Been told dd2 needs glasses, when none of us had previously been aware of any problems with her vision. Anyone had this?

[NuzzleandScratch]

I took both dds to have their eyes tested, just because I thought I ought to. Dd2 is nearly 5, and we've been told she is quite long sighted. She had the drops put in on our second visit, before various tests, which apparently confirms things. The prescription is +5 (I have no idea what this means), which is apparently quite strong.

All this is fine, but dh and I are feeling a little bewildered when neither dd, us or her teacher have ever noticed any problems with her sight. She has learnt to read very well. Has anyone else had this? Is it just a case of her having got used to how she can see, and not realising there's an issue?

I'm quietly a little bit upset about my little girl having to wear glasses (we were advised she should wear them all the time), but will of course accept it and not let on to dd. I realise this is trivial in the great scheme of things.

Would appreciate hearing from anyone who has had a similar experience.

We discovered ds needed glasses after he started school - routine check by school nurse. He was long sighted too. We had never noticed and I think he just thought what he saw was normal! When he was learning to read I'd ask him to read road signs which he could never do. At the time I thought he didn't know the sounds but in retrospect I don't think he could see them properly. I hated him in glasses when he first got them - the lenses seemed so thick - but when he pointed at a tree and in amazement said "look at all the little leaves" I realised the difference they made. He wore glasses then contacts full tie until he was 16. He's 17 now and no longer needs them.
By the way, if you can manage it get the thinnest lenses possible. It makes a difference to how they look and what frames you can get.

One of my friends suddenly saw trees for the first time when she was given glasses, and realised that stars were not just a nice fairy tale but they existed. She was well over 6, more like 9. Her parents had already had three children.

My parents only realised I was short sighted when I was 7. Again, thanks to school.

My ds wore glasses from age 2 - age 4. Hasn't needed them since. Dd had a very low prescription around the age of 8 or 9 for about a year and hasn't needed them since. Funnily enough, dd was desperate to wear glasses and was very disappointed when she was told that she no longer needed them.

That's a strong prescription and I would expect her to be referred to specialist children's eye services.... Maybe speak to your GP for advice?

Thanks for the replies. Why do you say that @Sukitakeitoff ?

My DD started wearing glasses at a similar age - she was referred to an eye specialist. I hadn't realised before. The earlier they get treatment the better chance of stabilising. DD was also patched for a year and this helped.

Fortunately there is no stigma with wearing glasses anymore - but I admit to shedding a tear. She is 10 now, wears glasses most of the time and seems completely happy with it.

When my sight test was due I thought well I'll take 5 year old ds for one too. Turns out he needs glasses for a bit. I was shocked too, but I remember my own shock when I got glasses at 14. I hadn't a clue there was anything wrong, mum felt a bit bad when I said oh my goodness mum the carpets got a pattern 😄

Thanks @GuestWW. I'm sure we'll get used to the idea, I just can't help thinking they've got it wrong. Anyway we'll see how she gets on with the glasses. The optician said she has to wear them as much as possible.

Oh, forgot to mention my son looks kick ass in his glasses. He's got great style and gets lots of compliments, they are far nicer than my first Deirdre from Corrie style pair 🤓

It's a very strong prescription for her age, so I'd want to be certain she'd been expertly assessed to be certain the prescription was correct and that there were no other related problems - e.g. a lazy eye that needed patching. I'm surprised the optician didn't refer you to be honest.

If you went to a regular high street optician I would suggest getting a second opinion. My GP recommended a local independent optician, who in turn referred my DD to the eye hospital to be assessed.

I'm obviously not saying the prescription is wrong, as I have no idea! My DD (now 8) loves wearing glasses - the choice of free frames for children is worlds apart from the dreadful NHS specs when I was a child

My DD and several of her friends all "failed" their Reception eye check (it's a very conservative test and by no means a guarantee that they need glasses). Took DD for an eye test she's fine. Spoke to her friend's mum who said "Ah, I know X is fine and doesn't need glasses..." Except he does! They had no idea. So I think it's really quite common.

