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Probably everyone has had that feeling: ahh, my eye is twitching. You never know how to make it stop, how long it will keep going, or why it’s happening. The truth is that eyelid and eye twitching and spasms are pretty common, and no cause for alarm, but still somewhat of a mystery!

Usually it’s the bottom lid of your eye that twitches when you get that weird feeling. Most people report that a random eye twitch will come and go, but some cases have been reported as lasting weeks or even months! The medical term for it is myokymia.

What triggers eye twitches?

• Stress

• Being tired

• Strained eyes

• Caffeine

• Alcohol

• Dry eyes

• Nutritional deficiencies

• Allergies

Generally, the condition is not serious, and is not an indication of any greater issues. The problem is that it’s not easy to treat when you don’t know the cause. The afflicted person usually needs to investigate their habits and get to the root cause so that they can avoid that trigger.

If you find that your trigger is strained eyes, make sure to see an eye care professional as soon as possible so that you can update your prescription. If your prescription is up to date or you don’t need one, it could be strain from looking at a computer screen for extended periods. In this case, you can still benefit from seeing an eye care professional and discussing special computer glasses to help you relieve the stress on your eyes.

Of course, if you’re stressed or tired in general, an eye care professional probably can’t do much for you. Make sure that you’re getting enough restful sleep, take an afternoon nap if you find that you hit the afternoon slump hard, and go to bed early to get more sleep. Talk to your physician if you’re getting enough sleep on a good bed and still feeling fatigued.

Drinking too much caffeine every day? It might be another facet of your stressed-out life that can exacerbate your eye-twitching problem. It’s tempting to partake in another caffeinated beverage mid-afternoon when you’re busy and can’t nap to perk back up. Building up more and more caffeine, however, can be a real problem and can lead to eye spasms that will hurt your productivity and be a big annoyance.

How can allergies make your eyes twitchy? Well, some experts think that the histamine that is released into your eye tissues when you rub your eyes can actually cause the lid to twitch. Since allergies make your eyes itchy and you rub them, that might be causing your eyelids to twitch as well.

Cramping and muscle spasms in all parts of your body can be caused by electrolyte imbalances. It’s one of the reasons that athletes opt for sports drinks over water. Sweat carries electrolytes out of your body, so they need to be replaced to make sure your brain and muscles function properly. If you have been sweating heavily or have a nutritional or other health issue, you may be low on electrolytes. See your physician if you think you may have a condition causing you to have low electrolytes.

The takeaway from this is that there’s no cause for concern, but that doesn’t mean it’s not annoying! The occasional eye twitch is nothing to investigate, but persistent twitches will certainly be irritating enough to warrant a look at your habits and possibly making some healthy changes.

It seems like contact lenses and glasses would use the same prescription. After all, the idea is that your eyes don’t see quite right, so you use a lens to change the view, and then you see clearly, right? Well, the two prescriptions are quite different. Few patients check the numbers or notice any change during the exam process, but the prescriptions are not the same because of where the lens sits in relation to your eye.

The lens of your glasses rests about twelve millimeters from your eye. Contact lenses, on the other hand, are placed directly on the surface of your eye. Why would this make your prescription different? Well, think about holding a magnifying glass out in your hand. When you hold it far away and look through, the view you see is much different than if you try to hold the magnifying lens up close to your eye. The same principle is in play when you consider glasses in contrast to contact lenses.

If you’re still imagining the magnifying glass held out in your hand, think about how grass would look if you’re sitting on the ground and have the magnifying glass down near the grass. You’d be able to see the blades clearly, right? If you held the magnifying glass up close to your eye, the refraction would be so strong that you wouldn’t be able to see anything other than a blur. The power of the glass would need to be reduced for you to see clearly. This is the reason why your contact lens prescription is weaker than your glasses, but you get the same crisp, clear vision with each. Neat, right?

Not all contact lens prescription powers are drastically less than the glasses prescription for the same person, but usually the power used for contact lenses is reduced. In addition to the powers being different, your eye care professional will need some additional measurements to fit you for contact lenses because there are specifications needed to fit contact lenses appropriately that aren’t needed for glasses.

Some things that need to be measured to receive an accurate contact lens prescription are the size of the cornea, the curve and overall size of the lens, and the suggested brand of lenses that will work best for you. Eye care professionals usually have an idea of which contact lenses work best with different eye conditions, so they will suggest a particular toric lens for your astigmatism, or a type of disposal lens based on your needs, for example.

