Part 2: So, eye doctors do exams on babies? How does that even work? Why bother?

In this continuation from Part 1 of our two part blog about children's eye exams we talk more about how our eye work together, eye health and how we check these areas out on young children.

We often don’t think about it, but it’s pretty amazing that we don’t see double all the time. Our eyes have to line up perfectly all the time and work together well to allow us to see properly. It’s perhaps not surprising to hear that sometimes the system breaks down. It’s very obvious when someone has a big eye turn in or out and most parents would notice that. What is trickier is when the eye only turns sometimes, only turns when reading or there’s a muscle problem that doesn’t result in any eye turns at all! Many people have a muscle alignment problem that causes a lot of symptoms  but the eyes themselves don’t actually visibly turn in or out when both eyes are open. For a child trying to learn how to read this is a big deal! Kids may skip words, confuse letters, say letters are moving or have any other number of problems that people think is a learning problem but is actually an eye problem. A simple test to confirm the alignment of the eyes, standard on all eye exams, can help to prevent or solve a whole host of problems.

The thing about eyes is we only get two. It’s important to take care of them right from the start. We encourage our kids to take care of their first set of teeth even though they’re going to get more! We want a dentist to make sure they have healthy mouths. If something goes wrong with our eyes we don’t get to have a replacement! The majority of kids are, again, very healthy. Unfortunately though eye health problems in kids are either extremely serious and require early detection and treatment or are very minor like pink eye that just require drops. Most eye cancer, for example, strikes young kids under the age of five. It’s very rare but very serious.  There are many eye diseases that can affect children and by looking inside the eye and out optometrists can detect them early.

80% of learning is visual. I see so many kids that are being treated for attention problems or are getting special tutoring because they’re falling behind in school but their only problem is that they can’t see or their eyes aren’t working together. I don’t know about you, but I would probably act out too if I couldn’t see what was going on all day! Kids 18 and under are 100% covered by Alberta Health Care so you don’t have to pay a dime! You really don’t have an excuse not to bring your kids in and get them checked!

If you have more questions about this, or any other topic, always feel welcome to contact us on Twitter, Facebook, Google + or via our website.

For more information about children's eye exams check out the links below:

Eye Exams for Infants

Eye Exams for Preschoolers

Eye Exams for School Age Children

Part 1: So, eye doctors do exams on babies? How does that even work? Why bother?

People love their kids, that’s pretty much a given fact. Everyone wants to make sure they do the best they can to help their kids be everything they want to be! You take them in for their shots and check ups, make sure their teeth are healthy with the dentist and keep them busy with sports or music or any number of things! What many parents forget is to have their child’s eyes checked by an Optometrist.

I completely understand how this happens: People don’t think we can do eye exams on young kids; they think that little Timmy sees just fine thank you very much; they just don’t think it’s necessary!  The thing is the consequences of assuming everything is fine can be quite serious. It's much better to check and know everything is fine than to not check and hope for the best.

Optometrists are fully trained to do eye exams on just about anyone including small children. We actually start seeing kids as young as 6 months (and we really only wait that long because the eyes are still learning how to work together properly before then). I know you’re thinking “But, what on earth are you going to do with my 6 month old!” Don’t worry. We don’t require that our patients answer all those questions to get the information we need. Without any questions we can still assess the three major areas all optometrists check: how well the eyes focus, how well the eyes work together and how healthy the eyes are inside and out.

To check how well the eyes focus, especially on kids or people who are non-verbal, optometrists use a tool called a retinoscope. When we shine it back and forth at someone’s eyes we see a light reflex. Depending on how that reflex moves we can tell if someone is near-sighted, far-sighted or has astigmatism. We use lenses to ‘neutralize’ that reflex and that tells us  what the prescription is. We can do this on anyone of any age but it only gives us an estimate of the prescription so we still ask adults all those darn questions. Most kids don’t have a significant prescription, even if they may develop one later in life. Some children though have very extreme prescriptions. If the prescription isn’t corrected it can lead to amblyopia, a condition that prevents someone from having  clear vision even with glasses on.  

