×

Heroine In Heels is a top 10 London lifestyle blog aimed at the modern day woman. Covering things to do in London, restaurant reviews, hotels as well as where to go in the world when you want to escape London

How contact lenses can really help you when travelling

Friday 8 June 2018
Ever since I was a kid I wanted to travel and see more of the world. We didn't get to go abroad as a family when I was young, but I patiently waited, knowing my time would come. What I didn’t know was that travel would become such a big part of my life, that I actually got to include it in my work. Fast forward to today and I now go away roughly 8 times a year which for someone with a full time corporate job is pretty good going. 

I’ve found with travel not just as a blogger but as a general trend, we tend to be less switched off than we used to be. Whether that’s using our phones as maps and guidebooks, updating social media on what Instagrammable moment we are having, or taking endless photos and then editing them on a computer. 

Whilst all of these might be helpful to us, fun for us or just part of our jobs, we have to ask, what impact is this having on our eyes?


I’ve always struggled with bad eyes. From when I was young and my Dad saying I was blind as a bat, to at work when I was trying to give a presentation and I realised I couldn’t see the numbers on the screen, my eyes have plagued me. I’ve been standing at an airport alone and had to ask someone to read the flight gates to me as I couldn’t see that far. 


Fast forward to a year ago I finally relented and got glasses. To be fair, they are pretty smart, Chanel ones, and boy can I see, but that vain feeling still remains- do I look like a librarian?

I have to admit, I don’t wear them as often as I should. Yes, I have that warped perception that I’m prettier without them, and look geeky with them. I would never go to a party or a bar wearing them and even if I wasn’t quite so vain, I do sometimes find them inconvenient. Going to the gym, I can’t really be jumping around in glasses, or taking photos, you just can’t look through a view finder with glasses. Minor things, but its lots of little minor things that add up.

And so I have come to discover the world of contact lens, and you know what? Why didn’t I go down that route before?

So let’s start from the beginning shall we? I went for a fitting of ACUVUE Oasys 1-Day with HydraLuxe and immediately at that appointment I learnt more about my eyes than I had ever known. In a nutshell my eyes were quite overworked basically from the constant strain of using screens. I work in technology during the day so am on my computer for 9 hours a day, then on the tube I’m on my phone, then when I get home I’m usually on my laptop blogging, and so actually never off a screen, which had led to near constantly strain on my eyes. No only was my vision bad, my eyes were incredibly dry. My left eye in particular is very dry and I needed to stop straining it, and fast.

And so wearing ACUVUE Oasys 1-Day with HydraLuxe would do two things. One, I was more likely to wear these everyday and for longer and so wouldn’t be straining my eyes as much on screens and trying to read things at a distance, and two, they actually help keep your eyes hydrated and fight the effects of straining.






So why are these so good for traveling?

UV protection

Did you know ACUVUE Oasys 1-Day with HydraLuxe lenses have the highest level of UV blocking available in a contact lens on the market? When you go away you put on sunscreen right? Well think of this as that but for your eyes. It never occurred to me before but now it makes perfect sense to protect them.


Wearing sunglasses

Hello sight and sunglasses! This has been a huge problem for me! It’s bright sunshine, I need sunglasses and yet as soon as I take off my glasses I can’t see properly. Sure you could get those sunglasses with your prescription but then you are limited to just one pair of glasses, and come on, there's so much choice out there!


Photography

This was a huge thing for me, and actually a sort of wow moment when I first looked through my viewfinder wearing contacts. First of all, my god was my focus off! Suddenly I could turn the dial and see the image I was about to take so sharply. This has helped my photography no end, as before I couldn’t look through my camera with glasses on, and taking them off made it difficult to see if a photo was truly sharp or not. As someone who not only loved photography, but also gets paid to take photos, it’s paramount that they are perfect. With contacts I can quickly take photos on the go and no faff about with my glasses and hoping the images are sharp. It even gets to the point now where I’m frustrated if I’m not wearing a pair, as I know I could be missing out.

Ease of use

I was worried they were going to be really tricky to put in, but honestly they are incredibly simple. I mean sure, not everyone is comfortable putting things near their eyes. Luckily, I’m quite comfortable with things near my eyes. I think use women have a natural advantage here as we are used to a mascara wand going close to our eyes. It took me only one attempt to be able to put it in, and only a couple of attempts to take one out. This coupled with the fact that as they are only one day use, there's no messing with solution on the road. Just pop a packet in your bag, and each day just put in a new pair. And don’t worry they really are comfortable, so much so in fact I just forget I’m wearing any.


Honestly, wearing Acuvue contact lens has been a game changer for me when travelling. I know that my eyes are going to be protected and that I can actually see clearly and work smarter now. I recently went to Athens and for the first time, I left my glasses at home and just wore contacts. I was worried that in very hot weather they might get irritated but I didn't find that at all. Infact my eyes didn't have that dry tight feeling they usually do in hot climates.

Athens has some truly incredible sights, and trust me, I want to be able to see them in all their sharp, focused glory.

If you’ve had your eyes tested but haven’t been offered contact lenses, don’t be afraid to ask - they may be suitable for you too. To get your own free trial of ACUVUE® OASYS 1-Day Contact Lenses, head to: https://www.acuvue.co.uk/free-contact-lens-trial

This post was sponsored by ACUVUE® OASYS 1-Day Contact Lenses but as always the content, words, photos and opinions are my own.

No comments: