DD6 is getting glasses - any advice?

[mickeyboat]

Hannah complained one day last month that she could not see the score of the basketball game on tv. I didn't think much of it until her sister mentioned that Hannah wasn't able to see the smallest line of pictures at her school eye test back in December.

I called the school nurse who said she scored 20/40 on that test, and since 20/30 is the highest score on that test, they don't give referrals unless they score worse than that.

So I decided to have Hannah's eyes checked, and lo and behold, she has 20/40 in one eye, 20/50 in the other, she has astigmatism in both eyes. No wonder she is so clumsy! Now I feel badly that I got frustrated when she couldn't see something, or when she complained that she couldn't see in the dark.

Anyway, she will be getting her glasses next weekend. She looks absolutely adorable in them. I'm not too concerned about issues at school, as I doubt the kids in her K class will give her any grief. But I was wondering if anyone had any experience with kids in glasses this young.

DH and I have discussed it, and will try to be understanding if she breaks or loses them, and we plan to get her a spare pair after the doctor fine tunes her prescription. But we will expect her to treat them with care. Where is the balance?

Denae

 

[Michigan]

My youngest got her's when she was 3 and there were no issues with her not keeping them on. She is now 8 and just got a new pair that changes to sunglasses. Sunglasses was the biggest issue she has had, but not anymore.

 

[poohandwendy]

My son wasn't that young, he was 9. I hate to say it, but expect that she will break them and/or lose them, very possibly multiple times, until she is older. It won't be only her fault either, she may sit them down and someone sit on them (happened with my son's) Definitely always have an extra pair at home and even at school if you can budget it.

I am not trying to make it sound like she will be irresponsible, but she is 6...LOL. If 6 yos were ultra responsible, they wouldn't need parents. Yes, you should definitely expect her to treat them with care, at the same time knowing that mistakes happen (especially when kids are really young).

Awesome that she will have her glasses soon, it will open a whole new world!

Good luck to her!

 

[golfgal]

DS11 got his glasses in 1st grade. We never had a problem with him wearing them, he needed them and always wore them. Since they were on his face, there wasn't much "taking care" of them issues. He would take them off before bed and leave them on his nightstand and then put them on first thing in the morning. If you don't 'close' the bows on the glasses, they don't loosen up, by the way.

The issues we have had with the glasses are from playing. He had gotten hit in the face many times over the years and needed his glasses adjusted. The eye dr is in walking distance so he would often just walk over there after school and get them fixed. Our eye dr also has a 1 year warranty on glasses so we have used that a couple times when they have broken, once for DS and once for DD. DS's current frames have had a couple different prescription lenses in them. The frames were in good shape the last time he had a prescription change so we just bought new lenses.

He got contacts this past winter and those have been GREAT for him too.

 

[phillybeth]

I got my first pair of glasses at 7 and I never lost or broke them. If she will be wearing them all the time the opportunities for them to get lost of broken will be less than if she wll only be wearing them for reading. If they are always on your face it's hard to forget them!

 

[mickeyboat]

Thank you for your responses! The doctor wants Hannah to wear her glasses all the time, with the possibility of fine-tuning her wear after she is used to them. I would just assume her wear them all the time to be able to see, with the added bonus that she will be able to take better care of them that way.

I am just thinking about her being on the playground or in gym class or playing outside, but I guess we'll take all of that as it comes. I was thinking about getting a sports strap, and maybe I will if she seems to need them.

I think I am almost as excited about her getting them as she is. I know it sounds weird, but I am glad that her problem can be corrected, and that she will actually be able to see better.

Thanks again.

Denae

 

[jennyl772003]

My DS has worn glasses since he was 3. If your DD will be taking them off for any reason (close work, sports) make sure she carries a hard case to put them in. That will help keep them from getting broken.

The main thing is to make sure she knows where the appropriate places to put them are. My son can have them: on his face, in his glasses case, or on his nightstand. This is so they don't get broken, and also to make them easy to find.

 

[AnaheimGirl]

My dd has had glasses since she was 1. It was a little hard to keep them on her at that age. Since your dd is 6 and should notice that she can see better with them, hopefully she'll keep them on better.