A lot of parents assume that if their child hasn’t complained they must not have a problem. This isn’t accurate for a couple reasons. If only one eye is affected your little guy can see just fine… it’s just only out of one eye. Since most kids don’t walk around with one eye closed they don’t usually notice the problem! The other issue is that kids don’t really know what they should be seeing, especially when they’re very young. If both eyes are affected he or she may not realize there’s a problem and assume that this is just how everyone sees. It’s not until they’re much older, 7 or 8, that they start to realize something isn’t quite right at which point it’s almost too late to treat.

Our next blog will continue to explore kids eye exams and talk a bit more about how our eyes work together, eye health and how we check those out on young kids.

If you have more questions about this, or any other topic, always feel welcome to contact us on Twitter, Facebook, Google + or via our website.

For more information about children's eye exams check out the links below:

Eye Exams for Infants

Eye Exams for Preschoolers

Eye Exams for School Age Children
 

UV and you: Why sunscreen isn’t all you need to protect yourself from the sun

Everyone knows how important it is to wear sunscreen, especially if you’re going to be spending the day outside. Sunscreen has become a part of many of our daily routines and is in most skin creams. Enjoying our short summers here in Calgary usually means spending as much time as possible outside while the weather is nice and we all know we need to wear sunscreen when we’re outside all day. Protecting your eyes from the sun though is just as important.

In my last blog I talked about cataracts and how UV light increases your risk of getting cataracts sooner. Several blogs ago I talked about macular degeneration and how one of the main preventable risk factors in the disease is exposure to UV light! If you’ve been reading my blogs you already know how important protecting your eyes from the sun is. UV light also increases your risk of certain eye and eyelid cancers as well as wrinkles, lumpy fleshy elevations on the white of your eye called pingueculae or even fleshy growths over the clear part of your eye called pterygia!

So I’ve convinced you how important sun protection is (I hope!) and you get it now. Even though sun protection is really important did you know that almost one third of people don’t wear sunglasses at all? When we talk about kids that number increases to almost 50%! While it is definitely important for people of all ages to wear sun protection it is extra important for kids. A combination of very large pupils, a more transparent lens inside of their eye that allows far more UV to penetrate inside and spending more time outside than most adults leads to 80% of lifetime UV exposure to the eye to happen before the age of 18!

UV light is sneaky and may be getting to your skin and your eyes in situations you might not expect such as underwater, on cloudy days or getting a double dose from light reflected off of snow or water!

All sunglasses are the same though, right? Wrong. Not all sunglasses block all UV light rays. All sunglasses sold in Canada have some degree of UV protection but not all block 99% of UVB rays which is what is recommended to best protect your eyes! If you have sunglasses and want to know how much UV they block feel free to bring them in to our office and we can measure how much UV is blocked at no cost to you.

So you’re saying to yourself alright, I get it, I need to wear good sunglasses: I have more news. Sunglasses are often not enough. Even nice big sunglasses still let some light in around the edges and especially some of the extremely cool aviator frames are flat (they don't 'wrap' around your face) and don’t offer much protection from the side. You have some options to help protect yourself further. A good hat with a wide brim helps prevent as much sunlight from getting around your sunglasses. Another option though is to wear contacts!

I know you’re wondering how on Earth contact lenses could help. It’s a fair question since most do not. All contact lenses offered by Acuvue though have some degree of UV protection. They have many that will block over 99% of UVB!  This is a great option for protecting your eyes from the sun and at Eye Spy Optometry we carry a wide variety of Acuvue products.

So which is best? Sunglasses? A hat? UV blocking contact lenses? The answer is all of them together. All these options will work together to give you comprehensive UV protection for your eyes. It’s important to remember as well that UV exposure doesn’t decrease  very much on cloudy days, under water, in the winter or at dawn or dusk. If you think you only need sun protection from 10:00am-4:00pm on sunny days in the summer you’re going to still get a heavy dose of UV the rest of the time! Think about all those times on the ski hill when you’ve ended up with a burn on the few exposed areas of skin you had.

