TTMA Eye Exams for Kids

[nicolewi]

Have your kids had a comprehensive eye exam from an optometrist? Not just the eye chart at the pedi? 

I posted on MM Moms yesterday that I am probably taking DD1 in to get an exam. I hope she doesn't/don't think she needs glasses but her vision seems a little weaker than her brother's and I think the exam is a good idea. DH & I have really good vision for our ages & good history on both sides, except for one of DH's brothers, so this would be a whole new world for us if she needs glasses. 

What do they do at a kids' eye exam? Is it scary at all? Is it generally well-tolerated? This is my anxious DD so I am already anxious for her b/c I know just taking her for the exam will be a big deal.

[cjcouple]

I took DS2 last year when he was 7. He often holds his tablets and books super close to his face and his grades were slipping a little. Plus he usually sat super close to the TV. He said he could see and he was reading fine when I pulled his book back and asked him to read BUT I just wanted to check. His vision was not 20/20 but not at a point of needing glasses either.

My oldest (almost 11yo) I have not.

[dizzycooks]

I don't think it's scary at all. They just read things or identify pictures. Usually health insurance covers one eye exam a year. Separate vision insurance is available too, but it's not usually too expensive to just go. I'd always paid oop until I married dh. It's definitely more thorough than the pedi exam.

[Deleted]

our kids went at 5. they had to read the charts, have the doctor look in their eyes (they did do eye drops, but they asked if that would be a problem so if your dd wouldn't tolerate that, you could probably skip that part). They got to "play video games" like catch the blinking light and name the number (color blindness test which ds failed miserably poor thing). They did sit in the chair and have the dr look through the big bug eye "is one better or two? now two or three?" that thing...


we just prepared them by saying we were going to an eye doctor and the dr would look at their eyes and they would play games to make sure they could see ok or to see if they needed glasses.

good luck!

[momin2013]

I took DS for his first eye exam last year when he was 3, not because we suspected any issues, but rather because I wanted to get all his first "checks" in before he started school. It was NBD, and I think he even thought it was fun - he was excited to read the letters. Besides that, they had him look into the "binocular"-type machine, and they had him flip through this little book where he had to identify the animal/shape/whatever (that was to check for colour-blindness).

I would definitely take her! I would probably talk to her about it beforehand so she has an idea what to expect. Maybe google a bit so she can see what the eye chart and other equipment looks like, etc.

[Dznyprnces]

We start taking our kids the summer before kindergarten. My DH got glasses when he was in third grade, but looking back he thinks he needed them sooner than that, and he doesn't want the same thing to happen to our kids. My DD is 8, and they've always said eventually she will need them, but she doesn't yet. My DS is 4 (will be 5 next week) and went for the first time a few weeks ago. He ended up needing reading glasses. I'm glad we caught it now. I'm not sure if the eye exam at the pedi would have caught it. It's not scary, they don't dilate their eyes.

[melew]

DD2 went starting at 18 months and has gone back each year since. She had a suspected and then diagnosed eye condition. We went to a pediatric specialist that had a ton of toys and fun things for little ones to make them more at ease. She had drops for dilation, but those were actually a breeze since we have had to do drops for pink eye in the past and she was familiar with it. If you can get a referral for a pediatric opthamologist from your pediatrician, I highly recommend it.