I agree with poohandwendy... expect that they will get lost, scratched, bent and twisted out of shape. Get some with a good warranty, and take advantage of the professionals to adjust them properly when needed. dd is always getting them bent a bit when playing. If it's slight, I'll bend them back, but I really can't get them to fit dd as comfortably as they can at the eyeglass store.

I think the balance is that she does her best to take good care of them. Things happen accidentally, and we are very understanding about that, but not so much if it's not accidental. For example, once when she was 4, she was playing with them at nap time, and broke them completely in half.

Good luck! They make such cute kids' glasses, now. I bet she looks adorable in them!

 

[golfgal]

I wouldn't get a sports strap, they are uncomfortable and not really all that safe if you get the loose ones (and she will get laughed at-kind of geeky). Like I said in my earlier post, we have had to replace 3 pair of glasses in the past 5 years for 2 kids. The first was actually recalled by the manufacturer so not really something my kids did, the second was a basketball to the head, the third was when DD's glasses were a little bent over a weekend and mom tried to fix them . See what kind of insurance policy your eye place has, chances are they have some kind of replacement policy for kids.

 

[challada]

DS got his at age 6 and is now in contacts at age 10.

My best advice: PAY FOR THE SCRATCH RESISTANCE COATING!!!! At that age, even if they leave them on all day, those things get scratched up in an instant.

As others have said, be prepared to buy new ones pretty regularly...double check w/the place you bought them on if they have a "kid policy" (some places give you credit for previous purchases w/in a certain timeframe if you need a new replacement pair, etc).

Also, we found at age 6 that DS had a nickel allergy which meant no metal frames (we didn't learn this until we bought his first pair of metal frames and he broke out in an ugly allergy reaction)....so don't buy the most expensive pair FIRST.

I would recommend FLEXON frames for kids that young...they are flexible and spring back to shape if accidently sat on, twisted off the face, etc, etc. They also did not give my DS a nickel reaction.

 

[Keli]

I'm kind of amazed at those whose children kept them on all the time or never lost or broke them.

Both my twin sister and I had to get glasses as children, we needed them to see clearly and yet we were both forever taking them off. And then breaking or losing them. But they were heavier back then (think glass lenses, not plastic) and would slide down my nose when I was out playing, especially when playing sports.

My mom had to stay on me constantly to make me wear them. I'd rather squint and make do than wear them, lol. Didn't start wearing them regularly until I was in my early teens. I know it sounds like I didn't really need them but I did, I had terrible vision and couldn't see very well without them.

My dd had much the same experiences. It wasn't until she reached her early teens that she was mature enough to wear them like she should.

We both moved on to contacts by our mid to late teens although I still wear glasses a lot.

 

[chatterbox2525]

My daughter was 4 when she got her glasses. She is like your child she walked into things and triped over things I even took her to an supposely real good eye Dr in our town he checked her eyes and said she was fine that he would check them in 6 months ( but she couldnt even see the picture chart she kept giving him the wrong names for the picture, he told me she was probaly playing around since she was only 4, I told him i didnt think so but he was the professional not me) Fast forward 6 months checked them again and said all is fine, ( Still couldnt read chart) She was also doing poorly in Preschool and her teacher said something was just not right but she didnt know what it was. She started physical therapy because she was so clumsy and the thereapist said she thought something was wrong so she had her checked by a Dr and her vision was horible. I was there and I was amazed of how they checked them and he knew right away that she really couldnt see the pics. I also had her eyes checked by another Dr for a second opinion because I just couldnt believe that the first Dr never cought all the things wrong with her eyes and he agreed that she had horrible vision. So now she has had her glasses for 2 years and she is doing wonderful with them she has to wear them all the time. and she has not had any problems except for minor adjustments. She wears them for gym and she also plays soccer with them. I never got a sports strap for them they stay on just fine. And if you have ever seen a bunch of 4-6 year olds play soccer it is quiet funny to watch they are always falling and running into each other and the glasses has never fell off. She is now in Kindergarden and has never had anyone make fun of her or tease her she thinks she is cool because she has glasses. lol
Hope this will help
Sorry so long.
Traci

 

[golfgal]

I'm kind of amazed at those whose children kept them on all the time or never lost or broke them.