Remember to protect your eyes, protect your skin and protect your health with as many UV blocking options as you can find. Your body will thank you for it!

If you have more questions about this or anything else always feel free to contact us on Twitter, Facebook, Google + or via our website. For more information feel free to follow the links below:

The Vision Care Institute

Doctors of Optometry Canada - Risks Associated with Sun Exposure

Doctors of Optometry Canada - Children and Risks Associated with Sun Exposure

Cataracts: They're not what you might think they are!

Often when I talk with my patients about cataracts they’re very unclear about what a cataract really is! Lots of people seem to think it’s something affecting the front of the eye and can be peeled off. Others think it can just be lasered off. Others think cataracts only happen in older people. None of these things are strictly true. Cataracts are one of the most common eye disorders in the world and so of course lots of myths have sprung up around them. Let’s figure out what cataracts are, who they affect and what you can do to prevent or treat them.

To fully understand cataracts you need to know a very little bit about the anatomy of the eye. The biggest thing to absorb here is that the pupil, the dark central part of your eye, is not an actual thing. The pupil is actually nothing! It’s just a hole. Behind that hole though is a very cool structure called the crystalline lens. The lens in your eye not only provides some of the focusing ability of your eye so you can see far away it also flexes and changes shape to allow you to see clearly when you look at things that are close to you as well. Overtime that lens can become cloudy. This prevents as much light from getting to your retina and also causes light to scatter. This leads to a combination of blurred vision and night glare. This is a cataract.

This is an example of an extremely dense cataract. They almost never get this bad in Canada as people usually seek treatment before their vision is this bad.

So now that we know what a cataract is, what causes it? There are actually a lot of different causes so today I’ll go over just a few. One of the most important causes of cataracts is exposure to UV light. Over the long term UV light causes the lens inside of our eye to cloud up. Your best protection against this is to wear sunglasses as much as possible when outside, even on cloudy days or as the sun is going up or down. Many people think there is a much lower risk of UV exposure when it’s cloudy or during sunrise or sunset but while the UV exposure is somewhat reduced UV is still getting through to your eyes and skin.

An impact or other types of injury (such as electric shock) can also cause cataracts in otherwise young and healthy people. The trauma to the eye and to the lens can cause the lens itself to rupture or crack. These cracks allow fluid to enter into the rigidly organized lens and allows a cataract to form. The most obvious way to prevent this is to protect yourself against injury! Wear safety glasses if you’re doing work where something might hit you in the eye and definitely while participating in sports like squash that carry a high risk of getting hit in the eye.

The last type of cataract I’ll go over today is congenital. Congenital is fancy word for ‘you’re born with it’. Roughly ⅓ of congenital cataracts are genetic, ⅓  are caused by a disorder or disease and ⅓ are idiopathic… another fancy word that means we don’t really know where they come from. Hospitals do typically check newborns to make sure they don’t have an obvious or significant congenital cataract that requires treatment . That said I have a lot of patients that have minor congenital cataracts that aren’t really an issue but they had no idea were there.

So cataracts are inside the eye and are the clouding of the lens behind our pupil. They can affect anyone from newborns to seniors depending on a lot of different factors. These facts probably fly in the face of what you thought cataracts really were! The good news is that cataracts can be easily removed with a relatively quick and easy surgery. That’s a topic for another blog though! For now, if you have any questions you can always contact us on Twitter, Facebook, Google + or via our website. For more information check out the following links.

Doctors of Optometry Canada - Cataracts

CNIB - Cataracts

Macular Degeneration: an introduction

Age Related Macular Degeneration (ARMD) is the most common cause of blindness in Canada, affecting more than one million Canadians. That is more people than breast cancer, prostate cancer, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s combined! As you may have guessed from the name, it primarily affects people over the age of 50. In its earliest stages ARMD has no symptoms and can only be detected during a regular eye examination. In the later stages of ARMD, central vision is distorted or completely lost, leaving a central blindspot.

