What to do when your kids won’t wear glasses

Kids are not like us adults. They don’t see things as right or wrong but more like cool or uncool.

They listen to their peers more than their parents. And if they are being bullied in school for their glasses, it is almost impossible to make them wear specs again. Apart from that, they might be facing some discomfort that they are not able to express.

If you are struggling to get your kid to wear glasses, you are not alone. Take it as one of those few special challenges you face as a parent.

But you don’t have to be too hard on yourself or your child. Knowing a few tips and tricks will make the transition easy for both of you.

• It’s all about how you approach it

Not every kid is the same when it comes to change. You may find it surprising but some children get excited to pick out the frames. But for some, it could be a hard blow. They would look different than their friends and other kids might even call them funny names (children can be a little mean sometimes).

You know your child’s temperament the best. But if possible, let the eye doctor talk to your child. They must have done it a few times before so they know how to make it seem cool.

• Go slow to go fast

Having to wear glasses could be a huge change for adults, then why should it be any different for your child?

Do not rush your kid to the concept. Introduce ‘Glasses Time’ - short, designated spans of time in which your kid needs to wear his/her glasses. At first, it could be the time period they usually dedicate to watching TV. From there, scale up the time until your kid becomes habitual of wearing specs full time.

Even when your child has good visual acuity, encourage them to use blue light glasses when indulging in screen time. It will prevent blue light from affecting their visual development.

• Pick out a cool frame

Your kid is already reluctant to change. So, handing them a dull frame won’t make a great case. Take them to frame shopping and let them choose their glasses. They will feel more delighted to wear something that they chose. And who knows, maybe your kid has a better taste in glasses than you (just saying).

Go Beneath the Surface: Why Won’t Your Kid Wear Glasses?

It is easy to blame the resistance to glasses on the rebellious nature of children. But, their rejection of new specs could be telling you something.

• The frame doesn’t fit properly

Picking out a frame with your child is easy. But getting your child to actually wear them is where the struggle begins.

Kids are not great at putting up with hassles. If the glasses don’t fit properly and slip down their nose, they won’t ever care to wear them. If the frame is too loose, your child might spend most of his/her day fixing their glasses. And if the frame is too tight, it would hurt their ears and might lead to headaches.

• They are being bullied at school

Bullying or teasing is another reason why your kid won’t look at those glasses again. While it’s true that wearing glasses has become a cool thing these days, kids don’t see it that way. They still make fun of children who look different.

Consider talking to your kid’s teacher about this problem. They will watch out for this kind of negative behaviour and encourage your child to wear glasses at school.

• Glasses don’t correct their functional vision

Visual acuity refers to how well your eyes can see from a distance of 20 feet. Prescription glasses only correct problems related to your visual acuity.

Lazy eye in kids is a common problem among children. In this condition, one eye’s connection to the brain is slightly off and thus does not develop as much as the other eye.

Thus, if your kid has a refractive error, using a similar prescription for both eyes won’t help the weaker eye to give clear vision. You need an optometrist who evaluates the functional vision of your child and provides a customized solution to get the best results.

How to Choose an Optometrist?

Finding the best prescription for your kid starts with having the right eye tests. An eye test that evaluates eye movements and focus will rule out the possible errors in kids’ functional vision.

A good optician will evaluate the impact of the prescription on your child’s functional vision. Our experienced optical staff has years of experience in correcting vision-related issues.

Our opticians dispense prescriptions that not only fix your kid’s visual acuity but address any form of imbalance in their functional vision. Schedule a free eye test with us and take care of your little one’s eye health.

If you are having a hard time convincing your kid to wear specs, keep putting in your efforts. But don’t take it too casually though as problems with vision could hamper the ocular development in your child.

Everybody could use a little help in parenting. So don’t hesitate to consult an eye doctor or counsellor about this problem.