“I have been given this product as part of a product review through the Chronic Illness Bloggers network. Although the product was a gift, all opinions in this review remain my own and I was in no way influenced by the company. “
My history with migraines is tied up with my autoimmune diagnosis story. I’ve gotten headaches as long as I can remember but in 2009 I started getting headaches that were always behind my left eye accompanied by visual disturbances. The classic migraine pattern of zig zag alligator teeth in my vision with dizziness and nausea. I’d also had my second child six months earlier but my fatigue seemed worse than you’d expect. My symptoms and blood work abnormalities started me on the round of specialists and you can read more about my diagnosis story here.
Fast forward to 2016 and while I don’t get migraines as often, I still get them. I also now have Sjogren’s syndrome so my eyes are regularly uncomfortable. I signed up to get these tinted glasses for migraine relief with the hope that they would cut down on some of the UV in my daily life. Life is bright and sunny in FL even indoors. All that UV light makes my headaches worse and is fatiguing on my often tired, scratchy eyes.
On a daily basis I now need to wear reading glasses. This time around I bought ones that have UV tint for reading outside and a blue light filter coating for less eye fatigue when using the computer. They’re not prescription, just basic magnification with the extra coatings. So with that purpose in mind, and keeping in mind I only wear reading glasses sometimes, I ordered the Jura style from Axon Optics. They were light, available in a small frame size ( I have a small head) and seemed from the description a good all around choice. On the left is me in the Jura glasses.
I tried them off and on for 6 weeks. I even had one my migraines with alligator teeth to try them on one of those kind of days. Overall they were not successful for me and almost uncomfortable. You can see they let a lot of light in around my face. They’re very flat. They remind me of the 3D glasses you get at the movie theater. The sharp division between ‘regular’ light and the red tint was not comfortable for my eyes. I’d even get a little headache twingy because of the extreme difference.
I went to graduate school in England. It’s hard to arrange housing from across the pond so I chose to live in student housing. It was a newly built dorm just for graduates students and when we showed up, the internet was not fully installed yet. The first six weeks I lived there I had to go the library for internet access. The horrible florescent lighting would send me into severe headache within 15 minutes and I took to wearing a baseball cap even though I was inside the library. I didn’t need reading glasses yet. I’m not sure what I would have thought of the fit issues but these would have been perfect for that situation.
On the left below, are my everyday wrap around sunglasses. They fit great but are a bit dark to wear indoors all the time. If these tinted glasses for migraine relief from Axon Optics were one of the wrap styles I think they would have worked a lot better for me. At right is the Axon Optics Hannick style which I think would have been a lot better choice for me. I’ve only been wearing reading glasses for two years and am pretty ignorant about glasses in general. I think my lack of knowledge about glasses and the best style for me and my needs led me to make a good general choice. It was not however, a good choice for me.
I have a friend who has debilitating migraines that are barely kept under control with medication. She wears contacts so she doesn’t have to deal with taking glasses on and off during the day. The shape of her face is such that these will fit her a lot better too. I plan to give these glasses to her and see if they will be effective for her.
Moving forward I’ll explore the options for tinted glasses that fit better. I clearly need a wrap around style.
Where to buy:
The Axon Optics website to purchase or for more information.
