August is Children’s Eye Health and Safety Month
My older daughter, Makayla, started out as typical as they come. Running and jumping, laughing and crying just like her friends. When she was four, we noticed that she was putting her face very close to the page when she was looking at books.
As kindergarten grew close, she was writing with huge letters. At her well child exam in January, her pediatrician dismissed my concerns because she was a “young one.” Her birthday is in August and that made her at the tail end of the age spectrum for school in Washington state. The preschool teacher in me saw a kid who was not up to par for handwriting skills.
Thankfully, I had been prodded by the visiting vision therapist to take my younger daughter in for an exam with a developmental optometrist. It was the May before Makayla was to start kindergarten so I went ahead and made an appointment for both girls. It couldn’t hurt, I felt. The worst that could happen is she would confirm the pediatrician’s comments.
I am so glad I gave in to the nagging gut feeling. Makayla has correctable vision. Her eyeglasses made a world of difference. It didn’t take long for her to begin writing at grade level. Making that appointment was worth every penny we have spent on lost and broken glasses since then.
August is Children’s Eye Health and Safety Month
Photo Courtesy Astacia Carter