Apologies for the novel...
My brother, a -8 myope, has prescription Adidas sunglasses with lenses stuck on behind them. They wrap right around, don't look geeky, and unless you look close you can't tell the inserts are there.
A good pair of sunglasses is worth as much as you would pay for a pair of regular prescription glasses. Would you expose your skin to UV rays year-round? Why are eyes any less important?
I had Lasik surgery at TLC in June. Eclectic, I agree--one of the best decisions of my life. My optometrist and surgeon described my former prescription as "very unique:" -6 myopia with -1.75 astigmatism. Because the astigmatism was so high, I needed contact lenses that fit very snugly so as not to spin around.
I thought contacts were the best thing that ever happened to me at age sixteen when my eyes finally stabilized enough to get them. But by age twenty my corneas were suffocating from the lenses' snug fit. I had "the neovascularization of a 40-year-old," my eyes were swollen and numb from pain (I only wore contacts eight hours a day); the oprometrist cut me off contacts permanently. I thought my life was over.
I run, ride horses, sail, bicycle, skateboard, fence, practice taekwondo... did I mention I'm accident-prone? Going back to glasses would have been a frustrating and expensive venture, at the least.
But in the next beat she added, "there is, however, one alternative. I think you will be a perfect candidate for Lasik."
Lasik was wholly worth it for me. Even the pain of recovery was nothing compared to the agony my contacts caused on a daily basis.
Oh, and of course, I can wear real sunglasses again! I have a comfortable pair of Ryders designed to fit small faces.