This is what things can look like in advanced ARMD.

So what if you’re under 50? What then? Doesn’t that mean that you have nothing to worry about? Well, sort of. ARMD doesn’t typically strike people when they’re young in the same way that skin cancer doesn’t typically affect younger people. That means that someone who is 30 is almost definitely not going to show any signs of ARMD. However, just like you can wear sunscreen to decrease your risk of skin cancer there are things that you can do to decrease your risk of getting ARMD. And just like sun protection, the younger you protect your eyes, the lower your risk.

Alright, so maybe now I’ve convinced you that prevention and detection are important. What can you do? Lifestyle plays a huge role in ARMD. People who smoke have a greatly increased risk of developing ARMD. Poor eating habits and a lack of cardiovascular activity also increase your risk. Exposure to UV light is also harmful and increases your risk. There also factors that you cannot change such as age, gender, family history and ethnicity that increase your risk. As you age your risk increases, women are more commonly affected than men, people with lighter coloured eyes or skin colours have a greater risk and if someone in your family has ARMD you have a higher risk (good ol’ genetics). All that said, if you wear sunglasses, avoid smoking or second hand smoke and live a healthy lifestyle you can greatly decrease your risk of developing ARMD. A healthy diet is often a challenge even for the most health conscious of people and there are specific eye vitamins on the market both for people with risk factors for ARMD and for people who currently have ARMD. Speak with your optometrist about which of those vitamins is right for you.

Since there are no symptoms even if you’re doing everything right it’s very important to see your optometrist regularly. Even though ARMD cannot be cured, early intervention and detection can help slow down how rapidly the disease progresses and keep your vision from worsening. Technology such as an OCT scan, which is offered at our clinic, can help to detect ARMD at its earliest stages.If you have any questions feel free to call or email us. You can also reach us on Twitter, Facebook, Google + or via our website. For more information feel free to explore these other sites.

CNIB - Macular Degeneration

Doctors of Optometry Canada - Macular Degeneration

New & Different

We are very excited and proud to announce the opening of Eye Spy Optometry. What makes our clinic different, and why might it be worth your time to check out?

Eye Spy Optometry is committed to education. Our team is committed to making sure that you understand your eyes. Not sure what astigmatism is? You didn't know that retinas can detach? Curious about contact lenses? We want to make sure that when you leave your exam, you understand what's going on with your eyes and why, and that all of your questions have been answered. Sometimes medical professionals just take for granted that their patients understand a lot of what we’re talking about. Eye Spy Optometry is a place where you can feel comfortable asking questions and you will be answered with the respect that any inquiring mind deserves.

At Eye Spy Optometry we recognize that we are not just a business existing in some independent void. We are a part of a community. In this case we are a part of one of the most exciting and dynamic communities in Calgary! I have lived in Cliff Bungalow for the past 2 years and it’s obvious how strong and supportive this community is. Eye Spy Optometry will be a part of that. We plan to showcase the art and jewelry of local artists and help support them as they launch their careers. As Eye Spy Optometry grows we hope to find other ways to be more closely involved with this amazing community and support the people living here.

We also promise quality at Eye Spy Optometry. We’re never going to sell you something we wouldn't be willing to wear ourselves. All of our frames regardless, of their price, will be of good quality. We recognize that most of our patients will be wearing their glasses every day. Glasses are one of the first things people see when they look at you, so we want to make sure if you get glasses from us they make you look your very best. All of our lenses will be from major lens companies like Hoya, Nikon and Zeiss. We believe that all patients deserve to have the best vision possible and that this is achieved by using the best lenses on the market.

We're really looking forward to serving this community. You’re experience with us will be a good one, complete with free Wi-Fi, cookies and coffee! Please stop by any time (hours are here) or give us a call at 403 474 6744. You can also find us on Twitter, Facebook,  Google + and Instagram.

See you soon!

