very good and they are from my previous prescription. Fortunately my prescription did not change this time and has been stable for a year now. Prior to that it was changing every year for about 4 years. Having backups will be a lot easier once my prescription is stable and I may even be a candidate for lasik to get my far vision back.

 

[deserteagle71]

Cost of the glasses and the time needed to make the glasses is largely determined by the prescription, frame design/material, and lens design/material. I have a very complicated prescription - trifocal plus several other factors - so contacts are not an option. One part of my lenses is exactly 9/16" thick - as checked with my calipers! Yes, my eyes are in awful shape.

The last two times I had to have glasses made, it took 6-7 weeks. From what the optometrist tells me, there's only like 1 lab in the country that will even attempt to make the glasses I require. I retired a year ago; up till now the company paid for my glasses but now I'm on my own.

 

[kf4uda]

I wear progressives as well. My usual wait time on new ones is a week. I think there was one time that I had to wait two weeks but it has never taken longer that that.

 

[RalphVa]

I recently went to an eye doctor to try to get my left eye working for me. Right eye had suddenly gone bad about 2 or 3 months back with a supposedly "wrinkled cornea". Took only a week to maybe 10 days to get some progressive lens back for the left eye. Didn't work that well because the left eye is so quirky. Asked the doc what I should do about my right eye. He said to go to the new cornea specialist in the same practice as the guy who misdiagnosed me.

Went to the cornea specialist. He said he couldn't see a wrinkle and that I likely had a secondary cataract like happened in the left eye (both have had DSEK surgery to fix cataracts and fuchs dystrophy). A week later he shot a hole through the cataract in the right eye. Now, I don't need glasses at all because the right eye is good for both distance and reading.

Ralph

 

[Dftodd]

I usually get 2 pair of glasses every other year. One pair is regular glasses, other pair is safety glasses.

Eye glasses are Oakley frames, no line bifocals, with transition lenses. Cost me $130 after insurance. Safety glasses are Wiley X, Lined Bifocals, with transition lenses. Ballistic rated. They cost me $80 with insurance. Work will reimburse me for up to $200 out of pocket, so I just turn in an expense report with a receipt and the $80 is in my next paycheck. Outside the safety glasses look just like regular sunglasses. Not the birth control glasses you used to get

My safety glasses come direct from Wiley X. They took 3 1/2 weeks. Generally my regular eyeglasses take 1 1/2 to 2 weeks since my insurance requires the use of there own lab. If not it would only be a couple day.

 

[tallyho8]

I wore hard contact lenses since 1970 and just used my glasses for a backup and early morning and late at night. I have had cataract surgery and no longer need glasses except to read fine print in the newspaper.

My insurance company paid $200 a year toward my glasses or exam but only if done at a certain hospital. I priced my glasses there and they were over $800 since the only frames they had were "designer" frames costing over $100, so my total price would have been $600.

I had the exam at the hospital and my insurance covered that and I took the prescription and went to MyEyewear2go.com and ordered my glasses with expensive high index lenses for just over $300. I could have gotten them with standard lenses for only $30. After a few years as my eyes were getting worse due to the cataracts my exam showed that I needed a new prescription. So I got the hospital to give me one new lens for $200 which my insurance covered and put it in my $7 frames that I got online. Then a few months later in January I got them to install the other lens for $200 since it was a new year and that way the insurance paid for both lenses and my $7 frames were as good as the "designer" frames they sold for much more.

Now that I only need glasses when I am reading very fine print, I got my exam for free at the hospital for reading glasses with a different prescription for each eye and they wanted over $200 for those lenses to install in my old frames. So I went to WalMart and bought 2 pairs of readers, one with the prescription for my left eye and one for my right eye. The 2 pairs were about $15 total. I went home and removed the lens from one pair and put in the other pair to match my prescription and threw away the other 2 lenses and now have a pair of readers and an extra frame for under $15.