How do you distract them from the eye drops and the crying before and after. My 5 year old got glasses when she was a little over 3 and cries as soon as I mention the eye doctor in fear of the drops. I don't blame her they do sting!
So do you give presents or treats after to make yourself feel better that they had to get hurt a little? I don't for things like shots at dr offices or anything else but my daughter has huge issues with her eyes being touched. She had an allergic reaction when she was 9 months to suntan lotion that touched her eye and her face swelled up completely and needed her eye rinsed at the hospital, and then at 2 she had a little kid throw sand in her eye and needed it cleaned out and it was scratched, and then at 3 she was at the aquarium and someone had alcohol hand sanitizer and shot it right in her eye by accident and she needed to go to the er and be straight jacketed per her doctors orders(little kid cocoon at the kids hospital) and have her eye rinsed for 5 min straight....so as you could imagine she has every right to be scared about her eyes! She hates her eyes touched so much that at 3 a puppy bit her face and caused her lip to actually need 7 stitches and she didn't cry one bit because they promised not to touch her eye.
So anywho we have an eye exam appointment today at a new place because her old place doesnt accept my works insurance, so since its a new appt I'm pretty sure they'll dilate her eyes, so any advice on ways to comfor her or M.?
I'd say that given her history I'd opt to decline the dilation. You have a right to do that as a parent and unless there are some extenuating circumstances, she doesn't really need it done. Poor kiddo...
I'd give her a treat afterwards for sure. Also, make sure you ask the doctor if they have numbing drops they can give her. My eye doctor does this & it helps tremendously, though it definitely feels weird to not be able to feel yourself blinking.
Jo--my eye doctor dialates you at every yearly appointment, both adults & kids alike. I forget what it is they're looking at exactly, though I did have him explain it to M. the first time I went there 3 or 4 years ago & it must have been acceptable as I've never been concerned with it since.
Poor baby. Unless you have a history of degenerative eye diseases... they should only dilate every 2 years. You can get your records from your last appt. I even think you could space to every 3 years.
I hope she gets through it.
We treat them J. like having to get shots at the doc. If they are good then they are rewarded with a treat, if they are bad they are still rewarded, but it is usually much lesser of a treat.
My son wears glasses and he too didn't like those drops.. UNTIL a GREAT eye doctor did them like this.. he had my son close his eyes and the doctor dripped the drops across his eyelashes, once finished, the doctor had my son open his eyes and blink and that helped the drop get in.. in my son's case, it did work and made the whole dilation less traumatic.. perhaps you can ask your doctor to do the same?
My son has had glasses for a couple years. The very first apt they did dilate his eyes and did the full eye exam to make sure everything was OK and that is was J. typical needing glasses stuff and nothing more serious. He went for his yearly check up the second time and they didn't need to dilate his eyes. They don't do it every time.
You can say not to do them even if they want to. I decline them every time because of my allergies. They may try to guilt you into them but you can firmly say no thank you and not have them done.
Personally, given her history, I would decline them for a couple years unless she has a specific issue they are watching and make her eye exams a better experience for her for a while.
I would also do a treat after the exam.
My son has similar issues with the dentist after a string of horrible experiences. He always gets a treat after everything, even a basic cleaning. It really does help in situations like these.
Unless there is something going on with her vision that really needs to be checked by dilation, then I would skip it. The eye doctor may try to guilt you into doing it, but don't cave in. Most young children don't need to have their eyes dilated, and when it is necessary it can be done every couple of years instead of every exam.
Also, a few years ago when I had an eye injury the doctor put the drops in the corner of my eye and then had M. blink. It was so much better then having my eye held open and drops put in. My son has worn glasses since he was 1 year old, and we've had many battles over eye drops. I wish the eye doc had put them in the corner of his eye when he was young. It really is so much easier and way less traumatic for kids.
I think there is nothing wrong with buying her a toy since it is such an ordeal for her. I am not a huge fan of bribery for all things but for some things it really has it's place.
I was trying to figure out why the drops then got to the end, dilate her eyes. Why do they dilate her eyes? My older two have had glasses since third and contacts since jr high. Never had their eyes dilated. I always thought that was an old people thing, ya know, old like M. though I still have perfect vision.
So anyway what I am saying is are the drops necessary?
Our kiddo's go every year and they have never had dilation done. I wonder why he thinks this is necessary. I don't think I have ever heard of an eye doc doing this on kiddos before.
I would question the need for her eyes to be dilated unless she has a history of eye disease. My youngest wears glasses and has never had her eyes dilated!
But if for some reason it's medically necessary, I would request numbing drops first so there's no discomfort. That will help.
My youngest is terrified of shots, and has had some really bad experiences with them, so I know how it is trying to get a little one to cooperate when they are terrified. I J. approached it with logic - I told her honestly what she could expect, asked the doctor/nurse to explain what was going to happen beforehand, and then told her that we would go get ice cream afterward, but only IF she made M. proud with her behavior. Ice cream is the sure way to gain compliance, at least with my kids! :)
I hate dialation too! Embarrassingly, I have kicked my eye doctor in the past. (Not intentionally, J. in reaction.) Finally, she started letting M. put the drops in myself. Of course, your daughter is too young for that.
I recently went to a new eye doctor because of changes in insurance. My new doctor now takes a digital picture of the back of my eye that she can examine and save to compare with the picture from next year. It costs $20 extra with the insurance, but I feel that it's worth it. It's a new thing, but the doctor said it has lots of advantages, especially since she can look at my eyes changing year to year. Call around and see who offers that service and who accepts your coverage!
This is the time for a bribe, Mama. I detest bribes, but if Kiddo gets a shot, we all go out afterward and get a treat. Usually this is a Root Beer for Kiddo,( because we never have soda, so it's special) and a beer for us, because we are usually wiped out when shots are finished. You decide what your daughter would like, a bribe you can live with once a year or so, and go for it.
My other suggestion is that Bach Flower Essences make a Rescue Remedy pastille, so it looks/tastes like a piece of candy (they make an 'original' which is a slightly sweet citrus flavor and a blackcurrant flavor also). Your local Whole Foods or health food store will probably have them. My sister uses them with her boys before doctor appts and says they really help. We do this with our little guy before shots too.
Wishing you nerves of steel and plenty of patience, and I hope you come up with some fabulous bribe ideas. I'll be watching to see what others suggest...
Ask them why they're dilating her eyes. If it's a new place they likely will do it so they have their own record of the results. But the old place shouldn't have been dilating them every single time without a very specific reason. If there was a medical reason for it they should have told you.
Be sure that your new optometrist gets all the records from your old one!
