Help! I can't see to put on my makeup anymore,

After the age of 40, have you noticed you are having a hard time putting your makeup on in the morning?  You used to be able to see yourself clearly in the mirror, but now your eye is a blur.  As an eye doctor and a woman over the age of 40, I know how frustrating this can be.  We all deserve to have clear, comfortable vision, and we don’t want to feel less put together because of our age. 

You are not at fault for this change in your vision.  Most patients describe it to me as something that happens all of a sudden.  One day, they are putting their makeup on in the bathroom, and the next day they can’t.  Let me assure you, it was not something that you did which caused the change.  It is simply a part of our aging process.  Watch the video above to see an explanation of this aging process.

In a nutshell, presbyopia is the gradual loss of our ability to focus on near objects after the age of 40, on average.  This is a normal part of our aging process.  We all wish it didn’t happen, but no one has found the “Fountain of Youth” yet.  So, we will learn to work around it. 

There are two easy ways to combat this problem.   

1) Magnifying mirror:  These makeup mirrors magnify everything they reflect.  The most common power is 10X.  This will help with anything you want to see in the mirror.  For example, it would work for putting in your contact lenses, putting on your makeup, putting on your earrings and even checking between your teeth.  The cons are they it is not portable.  You will need to go to the mirror, not bring the mirror to you. 

2) Makeup Readers: These are reading glasses with one lens that can flip from the right eye to the left eye.  You use one eye to look while you apply makeup to the other eye.  These readers are readily available on Amazon, eBay, and CVS.  They are inexpensive, ranging from $5 to $20.  They come in a variety of powers from +1.00 to +4.00.  (see the Sidebar below to calculate your power) They are portable.  You can take them in your purse and have the ability to check your makeup throughout the day.  The cons with them are that there is only one lens of one power and you have two eyes.  Maybe your two eyes need a different power.  To solve this problem, you could use two different powered readers. 

We all want to look put together and polished when we show up for life.  Aging does not need to slow us down.  Using the proper tools will keep you on you’re a game in life.  You will sail through flawlessly now that you have the right gear.  Don’t forget to leave a comment below and share your favorite tool to make sure your makeup is looking great. 

Sidebar:  How to know what power of makeup reader to use: 

If you are already wearing reading glasses, just add +0.50 to the power of your current readers to the power you need for the makeup readers.  For instance, if you wear a +2.50 reader, you will need at least a +3.00 makeup reader.  Since you are using the readers to look very closely at your eyes and face, the power needs to be stronger.   

If you know your glasses prescription, you can calculate it from there.  Using the example below, let’s calculate the power for the right eye (labeled O.D.). 

1) Use the SPH power: -0.25 

2) Add it to the ADD power: +1.00 

3) Add an additional: +0.50 

4) The result: -0.25 +1.00 +0.50 = +1.25 

5) If the readers you find are only available in 0.50 steps, I would round up to +1.50