I can see clearly now

For the past 8 years, I’ve been CONVINCED that I was blind as a bat.

Ok, so maybe not that bad — but I flat out refused to believe that my eyesight was as perfect as the optometrists kept telling me. I even had a whole bunch of evidence to back me up.

For starters, I’ve always had serious migraines. While I didn’t think the migraines were caused by my eyesight, I had an inkling that it had something to do with it since I always noticed my fuzzy vision in the lead up to an attack.

On top of that, I was constantly flying past streets that I was meant to turn down because I couldn’t even begin to decipher what the street sign said, and I was teased on and off throughout school for having a “lazy” eye.

Every year like clockwork, I would make an appointment at my local optometrist, and walk in like I was going into battle, determined that this would be the time that I would finally convince the optometrist to take me seriously. This became even harder once glasses became more of a fashion statement than an actual tool for vision, since my record showed 20/20 vision and I resembled just another fashionista (lol jokes).

When we started working with National Pharmacies, everything changed. I discovered that there was an optometrist at my local Norwood store, so I booked my appointment quick-smart.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE.

I walked into the optometrist room, and instead of immediately having contraptions popped in front of my eyes while I was still trying to rush through my symptoms, the optometrist sat at her desk and looked at me closely, taking notes while I spoke. Once I’d finished, she moved to stand in front of me.

Within 10 seconds, just by looking at me, she had worked out that my eyes were at different heights, and were constantly straining to align themselves.

Within 20 seconds, she’d diagnosed me with my first condition — Duane Syndrome, which meant that my eyes were overreaching and over stretching when I looked to the left or right.

Within 30 seconds, she’d confirmed my suspicion that I also had Marcus Gunn phenomenon, which means that one eyelid is weirdly connected to my jaw, so sometimes one eye looks chilled and normal and the other looks totally surprised.

My poor little eyeballs were exhausted from trying to match up with each other, which explains the fatigue. After 8 years with no answers, she worked out 70% of my issues in 30 seconds.

From there, we went through the normal rigmarole of tests, throwing in some extras that matched what I’d been saying about street signs. And yep, you guessed it — I’m short sighted too.

So with all this new info under my belt, I grabbed my prescription and strutted out to the front of the building where Vicki was waiting to help me find the perfect pair. And being the total pro that she is, the first frame that she picked out was the one that I ultimately ended up buying (after not believing her and trying on every other pair in the building first). The staff joked and chatted away to me the entire time, and were so friendly and fun that I almost didn’t want to leave.

When I went back a couple of days later to pick up my glasses, the staff explained what the lenses were capable of. They obviously helped me see things in the distance, but also the left and right side had been customised to make my wonky eyes level out, and the protection on the lens makes sure my eyes avoid fatigue from the Duane Syndrome.

As for the Marcus Gunn Phenomenon? That’s just how I am, so if you ever see half of my face accidentally winking at you then just let it slide.

There are so many benefits, but the one that stands out the most is that I can now see leaves on trees — actual, real-life leaves.

I know the above sounds too good to be true, but trust me, it’s not. Finally being taken seriously and buying the perfect pair of glasses made this the best experience I could have asked for.

I’ll be back to visit you soon, National Pharmacies Optical!

Millie xx