Eyes in your 40s, the blurry windows to the soul
What a club?
Consulting various sources, conservative estimates put the number of people on the planet in the midlife phase of their lives at approximately 1,5 billion – specifically those described as in the bracket between 40 to 59. Quite the club! Moving through your 40s in particular can feel as though you are walking through a minefield. One day, you are in your 30s and part of those described as in the prime of their lives, contributing to society and drawing significant attention and investment.
Overnight, it seems, you join the has-been club, the not-so-young-any-more crew. All of a sudden conversations change. It used to be about dreams, future endeavours, energy, expectations, travelling – suddenly it all shifts to #menopause, greying hair, #pension and #retirement, hip and knee replacements. Friends are bereaved and lifestyle or chronic diseases become more common among the circle.
Hot flushes or flashes, joint pain, brain fog and a host of other issues start to arise at a time when some women occupy highflyer positions and possibly have children in adolescence with raging #hormones of their own. All sorts of things crop up that make you feel as though you have lost something and you find yourself unable to figure out how it all happened.
And you can’t seem to see well either. This is the season where you may need to visit your optometrist more often as your eyes deteriorate significantly. I clearly remember at 50-something former manager remarking that women’s #eyesight after 40 takes a real hit. Only once I had my own encounter with blurry vision and frequent visits to the #optometrist for spectacle changes, contact lens prescriptions and issues with dry eyes did I understand. In the light of bad eyesight, the most unsettling was that as part of my job was that I had to be able to read small print sometimes and I was experiencing some eye strain.
Eyesight and ageing
One optometrist kindly mentioned the dreaded #ageing, but did not expound on the topic or how exactly it was affecting my #eyes. Then I discovered that my eyesight was that of an older person – all so highly upsetting! I also found out that I had flat eyeballs that did not suit wearing contact lens very well, but I tried it out anyhow.
This was after I received a pair of spectacles for computer work that was so thick they made me feel so uncomfortable and vulnerable. I kept trying new things. Eventually, I understood that the contact lenses really were not a good fit for me as I had dry eyes to boot. Though I still wanted to at least wear nice sunglasses, no such luck with those either.
The good news is that the said eyeballs are #healthy. I really want to echo the sentiment that we are so blessed. Every day we get to open two gifts first thing in the morning as we wake up; the incredible gifts of sight. When you battle with your eyesight, you really appreciate the wonder of being able to see properly.
But what happens to your eyes after 40? What are the challenges that you need to be aware of besides the deterioration in the eye? Let’s address this now, as well the lowdown on hooded eyes, puffy eyes, dry eyes, bags under the eyes, sunken eye sockets and the understanding that hormones have an effect on vision. Moreover, have you heard about either eye or brow lifts? Let’s dive right in.
“Your eyes can change shape! This may sound horrible, but the change can be very slight. Those of you who wear contact lenses might suddenly realise that your contacts feel really uncomfortable. It’s not that you’re doing anything differently, but suddenly there’s a bit more irritation than usual. Again, this could be due to perimenopause. If this is the case for you, go get tested for new contact lenses.” This is according to an article titled 5 eye problems to look out for during perimenopause. It expounds on other conditions and provides useful tips on how to care for your eyes.
Healthy vision is a blessing
A Nature’s Best article titled What happens to our eyes when we age best expresses, yes truly it does, what I have both experienced and learnt over the years. I quote some crucial passages:
“Healthy vision is something many of us take for granted, especially when we’re young. But as we get older we may start to notice our eyesight isn’t as good as it used to be. And if our vision continues to worsen it can have a serious impact on our wellbeing by affecting our social lives, our ability to stay mobile and by increasing our risk of having accidents and serious injuries.
“One of the first things to be affected by age in the eye is the lens. This starts to become thicker and less flexible when you reach your 40s, as a result of muscles in the eye that surround the lens called ciliary muscles becoming tighter. When this happens, the lens cannot change shape as easily as it used to, which means it cannot focus effectively on near objects.
“This condition is called #presbyopia – or age-related long-sight (hypermetropia) – and it affects nearly everyone as they get older. At first you may notice you’re having difficulties reading the small print, but eventually, you may not be able to focus on close objects at all.”
Hooded eyes
Some of us also struggle with more aesthetic eye issues. Have you heard about hooded eyes? If not, the article titled What to know about hooded eyes as posted on Medical News Today updated in April this year is very helpful.
“Hooded eyes are when the eyebrow and soft tissue surrounding the eyes start to sag, causing a bulge that can hide the upper eyelid. Some people have hooded eyes at birth, but for most individuals, the condition has an association with aging.”
“Most people do not need medical treatment for hooded eyes. However, some may feel that their eyes make them look older and more tired than usual, so they may wish to alter their appearance. Makeup techniques can open up the eyes and help make a person appear more awake, but the effect disappears when they remove the makeup.”
Concerned about puffiness and sunken eye sockets? A Women’s Health article has you covered. It is titled 11 Reasons You Have Puffy Eyes—And What To Do About Them, According To Dermatologists.
“The most common cause of your puffy eyes may simply be a product of your body’s age. ‘Aging causes tissues and muscles to weaken around the eyes and the fat pads descend and bulge, causing puffy under eyes,’ says Dr. Wolinsky. Fortunately, this is totally manageable and there are plenty of preventative options available for minimising this bulge.”
Or put another way:
“The shape of the bony structure of your face, including the orbital rim, or the area that holds your eyeballs, determines how much the tissue inside that rim projects outside of the plane of the face,” says Zenovia Gabriel, MD, a board-certified dermatologist and hormonal skincare expert. And for most people, the pillow of fat that cushions the eyeballs tends to stick out more over time, since the muscle that attaches it to the skull loosens with age,” she explains.
Furthermore, the Cleveland Clinic’s article All About Eyelid and Brow Lift Surgery provides great information from an experienced surgeon.
An interesting takeaway from the surgeon that may interest you is this: “I always tell patients that the results of these surgeries last a lifetime, but the aging process will always continue,” Dr. Perry says. “In other words, your face — just like the rest of you — will keep getting older and aging will likely begin to show at some point.”
The bottom line
The bottom line is that our eyes are changing as our bodies age. But what is more awesome to consider is the wonder of having intricately created eyes that truly are the windows to our souls. They help us to connect to others, are such a crucial part of our daily living and invaluable for navigating around this world. Like our fingerprints, our eyes are unique and need individual assessment and care. It is a worthy investment.
Not wanting to preach or anything, I cannot stress the importance of looking after one’s eyes enough, especially among the younger people among us. Please look after your peepers. And it is relatively simple: incorporate a healthy diet into your lifestyle and make informed decisions. Whatever you do, do not turn a blind eye to issues and it will definitely help you to save money and maintain your eyesight down the line.
As those of us who have worn spectacles for a long time can attest, it does get tiring and, sometimes depressing, to have to wear different pairs of spectacles for various activities. Plus whether you like it or not, procedures are expensive and spectacles cost a pretty penny too. But, we press on …
And now for the silver lining to conclude this week’s podcast, the good news is that changes are occurring in terms of eye procedures, and options that weren’t on the table in the past for various reasons may now be more readily available. I, for one, am grateful for these developments. It may be worth keeping an eye out for it.
Oh, and before I forget, specifically for all the 40-somethings who don glasses, we also need to apply our make-up differently so that we can be a sight for sore eyes.
This week’s piece was laden with facts and research. As always, if this will be useful to anyone else you may know, please share Sparkles and fairy lights with them. It will definitely not be as weighty next time. Next time, it will rock you!
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