Dr. Mark Ross, OD
Optometrist and Founder, Eye Spy Optometry

Measles and the eye

Recently the measles has been making the news a lot. It seems that hardly a day goes by without another report alerting us to an outbreak somewhere in Canada and it seems that Alberta has more than its fair share. While I was in school we touched only briefly on the measles since it was considered essentially eliminated in Canada. It can and does affect the eyes and since this resurgence I have refreshed myself on the dangers of the measles and what can happen to your vision.

All that said, I have seen measles in they eye before and it really took me by surprise.

While I worked in Malawi, Africa, a boy came in with a nasty looking pink eye and he was covered in spots. The doctor we were working with looked at us and said "What does this boy have." My colleague and I were stumped. "Measles of course!" he proclaimed as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. We had never seen measles before and were barely taught about it. It was considered an almost dead disease. As we have seen, that is not exactly the case.

A very, very close look at the measles virus.

The boy we treated in Africa recovered wonderfully and his eye cleared up. He was lucky. There are a lot of potential complications of measles. The most common is pink eye. Your eye could be red, gooey, and sore. It is also possible though to have retinal problems. The only symptom you might notice from those retinal issues would be that you were no longer seeing well or no longer seeing at all! If you have been diagnosed with measles or think you may have gotten the measles make sure you include an eye health check as you heal. This type of health exam is fully covered by Alberta Health Care and may just save your vision.

I would strongly encourage anyone who has not gotten the measles vaccine to consider having it done. I know some people may have a lot of questions or fears about vaccines and I'm happy to discuss any of those concerns with you either in office or through social media. The measles vaccine, while not 100% effective, will drastically reduce your risk of contracting the measles and suffering the potentially blinding eye complications.

If you have any questions about this or anything else feel free to contact us on Twitter, Facebook, Google +, via our website or phone us at (403) 474-6744.

Better Access to Eyecare

Yesterday, exciting changes in the rules regulating what optometrists are allowed to do were announced. These changes affect all Albertans. I’m excited to share what these changes are and how they affect you!

There are several changes. One is that optometrists will now be able to prescribe certain oral medications. For the past many years optometrists have been able to treat eye disease only with eye drops. There are, however, certain conditions that don't respond well to only eye drops and pills are needed. Optometrists are trained in their schooling on all forms of medications, both pills and drops. Being able to get this prescription from your optometrist will save you another trip to the doctor.

The second change is that optometrists are now free to diagnose and treat glaucoma. We have really been doing that for years but the initial treatment plan was always to be arranged by an ophthalmologist. Optometrists receive extensive training in both the diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma given how common it is in the population! We are now able to make full use of our education and officially diagnose and treat our glaucoma patients.

We have also been given the ability to order lab work. There are many, many disease that show up in the eyes but actually affect our whole body (diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer, multiple types of arthritis and more). In the past, if we saw a concerning finding and thought there could be an underlying problem we could not order test directly. This resulted in patients having to run around and see multiple doctors just to get blood work done! Optometrists ordering lab work streamlines the process, and also saves you another doctor’s visit.

Finally, we are now able to order ultrasounds when and where needed to diagnose certain conditions. This will result in faster diagnoses of potentially severe health issues such as certain eye cancers.

These changes will not take effect immediately. While optometrists are fully trained in all of these areas, many of us haven't had an opportunity to use our knowledge for many years. To ensure the absolute protection of the public and ensure that all patients receive only the best care any optometrists not recently graduated from school will take a recertification course. This will refresh us on what we have been previously taught.

The overall benefits of these changes are many: it decreases cost and strain on our health care system; it increases efficiency for everyone and makes sure that you, as the patient, aren't having your time wasted going from doctor to doctor. It also lets optometrists use more of the training that they received in school.

And the negatives? None. You will still receive the same high level and quality of care, from a board certified medical professional, that you would have received before. Your health continues to be our number one priority.

If you have questions or would like to discuss any of this in more detail, I’d be happy to visit with you at the office, or discuss on Twitter, Google + or Facebook!

For more information, click here.

