Have you seen the new option to update your prescription online? You don’t have to make an appointment, no waiting in the lobby, no fancy instruments to look into...sounds pretty good right? Almost too good to be true?
Although it is true in some states that you can update your prescription online without a full eye exam, there are a HUGE amount of things you could be missing. What do we mean by that? Let me share a story of an eye exam that saved a man's life!
David Hibler, Sr. is a 73 year old who runs a non-profit business. He keeps an active lifestyle and is overall very healthy. Suddenly one day while driving, he developed a blind spot in his left eye. The first time it happened, it was there and then gone within seconds and he assumed it was a grain of food or dirt that had ended up in his eye. When it happened two more times a week later, he went to his doctor.
During the full eye exam, Mr. Hibler’s vision tested normally. But his doctor dilated his pupils to look into the back of his eye, (something you can’t do with an online exam) and immediately saw the signs of a blood clot. Additional testing confirmed that the blood clot was blocking 98% of Mr. Hibler's carotid artery. Not only do blood clots have a risk of blindness, but they have a high risk of stroke which can lead to death!
Thankfully with his doctor’s quick work Mr. Hibler was able to make a full recovery and keep his eyesight and his life! See the full story here.
We love to hear about success stories like Mr. Hibler’s, but without an eye exam it could have ended much worse. So yes, an eye exam CAN save your life. It can also detect things that aren’t necessarily life threatening but can develop over time and eventually be detrimental to your lifestyle. Things like diabetes, macular degeneration, heart disease, and more!
You may think that if you’re young and healthy, you don’t need an annual eye health examination. Well, here’s one more life saving story we were excited to read about!
Alice Walker, a 19 year old woman, went to her annual eye exam expecting nothing out of the ordinary. When the doctor took a look at her eye health, she noticed the inner lining of Alice’s eye was not shaped correctly and ordered more specialized testing at the hospital. Specialists found a tumor that had grown on the back of her eye and was pressing on her brain. Thankfully, after a four hour brain surgery the tumor was diagnosed as non-cancerous! The pressure that had been causing the swelling inside her eye was removed and she will go on to live a beautiful, healthy life thanks to her annual eye exam! Here is Miss Walker's story.
As you can see, eye exams are important in more ways than we can count! Even if you feel like your vision is fine, never forget that most eye diseases don't have any symptoms. You only get one set of eyes. Take care of your sight by getting your eye health checked yearly!