Both my twin sister and I had to get glasses as children, we needed them to see clearly and yet we were both forever taking them off. And then breaking or losing them. But they were heavier back then (think glass lenses, not plastic) and would slide down my nose when I was out playing, especially when playing sports.

My mom had to stay on me constantly to make me wear them. I'd rather squint and make do than wear them, lol. Didn't start wearing them regularly until I was in my early teens. I know it sounds like I didn't really need them but I did, I had terrible vision and couldn't see very well without them.

My dd had much the same experiences. It wasn't until she reached her early teens that she was mature enough to wear them like she should.

We both moved on to contacts by our mid to late teens although I still wear glasses a lot.

I think that since glasses are so much more comfortable to wear these days, kids will wear them more. I remember kids in elementary school having those really ugly blue marbly plastic frames that didn't look good on ANYONE. I wouldn't have worn them either. DS has some nice lightweight wire frames. Glasses are such a fashion statement these days, too. DD isn't as faithful about wearing her glasses but she doesn't need them as much as DS. His eyes are worse then mine.

 

[mickeyboat]

My daughter was 4 when she got her glasses. She is like your child she walked into things and triped over things I even took her to an supposely real good eye Dr in our town he checked her eyes and said she was fine that he would check them in 6 months ( but she couldnt even see the picture chart she kept giving him the wrong names for the picture, he told me she was probaly playing around since she was only 4, I told him i didnt think so but he was the professional not me) Fast forward 6 months checked them again and said all is fine, ( Still couldnt read chart) She was also doing poorly in Preschool and her teacher said something was just not right but she didnt know what it was. She started physical therapy because she was so clumsy and the thereapist said she thought something was wrong so she had her checked by a Dr and her vision was horible. I was there and I was amazed of how they checked them and he knew right away that she really couldnt see the pics. I also had her eyes checked by another Dr for a second opinion because I just couldnt believe that the first Dr never cought all the things wrong with her eyes and he agreed that she had horrible vision. So now she has had her glasses for 2 years and she is doing wonderful with them she has to wear them all the time. and she has not had any problems except for minor adjustments. She wears them for gym and she also plays soccer with them. I never got a sports strap for them they stay on just fine. And if you have ever seen a bunch of 4-6 year olds play soccer it is quiet funny to watch they are always falling and running into each other and the glasses has never fell off. She is now in Kindergarden and has never had anyone make fun of her or tease her she thinks she is cool because she has glasses. lol
Hope this will help
Sorry so long.
Traci

Thank you, Traci. Your DD sounds just like Hannah.

She has had her eyes checked several times at the Dr.'s office, and three times at school, and she "passed." I never really connected her clumsiness with her vision, just with her genes. I feel kind of bad I didn't catch it sooner, but I am just glad she is getting help now. I might not have even made her an appointment, except I had one myself, and since my insurance covers it, I made one for her too. It was pitiful when she was reading the letters. She was just guessing on most of them, calling an "F" an "O," etc.

Emily (5) looked at the chart while we were there for Hannah's exam, and could see even the bottom row just fine. But I will still probably get her eyes tested before school starts this fall- just to make sure her eyes are both working fine, and that she is not compensating with one for the poor quality of the other.

Thanks for the info on sports. I will have to make sure she gets them fitted well. Hannah plays soccer, too, and you're right, it's just like a pack of kids running and tripping over one another. I think Emily will have to play an individual sport, she thought it was stupid to follow everyone else around chasing after the same ball.

golfgal - even when I had glasses in high school they were different than the ones I have now. The "springs" on the sides make such a huge difference in how they fit. The frames we picked out are really cute - a lavender color, and very light looking. The lady in the store said they looked really cute on her. We are really trying to build her up so that she knows she looks cute in them.

Denae

 

[kelleigh1]

I got my first pair of glasses at the age of 6. I did break them once or twice, but not as often as you'd think. I do remember falling up my back steps which were made of concrete and smashing my face, but amazingly, they didn't break. And I never lost them. I had a really hard time seeing and astigmatism, so not wearing them wasn't really an option. I'm now 35, and I have contacts, but still wear my glasses too.