5 good reasons to book an appointment with your optometrist

Whether you want to change your glasses or simply want to keep track of your ocular health, there are many good reasons to regularly check in with your eyecare professionals. Here are 5 good reasons (including one that may surprise you!) to visit your clinic.

How often and for what reasons should you consult your optometrist?

You should get your eyes checked once every two years. However, if you fall into one of the following categories, you might want to get your eyes checked at least once a year or even more frequently:

• A school-age child
• Someone who wears contact lenses
• Anyone 65 years of age and up
• A patient with an eye condition or family history of eye disease

Now that you have a better idea of how often you should see your optometrist, here are 5 good reasons to book an appointment:

1- To identify the source of eye pain or relieve eye discomfort

Apart from regular eye exams, ocular discomfort is one of the main reasons why patients book an appointment with their optometrist.

These days, most of us spend hours staring at screens. This digital lifestyle can lead to visual fatigue which in turn can cause discomfort. It’s a problem that has affected many patients in the past few years.

Symptoms of visual fatigue stemming from excessive screen time include blurry vision, irritated and dry eyes, diploplia (double vision), trouble focusing when looking from near to far, frequent headaches, etc.

Photo: Julbo

A consultation and eye exam will help identify the factors that are causing your visual discomfort. After the exam, your eyecare professional will be able to recommend the products and solutions adapted to your needs to help you regain or optimize your visual comfort.

2- To update your prescription

Do you feel like your vision has become blurrier when you’re wearing your glasses or contact lenses?

If your last eye exam was over a year ago, you might need a new prescription. Booking an appointment with your optometrist will help you assess your needs.

3- To improve your vision (and quality of life)

When you visit our clinic’s experts, they’ll not only be able to assess your ocular health, but they’ll also be able to take into account your lifestyle habits, your profession, and day-to-day activities to provide you with the right recommendations in terms of glasses or contact lenses.

For instance, a patient who wants to alternate between wearing glasses for work and contact lenses for their favourite sport may benefit from daily contact lenses. These require no maintenance and are discarded after use. In sum, it’s a simple, flexible option for patients with varying needs and an active lifestyle.

Photo: Julbo

And if you need to purchase new glasses, your optometrist and optician will provide you with all the information you need about the different types of lenses and coatings available, such as anti-glare, scratch resistant, and more.

A patient who spends a lot of time looking at screens could benefit from Nikon’s Smart Boost lenses. They are specifically designed to optimize visual comfort when using digital devices such as smartphones. The cutting-edge lens features smart booster technology that has integrated a magnifying effect into the optical design to make details appear bigger and reduce eye strain.

Photos: Nikon

Another example of innovative technology that could benefit anyone who spends a fair amount of time staring at screens is Nikon’s Pure Blue. It’s designed to protect against UV light and part of the harmful blue light with minimal yellow residual tint. That means enhanced optimal comfort without compromising on your own unique style.

Visit your clinic to find out more about options and coatings available for your lenses.

4- To get a pair of frames perfectly adapted to your needs

At Opto-Réseau, our teams are proud to provide you with a personalized shopping experience and a wide selection of prescription glasses and sunglasses for every style and need.

Even though every clinic has its own inventory, here are some popular brands available: Gucci, Nike, Esprit, Victoria Beckham, Bash, Eleven Paris, Moleskine, Chloé, and many more.

Photos: Bash, Esprit and Victoria Beckham

After you’ve picked your frames and enjoyed a try-on session (thanks to our online tool to create your inspirations list), your optician will take all the measurements necessary for the lab team to add your chosen lenses to your frames.

When your new glasses are ready, your optician will make the final adjustments necessary to ensure optimal comfort – your nose and ears will thank you!

Photos: Vision Line Barnabé - Rosemont

5- To monitor and maintain your ocular health

Obviously, your annual or biannual eye exam will help you keep track of your vision but it’s also a way to prevent or detect ocular diseases such as cataracts, macular degeneration, and even some cancers.

Moreover, dry eye might seem like a harmless condition, but it can have a significant impact on a patient’s health and well-being if left unchecked.

Just like the video above mentions (in french only), a patient with symptoms of dry eyes might find relief with I-Med pharma’socular hygiene products, drops, or ointments. In some cases, eyecare specialists may even recommend clinical treatments to help relieve and optimize a patient’s visual comfort.

I-MED Pharma's products

Finally, it’s important to keep in mind that some eye diseases may present very few or no symptoms at all. This is the case for glaucoma. Prevention is important and thanks to cutting-edge equipment and technology available in clinics, most cases of eye disease can quickly be detected (even before symptoms appear).

Book your appointment online

If you need to book an appointment for any of the reasons listed above, or for any other issue, you can easily do so online!