Introduction to Glaucoma

You may have heard of glaucoma, or maybe not.  However, you should know that while this disease affects over 250,000 people in Canada - only half of them know it! This is important because glaucoma is the second most common cause of vision loss in people over the age of 65. Glaucoma has no symptoms and the only way that glaucoma can be detected is through regular eye exams.

So I hear what you’re thinking. I’m not 65. Why do I care? Well, just because glaucoma is the second most common cause of blindness in people over 65 doesn’t mean it only strikes people in that age range! One in two hundred people under the age of 50 are also affected.

Glaucoma doesn’t have symptoms, at least not until the disease is end stage. So what does it do? Glaucoma causes a slow, symptomless, painless loss of your peripheral vision. Peripheral vision, or the sight you have all around what you’re looking at directly, helps you know your surroundings. It helps you detect the cars around you when you drive, it helps prevent you from hitting your head on objects above you. Basically it helps you maneuver in your world.

This is what tunnel vision looks like. Since the vision changes happen slowly most people with glaucoma have no idea they're losing vision.

So where does glaucoma come from? What causes it? Those are very complicated questions for later blogs! The short answer is we really don’t understand exactly where glaucoma comes from. We know that if someone in your family had glaucoma your risk goes up. Certain groups of people, those with certain types of vision prescriptions, age and gender all can play a role. One of the problems with really nailing down a definition is that there are many types of Glaucoma. There really isn’t any one thing in common across all the different types of glaucoma except that there is damage to the optic nerve causing loss of your peripheral vision.

The best prevention is seeing your Optometrist for regular eye exams.  Get checked, and ask them about your risk for glaucoma.  

If you have any questions about this or anything else feel free to contact us on Twitter, Facebook, Google +, via our website or phone us at (403) 474-6744. To learn more about glaucoma check out the links below.

The CNIB (Canadian National Institute for the Blind) - Glaucoma

The Canadian Association of Optometrists - Glaucoma

The Alberta Association of Optometrists -Glaucoma

The American Optometric Association - Glaucoma

Why are my lids twitching?

We all know that the world we live in is high energy and high stress. We’ve all gotten used to the hectic pace but that doesn’t mean it’s easy! Sometimes our lifestyles can have unintended consequences such as one of the most irritating (but least serious) eye issues.

Twitch, twitch, twitch....

Lid twitches or as they’re known in heavy medical textbooks, blepharospasms, are nature's way of telling you to take a break. They are almost always caused by stress or lack of sleep but can be caused by nutritional imbalances, alcohol or caffeine. For most of us when lid twitches happen they drive us crazy and we just want them to stop. The frustration we experience from a lid twitch usually makes the twitch worse! What I typically recommend to my patients experiencing a twitch is to get some rest, try and eliminate stress, grab a banana, some yogurt and lay off the coffee for a few days. Why a banana and yogurt? Bananas are a great source of potassium which is key for the proper functioning of our nerves. We believe that not having enough potassium can cause the nerves to react badly leading to a twitch. Yogurt is packed with calcium which is important for our muscles to work properly. Again the thought here is that if you don’t have enough calcium things will get twitchy. So that part is pretty easy. When I tell patients to stop being stressed and get some more sleep they usually give me a look seems to say “I have six projects with deadlines next week, four kids under the age of six and my car just broke down.” Fair enough. Here’s my trick to help. Get a cloth and run some nice cool water over it. If you can lie down that’s best, but if not take a seat in a dark or dimly lit room (hide in the bathroom if you have to), hold the cool cloth up over your eyes and take deep breaths. This sounds a bit hokey and dismissive but there is a scientific rationale behind this. Cold slows down, even if only slightly, the nerve transmissions as well as slowing the muscle contractions. This can slowly reduce how often and how strongly you feel the lid twitching. Deep breaths, those deep belly ones, use a muscle called the diaphragm. The diaphragm is connected to our ‘rest and digest’ nervous system and not at all to our ‘fight or flight’ nervous system. That means that using your diaphragm forces your body to slow down and relax. It’s the same reason people recommend deep breathing when angry or upset. This also can help immensely to slow or stop entirely that lid twitch.