Some aspects of the lens prescriptions are included for both kinds of eyewear. The lens power is included in both prescriptions. Lens power is the measurement used to correct your “refractive error,” or the nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism that you have. It wouldn’t be identical because of the magnifying glass analogy, but it is included in both prescriptions. They’re also laid out per eye—right vs. left—because very few people have the same prescription in both eyes, so they are measured individually regardless of what type of eyewear you’re getting. More technical aspects of your prescription (the power and axis determined to correct astigmatism, for instance) may also be included in both the contact lens and glasses versions of your prescription.

Hopefully that makes the difference between your contact lens and glasses prescriptions clearer. Talk to your eye care professional if you have any questions about your prescription or are curious about getting contact lenses or glasses.

Picking eyeglasses can be a difficult process of trial and error, especially if you haven’t done it many times before. The problem is that, unlike shopping for clothing where you may have a good idea of what fits you and what your favorite colors and patterns are, people can sometimes be vague on what they want for glasses (or have no idea at all). Few people know the most important factors for getting the right glasses for you: the shape of your face and which glasses will accent that shape, color and design options available to fit your preference, and features that will work best with your lifestyle.

Instead of standing in front of racks of frames and trying them on for what could be hours, consider these things first. Ask an observant friend or your eye care professional if you need help.

Which glasses will look best on you is most reliant on the shape of your face. Take a head-on look in the mirror and notice the shape of your face. Is your face taller and more arrow, or shorter and rounded? Is your face more like a diamond, or maybe a triangle shape? Is the bone structure angular, or do you have soft curves? Once you narrow that down, it’s easier to start shopping. Sometimes it helps to do an internet search and see examples of different face shapes and see which one most closely resembles you.

If your face is small, large frames will make your face look even smaller, and your features will get lost behind your glasses. If you have a larger face, small glasses will look out of proportion and make your eyes appear small. Rounded glasses soften an angular face, but a soft face can look balanced and cool with an edgy pair of angular glasses. It may take a few tries to hit on what style of glasses look good on you, but usually there are several models that will look sharp. You can narrow down your selection further once you decide on the general style that you prefer.

You can also look at trends for frame styles based on age. There’s no reason that a young person can’t wear rimless glasses, or a senior can’t wear something bright, but we tend to see trends that vary by age group. Younger people are choosing old-fashioned styles that have become popular again. Vintage styles like horn-rimmed, Wayfarer, and Clubmaster glasses have become cool unisex styles for younger people who want a classic look. Older women are making fun, youthful looks with black frames and unique, funky shapes that are creative, but still convey their professional status. Older men in particular might like frameless and very thin frames that have a mature and barely-there look.

Next, think about your personality and fashion sense. Are you the kind of person who would enjoy something bold, or do you tend to shy away from being the center of attention? Don’t be afraid to be creative with your selection if it suits you. Many frames come in patterns like plaid or animal print, or offer clear or other modern materials that will make your glasses pop.

What color will look best with your skin tone, hair, eyes, and apparel? Do you have a varied color palette for clothing, or are most of your clothes in similar colors? If you don’t plan on buying a new wardrobe, it’s a good idea to factor in your apparel as well as the overall tone of your skin and hair. Do you wear blue jeans and lots of cool greens, grays, and purples, or are you a more summery, bright yellow and orange palette? For skin tone, warmer colors would be a pink or yellow skin, whereas olive skin falls on the cooler side. Someone with rich brown hair, a more yellow skin tone, and coppery brown eyes might look strange in cool blue frames, for instance.

How dark or fair your skin is will also have an effect on your choice. Darker skin looks good with light colored glasses for a nice contrast, but fair skin looks better with a neutral tone that won’t make them look washed out. People with a medium skin tone can get a slick look with solid, bright colors.

Finally, make sure that you pick glasses that work for your lifestyle. If you’re big on adventure or you have young children who might be after your eyewear, ask about frames that are more durable and able to bend without breaking. Do you usually have to look professional, or can you be casual on a daily basis? If you’re getting one pair of glasses and not multiple pairs, you’ll need to be sure that your final pick can fit your needs and normal daily setting.

If you’re getting ready for your visit and will be picking glasses, wear an outfit that you usually wear, and do your hair and makeup in a way that’s typical for you. Ask your eye care professional for help if you want a second opinion, or get their assistance to narrow down some options. Let a professional help you create a new face!