My 2 year old (26 mos. old to be exact) just got glasses for astigmatism. She is doing a so-so job of keeping them on--depending on her mood. Now that she has them I feel like she should wear them all the time BUT...well, she seems to have different ideas. I am thinking of having her NOT wear them through the airport because the last thing I need is to lose them. When did your be-spectacled tot start leaving them on?? Any tricks? Her glasses do have a strap around the back but that doesn't seem to do much when she feels like ripping them off and chucking them. :)
**The glasses are LaFont Baby--they are lightweight and flexible but don't wrap all the way around her head-the strap comes on and off.
Thanks ladies. I am going to have her pediatric eye specialist check her glasses to make sure the prescription is correctly lined up in the frames. And I did take the strap off--she seems to do better with it off. My daughter also has a lazy eye which the glasses will help to strengthen it so she does need them to "correct" that. Her glasses were prescribed by a pediatric eye specialist/surgeon and the glasses were ordered and purchased at a another place--that he did not refer us to, nor is he affiliated with in any way. So I have to disagree that the glasses were prescribed so that the doctor could "make more money."
Unless the are acually permanently "correcting" vision, or the child is almost blind, there should be no reason to have them wear glasses at that young of an age, in my opinion. 40 years ago, a child would get glasses when it was school time and they needed to see the blackboard. (grade1).
Truly, I think it is a way for the docs to get extra money.
I am an Ophthalmic Technician and have been involved in the eye care field for over 9 years.
First of all, I have two congratulations -- one to you for not only understanding the importance of your daughter needing to wear glasses at such a young age, but also doing everything you can to make it happen; and the second is to your doctor for explaining it to you (I'm assuming).
I wish I had suggestions for you to help your daughter wear her glasses, but, unfortunately, I don't have any ideas. This was a struggle for just about all parents I worked with. (I have a two-year-old also, so I can just imagine...)
But I want to say that you are right to think she needs to wear them all the time -- that is SO important, especially if she has a "lazy" eye. You may already know this, but because your daughter's eyes have needed glasses, but haven't had them until now, her eyes are used to working hard to try to see (unsuccessfully). When she first wears the glasses, IT WILL BE BLURRY FOR HER, so naturally she won't want to wear them. But once her eyes relax (this could take several weeks) and let the glasses work for her, they should help. If she only wears the glasses intermittently, it will take her eyes longer to relax, or they may not at all. Many children eventually grow out of needing the glasses, but not all.
It is critical for her eyes to be able to see clearly now because her brain is trying to process what she sees, and is, in a sense, "learn" to see. Unfortunately, there is a time limit to this learning. After around 9 years old, the brain can no longer "learn" to see. Glasses won't help with this. For example, if the brain only sees blurry images from her left eye, it may decide not to use it and rely solely on her right eye.
Just one more thought, if she has had the glasses for a while and her eyes have already adjusted, maybe the problem is with the frame. Toddlers are active and it doesn't take much to get a frame out of alignment. It could be uncomfortable. She may need weekly visits to the optical shop to adjust them and keep them in check.
Again, this may be something that you already know. If so, sorry for reiterating it. If not, I hope it made sense. It's just that I've seen so many children whose parents haven't follow the doctor's instructions and then it's too late. So bottom line, you are doing the right thing -- stay with it!
My son started wearing his glasses around 18 months or so. I was the only one allowed to put them on or take them off. Of course he would take them off and hide them, and I'd spend hours searching for them. The doctor gave him a talking to, and it worked for a little while, but what I did was everytime he took them off he got into trouble. He still takes them off and on but if she is wearing them most of the day then I would say that that was good. Little ones don't keep them on all the time, and they too know when their eyes hurt. Have a good attitude toward the glasses, and maybe you can get a pair of sunglasses or something that you put on as well, I noticed that when I got my glasses, my son kept his on because we were the same, in his eyes.
i just ordered my sons first glasses, he is almost 3. also for severe astigmatism. im nervous about it, i cant imagine that he is going to keep them on. the only thing i did want to mention is that if you got the ones with the cable temples that curve around the ear, maybe that annoys him? we tried on a million of them and he loved wearing them but refused every one with the cable temples. my opthomologist said thats what usually happens and they dont like to use them for that reason. good luck.
my cousin's son had the same issue. she would give him 5 nickels at the beginning of the day. every time the glasses came off he lost one. at the end of the week they would go to the dollar store to spend whatever he had. :)
Our son also got glasses at 25 months. We got him the Miraflex ones, and never had an issue with him keeping them on. Are you sure the glasses don't hurt or give her a headache from being too heavy? We also went to a Pediatric Opthamologist, so they had lots of ideas on what to do for that. If the prism isn't right, it might be worse to use the glasses than to be without. Did they check the glasses on her to make sure they are the right prescription? Our doctor uses a laser to check the eyes of the really little folk, so it's not subjective. It's actually a very precise science getting the right Rx that way. GL! We're in normal glasses now, at almost 4, and he doesn't always wear them, but I have found, if I don't say anything, and I just slip them back on for him, he leaves them on. If I say something, it becomes a battle of the wills. That has always been the case for him. Not really what you want. BTW, with his normal glasses, my son refuses to use the strap because it hurts, even when playing sports.
Have a perfesional look at them and size them perfectly
My premature baby, born at 24 weeks, got her glasses at 12 months. We picked pretty colorful frames so she would like looking at them. We also did the elastic head strap - Your daughter may not like hers if it is too tight. My DD took to wearing them fairly easily - we think it was because she noticed she could see much more clearly. She suddenly started looking at the TV and at books. Try pointing that out to your DD - ask her to look at things with them on and off. I do agree that a checkup with a reputable optometrist or opthamologist is an excellent idea to be sure the glasses are made correctly. We always worked with someone who specialized in baby and children's glasses - but that office is in Lone Tree - kind of far for you!
