Working Together: Helping Your Eye Doctor Help You

It’s important to make the most of your visit to the eye doctor. Here are a few questions to ask yourself prior to your visit. Write down your answers and take them with you.

1. Have I noticed any additional eye problems such as blurry vision, flashes of light, poor night vision, or double vision?
2. Do I have trouble judging dis­tances or distinguishing between reds and greens?
3. Is my vision problem making me nervous about doing certain activi­ties?
4. Am I willing to listen to the eye doctor’s advice about fixing my vi­sion problems, even if it might be difficult?
5. How well am I taking care of my glasses or contacts? Do I take my contacts out each night and rinse them thoroughly?

Make sure to bring your glasses, sun­glasses and contacts along for the visit. You’ll also want to bring along a list of all your prescription and non-prescrip­tion medications, as these can affect your vision. Bring along the name and contact information for your primary care physician and your health insur­ance info if you have vision coverage. Finally, prepare a list of questions to ask during your appointment.

It’s easy to get distracted during your exam. Hand your list of questions to the doctor and ask him to address them. This will make it much easier for your eye doctor to respond to your con­cerns and you’ll go home a more satisfied client.