A large share of the customers who come to our store assume they cannot wear contact lenses because they have astigmatism. We hear this almost every week at our store in Kemalpaşa. In reality there are lenses made specifically for people with astigmatism, and plenty of people across İzmir wear them without any trouble.
These are called toric lenses. They differ from ordinary soft lenses in both design and daily use. Below we explain what a toric lens does, why it has to stay fixed on the eye, and how the adjustment period usually goes.
What Toric Lenses Are and How They Differ From Regular Lenses
A standard contact lens carries a single refractive power, so every point on the lens bends light by the same amount. This suits short-sightedness and long-sightedness, where the eye focuses in a similar way in every direction.
Astigmatism is different. The cornea or the lens inside the eye is steeper in one direction and flatter in another, so light does not gather at a single point. It falls along two separate lines.
Correcting this means the lens has to carry different powers along different axes, and that is exactly what a toric lens does. It holds two separate powers, one spherical and one cylindrical, set at a specific angle. This is the core difference that sets it apart in astigmatism.
We covered astigmatism and what the degrees mean in our earlier astigmatism guide. The idea of the axis from that article makes the logic behind toric lenses much easier to follow.
Why the Lens Must Not Rotate in Astigmatism
When a regular lens turns inside the eye, nothing changes, because every direction of the lens has the same power. In a toric lens the cylindrical power sits at a specific angle, so if the lens shifts a few degrees on its own axis, the correction shifts by the same amount.
In practice a person who sees clearly in the morning loses that clarity if the lens rotates during the day. The image blurs and a faint shadow appears at the edges of letters. This is why keeping a toric lens steady is the most critical part of the design.
How Stabilisation Works
Manufacturers use a few methods to keep the lens in place. The most common is making the lower part of the lens slightly thicker, so with every blink the eyelid pushes this zone down and settles the lens into position.
Another method thins the top and bottom edges so the eyelids grip the lens from both sides. Which method works best varies from person to person, so it is not right to decide without first putting on a trial lens.
Who Can Wear Toric Lenses
As a general rule, anyone with a cylindrical value on their prescription is a candidate. With very low astigmatism a regular lens is sometimes enough, but above a certain degree a toric design becomes necessary.
- People who see well with glasses but find them uncomfortable during sport or at work
- People with astigmatism alongside short-sightedness or long-sightedness
- People bothered by the thickness of their lens edges and the distortion around them
- People who want to wear lenses only on special occasions or at the weekend
- People who struggle with glasses because they wear a helmet, a visor, or protective eyewear
Toric lenses are not suitable for everyone. Severe dry eye, recurring eye infections, uncontrolled allergies, or an irregular corneal shape all call for a doctor's assessment first. In conditions such as keratoconus, a completely different solution comes up instead of a standard toric lens.
How the Toric Lens Fitting Process Works
Fitting a toric lens takes a little longer than a regular one, and the measurement does not end with reading off the numbers. Once the lens is on, we watch how it sits, how many degrees it turns after a blink, and whether it returns to place.
After the trial lens goes in, we wait a short while, because the lens needs time to settle and the tear film needs to balance out. Skipping this wait means the lens can rotate later and the first measurement turns out misleading.
If the first trial does not reach the clarity we want, we correct the axis value and try a second lens. This is completely normal. For most people one or two trials are enough.
What the First Few Days Are Like
For the first few days there may be a mild feeling of something in the eye. When you move your gaze quickly up and down, the image can blur briefly and then settle again. This comes from the lens repositioning with each blink, and it usually fades within a few days.
If the blur lasts longer than a week or returns with every glance, the lens is rotating. Rather than waiting to get used to it, you need to have the measurement repeated. With the right toric lens, vision should be very close to the clarity you get with glasses.
Toric Lenses or Glasses
We do not see these two as rivals. For astigmatism glasses are still the most solid solution, because the lens is fixed and cannot rotate. With high astigmatism, though, a spectacle lens can distort the image slightly towards the edges, and wide-angle viewing can feel harder.
Because a toric lens moves with the eye, the whole field of view stays sharp. Problems like fogging in the rain, slipping during sport, or lenses steaming up under a mask disappear. Our usual advice is to keep both on hand. Lenses through the day, glasses once you are home in the evening.
To talk through which one suits you better, you can look at our contact lens service page or drop by our store.
Planning a Toric Lens Fitting in Kemalpaşa
For a toric lens we need a current prescription in hand. If it has no cylindrical value or axis information, the lens cannot be chosen, so the first step is always an eye examination.
Before coming to our store, check how old your prescription is. On prescriptions more than a year old the numbers may have changed. If you are not sure yours is current, starting with our eye test service is the healthier route.
Measuring and trialling take a little time, so we suggest not coming during hours when you are in a rush. At our store in central Kemalpaşa, on Mehmet Akif Ersoy neighbourhood, we also show you how to put in and take out the lens along with the trial pair.
What to Watch For While Wearing Toric Lenses in İzmir
İzmir's hot, windy summer weather troubles lens wearers most. Wind dries the surface of the eye, and a toric lens rotates more easily on a dry eye. Air-conditioned indoor offices create the same picture.
Let us be clear about the sea and the pool. Going into water with lenses in is not right, because the microorganisms in the water can settle under the lens. For people heading down to the coast in İzmir, the most practical answer is to manage that day with prescription sunglasses.
People working long hours in front of a screen blink less often. When blinking drops, the toric lens cannot return to its correct position, and towards evening the image starts to waver. Taking a break from the screen and blinking deliberately a few times noticeably reduces this.
Our store is about 25 minutes from the Bornova side and around 35 minutes from Buca. For customers coming from further away, we try to finish the measurement and trial in one visit, keeping travel time in mind.
Common Questions About Toric Lenses
People ask whether a toric lens tires the eye more than a regular one. Fitted with the right numbers and the right axis, it creates no extra fatigue. A feeling of tiredness mostly comes from a wrong axis or from dry eye.
Another question is whether wearing lenses raises the astigmatism number. Contact lenses do not make astigmatism progress. The number can change over time, but that is the natural course of the eye, not the lens.
As for whether toric lenses come in every number, the answer is partly yes. Common cylindrical values and axes are available off the shelf, but high astigmatism or unusual axes can need a special order. In those cases we discuss the supply time in advance.
Come In for a Trial Fitting
Do not give up on lenses just because you have astigmatism. With the right measurement and the right design, most people can wear them comfortably. If you would like to ask your questions before coming in, you can write to us on our WhatsApp line.
If you would like to visit, our address is Mehmet Akif Ersoy neighbourhood, Kirazlı Caddesi No 160/B, Kemalpaşa, İzmir. We put the trial lens in and take it out together with you, and doing that first trial with us makes the whole process much easier to picture.