So next time your lid starts to twitch just remember that it doesn’t help to get angry and frustrated. Go take a break and relax. You deserve it!

If you have any questions about this or anything else feel free to contact us on Twitter, Facebook, Google +, via our website or phone us at (403) 474-6744. You can also learn more at the link below.

All About Vision - Lid Twitching

Psychedelic, surreal, multi-coloured shapes in my vision!

Alberta is a land of ups and downs when it comes to weather (you may have noticed this recently with our ‘spring’ weather). +20C in December? -10C in July? -40C on Tuesday and +20C on Wednesday? These are just normal weather patterns here and as anyone who gets migraines can tell you it’s not fun. The wild temperature swings wreak havoc on our systems and can cause some funny things to happen.

You’re busy doing your thing when suddenly your vision goes a little funny. You may notice shapes or colours or motion in your vision, not right in the middle but just off to the side. The effect may get larger or smaller. It may move faster or slower or not at all. Sections of your vision may simply vanish and go dark or you may still be able to ‘see’ but things you know should be there just aren’t visible to you anymore (like whatever is supposed to be there pulled a chameleon on you and has become invisible). You may have never had this happen but if these symptoms sound familiar you’re not alone. If you had this happen and didn’t panic at least a little I’m impressed. I’m an optometrist and when this happened to me even though I fully recognized my symptoms and knew what was happening my heart rate bumped up a few notches. This event is known as an ocular migraine.

I know what you're thinking... what the heck did I eat? No, you aren't having a psychedelic trip, this is an example of an ocular migraine. Everyone experiences them differently though so if yours doesn't look exactly like this don't panic.

The term ocular migraine implies that you should get a headache afterwards. That’s not always the case. Some people do have migraine headaches after seeing these images in their vision but not everyone. You may have heard of people getting an aura that tells them they’re about to get a migraine. That’s essentially what this is. Auras or 'ocular migraines' usually last about 20 minutes and are followed by a return to normal vision and depending on the person a headache, a migraine, or absolutely no pain.

So, what the heck is going on? It’s not certain but what is believed to happen is that for some reason the blood vessels in the visual cortex (the very back of your brain… about as far from your eyes as you can get and still be in your head) shrink way down and not as much blood is getting through as before. This lack of blood flow means your brain can’t function the way it would like and you start to experience really bizarre things in your vision. It takes your brain, usually, about 20 minutes to figure out this isn’t normal at which point the blood vessels do one of two things. They either return to their normal size, blood flow returns to normal levels and you stop feeling like you ate a brownie you shouldn’t have OR the blood vessels expand to their maximum size stretching themselves to be as big as they can. It’s that extreme stretch that causes the horrible pain people experience with migraines. In some cases the vision changes can last longer than 20 minutes. This usually occurs if someone completely panics causing an adrenaline surge. The resulting stress levels can cause the visual changes to linger for about an hour.

Here’s the real kicker. There’s not much you can do about this. We think that all those blood vessel antics are caused by the same things that cause migraines… so, almost anything (certain smells or foods, weather patterns, stress, lack of sleep. The list goes on and on). Migraine medication can be helpful if a person is getting ocular migraines all the time and it’s seriously interfering with their life but otherwise we just recommend that a person sit back and enjoy the show for 20 minutes.  If you’re driving it is strongly recommended to pull over and wait it out. These vision changes are temporary and do not cause any damage to your eyes or your brain.

So rest assured that if you have been properly diagnosed with an ocular migraine your eyes are safe and sound. I would love to leave it at that but there is one more thing. Not all flashes in your eyes are harmless. Retinal holes, tears and detachments can cause symptoms including flashing lights in your vision, floaters and a curtain moving in and out of your vision. These flashes do not go away in 20 minutes and generally are noticed at the very edge of your vision. Retinal detachments are extremely serious and cause permanent loss of vision. If you experience flashing lights in your vision of any kind it is best to have it properly checked by an optometrist.  These visits are considered medically necessary and are fully covered by Alberta Health Care. I would advise against taking a risk. If you see flashing let an optometrist have a look at your retina to confirm everything is normal.