@Sukitakeitoff To be fair the optician did talk about possible referral after her next appointment in 3 months. It was Boots we went to. I am inclined to get a second opinion, but I wouldn't really want to put her through having the drops again unnecessarily, as the pupils stay dilated for quite a while, which wasn't very nice for her.

Does anyone know if we would have to pay if we went for a second eye test somewhere else? I'm guessing the NHS wouldn't keep funding appointments.

I think it depends where you live in the country, but it's worth speaking to your GP as they may refer you to the local hospital eye clinic (services differ by area). My son (now 7) wears glasses, and wearing them the all time (apart from swimming and rugby) has made a real difference. He prefers to wear them and it's really improved his catching.

Take sunglasses to help with dilated pupils and think of distractions that don't rely on seeing clearly - it's really worth it for the long term gain.

It's a real shame that society still has an issue with glasses (perhaps more for girls) - I can't think of anything else where people would be upset that something was provided to make their children's life better. Yes, I can understand it's a mild hassle (we're on our third broken pair this year), but it doesn't make them any less wonderful - unless it's all about appearances.

I'm not sure... I wonder if you could ask either the optician you've already seen or your GP for a referral now? It can take quite a number of months for the referral so could be worth getting the ball rolling now.

We found out I needed glasses when I was 5, I remember feeling awed by how clear everything was. Prior to the glasses I had no idea that my view of the world was different to anyone elses so had never said anything and my parents were surprised.

Strong prescriptions often mean referral because they can sometimes lead to other issues. If you are very very shortsighted for example it can be due to a weakness in the eye structures putting you at higher risk of retina detachment. Its just good form to have a hospital referral because they have better technology for checking those kind of things.

If she has to have drops again I recommend sunglasses till her pupils are back to normal, it always makes me feel more comfortable.

Incidentally DD had the drops at the optician but not at the eye hospital.

Nobody noticed I needed them. Until I said "bus is coming" and pointed at a postbox
Dad went and took me to the opticians. I'm short sighted!

Thanks for the replies, much appreciated. We have private health insurance, so we could always pursue a referral that way if it's normally a long wait. To be clear, I don't have an issue as such with glasses, it's just that this has come so unexpectedly. Neither dh or I wear them, so this is all new to me. She's still not 5, (summer born) and is one of the better readers in her school year, which I wouldn't have expected given the outcome of these tests, but going by these stories, I guess maybe she's just got by in her own way.

@Ollivander84 that made me laugh!

I read v early too so didn't really affect me much. Dad was slightly confused how they missed it for so long! Neither of them wear glasses though so I think they hadn't expected me to have any problems

DS2 got glasses at 3, and we hadn't realised he couldn't see. The opticians told us that children are good at working around it nad that it's normal for parents not to realise.

She will probably be referred to a hospital orthoptist as they deal with eye issues in younger children. Dd was under orthoptist care at the hospital from 18 months old until age 8ish when she was discharged to a local optician. She will always need glasses. Her prescription is around +4 And +5 And she had a squint in one eye too that was operated on when she was age 4. No-one else in the family wore glasses so it was a shock to is but now she doesn't look right without them

Children's eyes are good at compensating so it can mask eye problems that you wouldn't know about. Thats why you should get their eyes regularly checked. My two get theirs checked annually but only one wears glasses

The problem is that children have no idea how others see the world - in other words what "normal" is. I can vouch for this - my major short sight and astigmatism was only diagnosed at about age 6 when I realised that everyone else could actually see something written on the board at school! The leaves on the trees were magic when I got my glasses - actual leaves!!

DGS is about to have glasses aged 8. His vision with two eyes on brief testing appeared to be 20:20, but DD noticed a slight squint and took him to opticians who found a huge discrepancy between the two eyes.

These sort of problems are very easy to miss - the child does not know anything is wrong.

My short sight was diagnosed at 11 when i couldn't read the big A at the top of the opticians chart (school eye test). My parents were quite embarrassed and kept asking why i hadn't told then i couldn't see. I just hadn't realised that the world wasn't supposed to be blurry.

Please stop with the "ask GP for a referral" stuff. Let optometrists do what they're qualified to do! In the absence of a squint (or other concern) normal practice is to prescribe specs and review in 3/12, and refer if vision is not as expected. Straight forward cases can easily be managed without referral.