If there’s one thing I don’t take for granted, it’s my vision.
Seriously now, is there anyone out there who wants to lose their sight? I don’t think so. Especially with 50 Shades of Grey being made into a movie… potentially starring Ian Somerhalder. I NEED to see that, please!
(Insert Eye Candy Here)
For me, I’ve got a little something called glaucoma working against me. Having a very strong family history of the disease, I was diagnosed with high intraocular pressure (IOP) at just 14 years old. Hence, I’ve had to undergo visual field tests once a year for the past twenty years. My last test results suggested that I had a *small* blindspot on my upper left side, but thankfully, no therapy has been indicated just yet. Kind of sucks that I have to dance around a condition that normally affects seniors, but I’m eternally grateful for preventative medicine and technology.
Did you know that many types of vision loss are preventable? It’s true – and with May being Vision Health Month, the CNIB is challenging Canadians to take action to maintain their vision health so that we can eliminate avoidable sight loss in Canada.
For example, were you out with kids this past long weekend? Bet you enjoyed the sunny, warm weather, right? But riddle me this: How many parents made sure that their child’s eyes were protected from the sun? Sure, we all don sunglasses – mostly as a fashion statement, on my part – but how many children are outfitted with eye protection?
Most people don’t realize that UV rays from the sun can damage their eyes and lead to permanent vision loss – and fewer still know their children’s eyes are at risk too. Children in particular need protection, as their eye tissues are more susceptible to sun damage, and they tend to be outdoors more often.
The CNIB recommends choosing sunglasses with at least 99 per cent protection from both UVA and UVB rays, and wear them year-round, even in cloudy weather, because UV rays are present at all times.
(But probably not at night. #CoreyHart Forever)
Get the kiddos involved! Take part in Shades of Fun– a month-long campaign designed to raise awareness about UV damage and raise funds in support of vital CNIB services for Canadians who are blind or partially sighted. You can also join the CNIB in celebrating on May 24, the official day for Canadians from coast to coast to don their best sunglasses, protect their eyes from UV rays and show the whole country their shades of fun!
And if you’re on Facebook, do pop on over to the CNIB’s fan page to “Show Your Shades!“ – Translation: have super funky sunglasses superimposed on your profile picture :)
Great post! Vision is something we all take for granted, my 4 year old is blind in her left eye, so we see a doctor regularly, and do everything possible to protect her good eye- but honestly, if we didn’t have the problems we did- she may not have been to see an eye doctor STILL! :s
Great point – we don’t often think about taking little ones for eye checkups unless there is a problem. Keep that right eye nice and strong!
oh great. now i have to wipe up the drool off my keyboard…but great post, i read somewhere before that parents shouldn’t allow their kids to wear sunglasses, but i’m glad this clears up the argument.
Ha ha ha, yup, eye candy galore. You know, I was at LF Optical a few years ago and they told me the same thing – that kids shouldn’t wear sunglasses (can’t remember the exact reason why). But I guess since this is coming straight from CNIB, you’re right, it clears up any confusion.
I agree! Ian is definitely a good reason to keep your eyesight! Va va voom!
Well said, Lena,
I have terrible eyes and it sucks – so I have had my girls’ eyes tested a few times now.
So important!!
And Ian – ya, that’s worth keeping your eyesight!
Heck ya! And great to see you stay on top of your DDs’ eye health.
My hubby also has glaucoma. He has to take 3 types of drops twice a day. It sucks that people so young have these issues. On the bright side he has long lashes from the drops.
Since I don’t have glaucoma yet, I’m saved from the drops – but I always wondered why women would use products like Latisse (originally a glaucoma drug!) as a beauty tool.
I’m glad there’s good medicine to help keep your glaucoma at bay. I have pterygia in my eyes, harmless excess tissue that will eventually grow over my pupil unless they slice them out (which eventually they will have to do, but so far, I have eye drops that are helping, so I hear you on the good meds thing). I have encouraged my daughter to wear sunglasses since she was old enough to wear them. If she won’t wear sunglasses (as you know, three year olds have their own ideas), I try to get her to wear a hat. My eye doctor said just playing outside as a kid was enough to cause my condition, even though I wear sunglasses all the time now (it’s normally found in older people and those who have outdoor careers or hobbies, like farmers or surfers). The idea of losing my sight is really scary, so I’m doing my best to protect my eyes and my daughter’s.
Thanks so much for sharing your experience. I have pinguecula in both eyes, so while not the same condition as a pterygia, the same family – and likely due to all my sun exposure as a child as well.