For more information feel free to contact us on Twitter, Facebook, Google +, via our website, phone us at (403) 474-6744 or come in anytime. You can also read more at the links below.

All About Vision - Ocular Migraine

More questions? Book now and speak with one of our doctors!

I spy YOU as our next employee.

Eye Spy Optometry is opening up in the trendy area of 17th Avenue and looking for a part time Optician. Eye Spy’s mission is to provide patients with excellent customer service in a comfortable environment where patients can ask questions, get solid advice and leave with great eyewear.

We are looking for an upbeat, energetic Optician who is genuinely excited to meet patients, looking to gain experience in a small environment and support the community. You will need to be good at quickly assessing the needs of clients and determining the best next step for them. Eye Spy is a small, highly motivated team and requires an individual who can work independently, take on multiple duties and do it with a smile. And if you can juggle flaming knives while adjust frames, you’ll get serious praise from the boss!

The Role:

          Greeting Patients

  • Assist with frame selection

  • Enter lab orders

  • Help with insurance forms and receipts

  • Verify prescriptions

  • Monitor job status from optical labs and ensure accuracy and quality

  • Schedule appointments

  • Dispense, adjust and repair eyewear

    Behind the Scenes
     

  • Maintain and order supplies as required

  • Liaise and coordinate with frame suppliers and develop an inventory management system

  • Keep an eye on pricing, products and trends

    Being Part of the Team
     

  • Bringing ideas, improvements and issues to the table

  • Willing to implement ideas

  • Participate in development training and initiatives, including staff meetings, continuing education and conferences

Requirements:

  • 1-2 years of previous experience as an optician

  • Experience in a small office environment is an asset

  • Community involvement or interest is a definite plus

  • Work well under pressure

  • Must be organized and able to prioritize

  • Must have willingness to learn and show initiative

The 411:

Since this is a brand new office, Eye Spy will be open:

Monday and Wednesday: 12pm – 8pm

Thursday: 7am – 3pm

Saturday: 10am – 4pm

More hours will be added as the practice grows and these hours are subject the change, based on patient demand.

The Next Step:

If this is exactly what you’re looking for, we’re willing to pinch you, but if you don’t want to wake up from this dream, please apply at:  eyespyoptometry@gmail.com
 

Eye Spy Optometry – a new approach to eyes in Calgary.

Eye Spy Optometry can help with all your eye and vision health needs and questions, fashionable frames and accessories.

What do you need to know about us?

· We answer your questions
If you come in for an appointment, you won’t leave without having all your questions answered. We’ll take the time needed to make sure you know what’s happening; after all, they’re your eyes!

· New… well, everything!
Eye Spy is a new office. We’re building a space, from scratch, that is comfortable and welcoming, equipped with the very best technology to care for your eyes and full of brand new frames for you to try.

· Lots of ways to engage
Have a quick question? Find us on Twitter or Facebook.
No time to book an appointment? Find our full schedule on our website and book yourself in (available soon).
See the doctor, only to later remember the question you didn’t ask? Call or email.
However you want to talk, we’re prepared to respond. Your eyes are that important to us.

· Fashionable and unique frames
We’re currently meeting with frame companies from all over the world to bring you the best in quality, diverse styles and colours and newest fashions. All shapes, patterns and colours will be available. Don’t see what you want? Our Opticians will help you find it online, and order it in. Want a second (or third, or fourth) opinion? Take a few frames home to try out and show your friends.

We’re thrilled to be opening up in Calgary this spring, and can’t wait to see you then.

Until then, find us on Twitter, Facebook, Google +, via our website, phone us at (403) 474-6744 or email eyespyoptometry@gmail.com to connect about your eyes and ways we can serve you better. And watch this spot for eye care, vision health information, frequently asked questions & more.