An astigmatism for those who are not familiar with the term is a curvature of the eye creating blurry vision. This problem can be corrected by surgery along with your other vision problems, but surgery is expensive and may not be an option for you right now. This is where a Toric contact lens can be important.
A Toric contact lens is different from regular soft contacts. First the contact lens is weighted so it will sit on your eye properly and keep the correction in place. With normal soft contact lenses you can put the lens in any way as long as it is not inside out and be comfortable. With Toric contact lenses the weight will position the contact on your eye and may cause discomfort or blurry vision for a few seconds while your eye blinks the Toric contact lens in place. The Toric contact lens has a small line on the lens near the identifying numbers to indicate the bottom of the lens. If you orient the lens properly you can avoid the uncomfortable feeling. The Toric contact lens is also heavier in weight so it can take up to a week or more to find comfort when you are first trying them.
There are also a few brands of Toric contact lenses so you might try the different brands before settling on a certain brand to find maximum comfort. Expense may lead you to one brand over another though they are most usually with in five dollars of each other.
Another option your eye doctor may suggest is a Toric contact lens with a special material. Often those with an astigmatism need a higher prescription to correct their vision problems and the heavier weight of the Toric contact lens may be restricting oxygen flow to the eye. If this is the case they may offer a thicker more rigid Toric lens with a special material allowing more oxygen flow. This can help with the extreme dryness that results from having a heavier lens like the Toric contact lens as a secondary effect.