UK Keratoconus Self-Help and Support Association

Anyone else dread eye tests? I hate them especially the bit where they put the different lenses in front of your eye and you have to say which is better, it should be straight forward but i end up doubting what i can see! Not helped by the optician telling me its not rocket science and i only have to say what i can see!
I have got to go for one asap, my eyes are worse and I know its time for contacts and an eye test. I also dread her saying I cant drive.......what will i do if that happens? Last time she said that one eye is at driving standard and she is unable to correct the vision in my bad eye any more.
help!

Donna
You are not alone! I have been so frustrated in the past when opticians have not listened to what I was telling them. If they are not used to or familiar with KC I don't think they realise how difficult it is sometimes for us to say which is better - we may be able to see something more clearly but the double image may be more prevelant - or conversely the double image is minimised, but as a result the letters are more blurred.

Idea! Why don't you try printing out some of the comments from this site and take them with you and ask the optician to read them? May help. And print out the Snellen chart from the KC Vision site showing the ghosting /2 rows of letters. At least that way the optician may take better heed. My current optician, even though he does understand KC, found the picture useful when I showed it to him.

Hope all goes well

It is important to say exactly what you can see, even if you have doubts. The one silly bit of information could well be the key to getting your sight sorted.

When I had a lens problem, I really thought it was the way I put them in. But once I said to the optom, if I move the lens so it is off centre I can see OK, otherwise nothing at all. This was the key, find a way to stop the lens sitting dead centre and go where you would not expect the lens to go. It took 3 months after we made the break through to find something that works.

I get really perdantic and make the optom change the lens a couple of times, just to make sure any differences I see are consistant.

Makes for a long eye test, but I know we have been thorough and we have done the best we can.

Failing driving standard is fineas we are coverd by discrimination at work act. I failed the driving standard in August 2004. Between me and my employers we agreed that time off work to get lenses that worked would be best in the short term. It was still doubtfull by month three if I would get the driving standard. this is when I contacted Access to Work through my local job centre and they agreed should it be necessary they would pay for a taxi to take me to work which was cheaper and quicker than public transport from my village.

With the schemes available to us, we can overcome most things.

Thats a good idea printing stuff to take with me
They ( opticians) have a knack of making me feel terrible. I had to take my glasses elsewhere because my optician couldnt get them that strong. When I went to pick my frames they made me feel like I should have been carrying a white stick!
She even said she was amazed I was able to walk around without my glasses on without falling over things

Thanks Gareth, sometimes I get all panicky and worried, I am so glad I have found this site and am able to get good advice!
Shame non of you live near me cos I really need someone to hold my hand! And tell the optician whats what!

donna

I am ashamed to say that for years I used to cheat at eye tests. this probably led to my KC not being diagnosed until I was a student.

At school we were all herded into the optometrist. As I waited for my turn to be called I was standing quite close to the snellen chart. I'd make up a little story with words beginning with each of the letters.

When it was my turn I could usually remember the letters pretty far down the chart, although I could only see a line or two at best.

This delivered me from the need to wear glasses. Only when I was about to start driving did I do a 'proper' eye test, and I was amazed at the difference it made to have glasses. I honestly did not realize how bad my sight had become until I started looking through lenses that gave me back good sight.

I had a similar experience when I moved from glasses to contact lenses.

Nowadays I have to be careful not to 'cheat'. I sometimes feel motivated to please the optometrist by pretending a better reading than I actually see.

Do I enjoy eye tests? I couldn't really say I do, but at least I do everything I can to make sure that the reading I get is accurate.

I do quite like the 'pinhole' test, as this was the first part of the whole procedure that gave me an intimation that there was a cataract growing in my eye.

all the best

Andrew

I think the reason the last eye test was so difficult was because I realised something was wrong and she wasnt reasuring me or explaining. I knew that I couldnt see aswell as I had done the year before and was picking up on her concern aswell, so I had the awful realisation there was something wrong and was trying to do as she was asking while my mind was racing. It was very stressful. She ended the test by saying I have KC and telling me to find a good optician to get my glasses made, It was only when I got upset she became more patient and told me not to worry.
You can probably see why I am dreading going!

I find it difficult to read a snellen chart as everytime i blink or move my eye my vision changes. It is not as simple as just reading the chart, it is a lot more confusing!

Sadly not all optoms are patient with patients with difficult eye prescriptions as we do take a long time to fnd the right lens and fitting. Hopefully it will go well for you.

Best of luck, Sweet X x X

i hate eye tests but i did find a good optometrist at my local shopping centre she tries to understand what KC is like and the importance of our prescriptions being difficult to complete.

but its your test so make sure that you get the est results by being honest in what you see.

after all you are the patient and customer paying their salary.

good luck

james

Donna,

It really sounds like you either need a referal to a hospital and get lenses fitted through them if they have a contact lens clinic or ask your optom where you can go to get lenses made up by a KC friendy optom.

As you put in your post this suggestion was made by the optom so from that I would interpret as your current optom was saying they do not have the skills to treat your KC beyond what they have done already.