I've reached a milestone with my contact lens.

I now see better with them than without.

I have good reading glasses and better ones on the way.

I finally understand how the rating system works on glasses. It's really incredibly simple. If you're nearsighted the lens makes the image bigger, if you're farsighted, the image gets smaller. I'm both, so I need both kinds of lenses. A lens rated -1 is a mild correction for farsightedness. +4 is a substantial correction for nearsightedness.

The secret was getting an eye doctor who would work with me, over a period of months to figure out what the right combination was, and to patiently teach me how to put the lenses in and take them out.

I assumed I wouldn't be able to do it. I've always had eye doctors who put me on a conveyer belt and didn't listen well. But my eyes are weird, and to get it right so I can see reasonably well required patience. Previous eye doctors didn't offer that. 

None of this is cheap, of course. My insurance doesn't cover it. But having functional vision is worth a lot.