Experience with eye prescriptions in Japan

Recently I had eye surgery here which has permanently changed how my eye can see (it was scary, but it went well) and I’ve had to recently get eye prescriptions for new glasses. However, my experience with prescriptions has been nothing but hell, even when I bring a translator from school. I’m still learning and can usually fend by myself, but I’ve been getting so burned by any kind of medical communications that nuance and intent is completely lost.

First time after surgery: Not only did I find out my eyes are fairly too narrow for most frames at places like JINS, but I somehow ended up with a prescription only for distance and reading when I specifically told the doctor I spent a ton of time at a computer. Not once did he recommend a separate prescription for computer distance. Receive new glasses, don’t work at all for computer distance, basically a wash. Reading glasses went ok, at least. Need to replace the distance ones with a computer distance prescription instead. I ordered sunglasses too at discretion of a friend’s father who had the same procedure, so when I get those, they will be fine, I’d be using them outside only anyway.

Second time, yesterday: I bring a person from school to help translate. I told them I wanted TWO prescriptions, one for progressives and one for computer distance. What did I end up with? One. Unfortunately, the appointment was taking long enough that my person for school had to call somebody else to pick me up (it’s not particularly far) because they had to pick up their kid. In that time, my prescription and appointment bill was ready… and I received one prescription for progressives. I just gave up and figured I’d be arguing against nothing or wasting another hour to explain what I wanted, despite me stating at the start I wanted TWO prescriptions. Now I don’t have a computer only one, and don’t want to deal with fighting with them or asking for it.

I’m not sure if I should just change doctors at this point. While this guy has indeed helped me get set up proper for the procedure to save my eye and tried any proper preventive measures, he’s been an absolute pain when it comes to eye prescriptions and being supportive in options. He worries about my eyes going blind from Glaucoma, but that’s basically where he stops going the extra mile, and it’s frustrating as hell.

Should I be considering changing doctors for this? Do you suggest perhaps an english speaking place/place with english translator for handing the prescription end of things? I don’t know if this is me not putting my foot down or not being understood proper.

3 comments
  1. I wear multifocal soft contact lenses during the day and have a full range of vision from reading to using the computer to distance. I have a pair of progressive lens eyeglasses that I wear in the evening after I take my contacts out that do about the same thing but I usually just take them off for reading and using the computer because I only really need them for distance.

  2. I speak Japanese well enough to get by with appointments/forms at the hospital, but I’ve also been burned by Japanese optometrists. I was told my prescription was too strong because “everything is bigger in America” and walked away with contacts that I can barely use. I ended up going to an eye appointment while I was back home in the UK to get a second opinion. Sorry I can’t offer any solutions, but just to let you know that it might not be a language barrier issue.

    EDIT: This was at EyeCity and the old man who did my prescription was not the person at the store who did my eye test, so maybe that’s on me for going the cheapo route.

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