Progressive Lenses

In a Progressive Lens, the prescription changes from Distance to Reading as the lens "progresses" from top to bottom.

In other words…if you were driving, you could see the car in front of you through the top of the lens, your speedometer through the middle of the lens – and your phone so you could text - through the bottom of the lens. (Did we just say that? Texting while driving is NOT a good idea.)

The place toward the bottom of the lens where it changes to the reading portion is called the SEG Height. (As in Segment.) The average for most people with average frame sized is 70% for distance and 30% for reading.

Technically, if your Optometrist is asking, we put the SEG at "the D line divided by two - minus 2 mm."

If you would like to have a different SEG Height (e.g. if you had a short lens (28mm) and wanted more reading area, you would raise the SEG to 60/40%.

Please include a note in the comments box as you check out if you would like the change.

If you have not worn progressives before, we have a tip: Wear your readers around the house for a while. Look through the top to see far and then look through the bottom to see to read. (Normally you are doing this while sitting and reading.) You will find out very quickly that you need to move your head to look at something and see it clearly. If you were going to get on an escalator, for example, your feet would look out of focus when you glanced down to see where to step onto the moving stairs. But, if you lowered your head so you could still see out of the top, then you would have no problem.

The thing to remember about progressive lenses is that they are not a "cure-all" for everyone. They're a tool, and they are pretty amazing when you think about it. Now you don't have to carry 3 pairs of glasses around for the distance, middle and near focus. You sometimes may shift the glasses up or down your nose to "fine-tune" the sweet-spot. For some people, when using the computer, sliding the glasses down the nose a bit will change the focal length and make the sweet-spot more in the middle of the lens – giving it a larger viewing area. Plus you get that whole "professor" look when your glasses are perched lower on your nose.

More than enough info on Progressive lenses is available in the FAQ page.

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