I recently had a reminder through to take my daughter for her routine eye test.
Your child may have had their eye’s tested at 4 or 5 in school, but this varies depending on where you live and it doesn’t happen at our school.
We have never had any problems with her eye-sight though and last year, when she was 5 years old, was the first time I took her to the opticians. She quite enjoyed it!
This year we visited Edwards & Walker in Doncaster Town Centre. An independent family friendly practice, we were pleased to see on arrival that they had a colouring table! This was a big hit whilst we waited for our appointment. I also got a coffee which was a nice surprise!
We were made to feel at ease straight away and I found out that the Optometrist and owner Pretty and her team are experts on Children’s vision. I asked Pretty, for her advice on eye health as she clearly has a passion for paediatrics and knows her stuff! Pretty was very down to earth and made my mini mumbler very comfortable. It’s not surprising that Edwards and Walker were ‘Family Practice of the Year 2018’ finalists.
Here is what she had to say about looking after your little one’s eyes…
“I speak from first-hand experience when I speak about the importance of eye examinations for children and their vision. I didn’t know at the age of 10 that what I was seeing wasn’t normal, but I just couldn’t seem to get this sleep feeling out of my eyes. I took the initiative to walk to a local optician to have an eye exam. My parents had their own business and didn’t have time to take me and were not aware of vision problems as they both had perfect sight. So they probably thought I was fine! In a strange way I get that…you just think my child can see fine. That is the thing with so many vision problems; they are very silent and can only be seen by the trained eye (Pardon the Pun!). Having two young boys (1 and 4 years old) it does hit very close to home. Therefore, with my somewhat addiction to promoting eye health in children I give you my top tips. Don’t wait until it’s too late”
Regular examinations are important to ensure that children enjoy the best possible vision, as their eyesight can often change without them or us as parents being aware of it. The good thing is that the NHS will pay for it whilst your child is under 16.
Pretty currently combines her work as an Optometrist with writing up her thesis on Children’s Vision Screening. Her specialist field is Paediatrics. Alongside continually looking to self-develop, run a business and bring something a little different to the optical ‘experience’ in Doncaster, she is a ‘wife to an amazing husband, mum to two beautiful boys and a confidant to my close circle of friends who I call my queens!”
We enjoyed meeting Pretty and think you will too! I think my daughter was a tad disappointed not to need glasses as they had some fabulous styles!
Edwards and Walker is based at 16 Priory Place, Doncaster.