Recent cataract surgery

I was advised re: monovision prior to first surgery but felt I did not want that as permanent since years ago I did wear monovision contacts and then went to progressive glasses and stopped wearing contacts.  Hindsight makes me feel I should have chosen Multifocal for both eyes but from research, there was some indication that mixing monofocal and Multifocal is recommended to some patients and can have good benefits.  Just curious if this would be similar adjustment to monovision.  I will still wear glasses which would be progressive in left eye but just want the close up option without glasses for casual reading, phone, pill bottles.  Thanks for sharing any info/ experience.

Thanks for your reply.  Do you have symfony Multifocal for both eyes?  My concern now is the plan to mix lens~ monofocal toric in left eye(distance) and Multifocal symfony in right eye.  I have worn monovision contacts in the past and did adapt but feel I don’t Want that permanent.  With mixing two different lens, I was told that I should be able to go without glasses for some of the time as the Multifocal would give me close vision for my phone, casual reading, makeup , etc.  I plan to wear my glasses since they are “part of me” but like the option of being able to see my phone, casual reading, and other things I did not realize until I had the monofocal lens in left eye and the results of loss of close up.  My research indicates that this mix can have benefits of diminishing the cons  such as halos some experience with night driving with Multifocal since I would only have one multifocal lens.  Distance should be very good and not compromised.  So much I did not realize initially.

Yes I have Symfony lenses in both eyes.  There is someone on this site who does have a monofocal and a Symfony set up.  Reach out to 201a.   He has posted numerous times you can mix and match IOLs / monofocal with multifocal or an EDOF (Symfony) very nicely with good results.  As you are looking into it you can understand the benefits of that setup.  It should eliminate your dependence on glasses for most things.

I can certainly relate to your not wanting to lose your near vision as that was my dilemma too.  I was 53 when faced last summer with this decision.  I work full time at a bank and my near and intermediate vision is critical.  I was just starting to need progressive lenses in my glasses and had a hard time adjusting to computer and often just took them off for reading but could see how frustrated I would be in the near future.  And then got diagnosed Jan 2017 with cataracts in both eyes.  They developed rapidly and I could no longer read toad signs and seeing double so cataract surgery was medically necessary.  Since I will be working another 8 years I chose Symfony and am very happy with them.  The ability to see without glasses is amazing.  Now if I drove at night for a living my decision would be different.  Each person is different.  This is a person decision based on your life style.  However I do think your night vision would be less compromises with having a monofocal targeted for distance in one eye.  Symfony could complement that very nicely.

Thank you so much for this response.  I will definitely reach out.  Will let you know.

I am so new to this~ how do I contact 201a?  Not with reply?

Find one of his posts and hit reply there.  I know he created a few .  One of them being on the concentric circles of Symfony entitled:

Has Any One Else Noticed this Unusual Vision Issue with Symfony Lens

Is your near vision with symfony lens good for makeup, phone, pill bottles?  This may be a stretch, but what about maintaining eyebrows and other close face maintenance?  These are things I have lost with monofocal.  I want to be realistic also and not set unrealistic expectations.  Thank you

I do all those things with ease with Symfony.   Things start to blur at 11 inches with reading but never have an issue with makeup, etc.  The other day the tiny screw fell out from my sunglasses and I was able to fix it without a problem.  Some pill bottles I can make out some are very tiny and more difficult.  When I was tested in January at my optometrist she tests reading at 14 inches and I could read J1 from Snellen chart.  I can read stock quotes in newspaper which would be comparable to that.  

I did get a pair of readers as my optometrist said I might find them helpful if reading for longer periods of time.  In the last month only used them once while on my cruise as I was reading a novel.  But 98% of the time I don’t wear glasses.  Still find it  odd and sometimes when I turn the TV on in the bedroom I reach automatically for my glasses and then realize I no longer need them.   

Thank you again for your response.  This is so helpful for me.  Am still trying to find post for 201a.  Will keep trying!

The user's name is actually at201 - he has a monofocal for near in one eye and a Symfony in the other eye for distance/intermediate. But he recommends might be better to have a monofocal in one eye for distance and the other eye with a Symfony possibly set for a little nearsighed like -0.50D to get a bit more near with it.

Thats what I am considering for myself in the future - I have a monofocal toric in my right eye and when my left eye's early stage cataract gets bad enough I may consider a Symfony toric for the left eye instead of another monofocal toric.

Thank you for this info.  I will reach out.  Since you currently have one eye with a monofocal , do you wear glasses also?  I am considering now to get a new lens Rx for my glasses and postpone surgery on my right eye until it is absolutely necessary.  My dr told me yesterday that I could do this which I didn’t know if he would think not a good idea and discourage it.  I just want to give this a little more time if I can.

For now I use existing pairs of my eyeglasses with the right lens popped out.

So my left eye which has natural lens with astigmatism gets corrected with a progressive lens for distance and near.  My right eye just gets distance vision with its monofocal toric IOL.

I figure that setup with the glasses would be similar vision to what I might get if I eventually get a Symfony toric IOL for my left eye.

This setup is using the left eye for intermediate and near, and both eyes together for distance.

Thank you for your response.  It is encouraging to hear from others in similar situations.  Any info is appreciated.