The Importance of the RIGHT Eye Doctor

I feel like this is something that isn't emphasized enough when discussing eye exams. Regular eye checks are important. More so for some of us than for others, of course. It's important, however, not just to get your eyes checked, but to be sure that you have a right doctor checking you. There are far too many out there who would qualify more as prescription pushers than somebody who is well qualified for dealing with you or your problems. Like any relationship, sometimes it's best to break it off if you feel like something isn't quite right.

When I was in my teens I saw the same guy for years. Something seemed off, but I was under the influence of the idea that the doctor knows best. Don't question him, he knows what he's doing. When getting the exams done, covering my right eye caused my visual field to launch up and to the left. I was sure that couldn't be normal, described what was happening, explained why I couldn't see the words/images that were being displayed (with the visual field shifting, the images were being thrown out of view). By the time I hit 20-to-21 I decided that enough was enough... several years of the same, and my confidence was greater as an adult than when I was 15. Changed doctors.

Five minutes in and I ran into the same problem: here's a picture. Cover your right eye. I can't see the picture. When I cover this eye the visual goes up and to the left. "That doesn't surprise me. Not with your turned eye." he said. "What turned eye?" He explained that my left eye was slightly turned. Not so much that you could see it without specifically widening the eye under strong light, but it was a problem that couldn't be easily fixed. If the previous guy had said something, maybe then surgery could have taken care of it; but it had been so long that any surgery could lead to me seeing double. Much worse than the depth perception issues that I was having.

I ran into a similar situation when I moved to the US. Hard time finding an eye doctor that could do anything more than prescribe new lenses. I finally found a new guy this past week who identified all of my issues almost immediately, explained the causes, the lack of solutions, even had visual aids to help me understand what was happening. The short version: no depth perception at all, my my brain won't use my left eye at all unless my right eye is closed. I'm not blind in my left eye, my brain has just decided that it's not worth using and doesn't process it when I have my eyes open. Great guy, friendly, no BS.

So, here's the lesson from 40 year-old-Hans: if you're questioning whether something is right, there may be a good reason. Find the right doctor for you... it's not enough to just be able to say you went to an appointment if they aren't going to listen to you, or cannot understand what you're going through.

This can apply to anything, really. Someone having a degree/license/business/or even years of experience does not in any way make them an expert or even competent. My dad was seeing a local doctor for months to treat his "flu" and it turned out the guy misdiagnosed him and prescribed the wrong antibiotics. For months. If he hadn't finally decided to switch doctors and gotten the proper treatment, he would've died. The first doctor eventually sent my dad a thank you card when he retired a few months later.

Very true about it being applicable to almost anything. I've only specified optometry, here, because it's my most recent experience.

I've witnessed the same kinds of experiences (and much worse) many times with other types of doctors. The quality of individual doctors can vary a lot, regardless of the outward appearance of their qualifications. Also, a doctor who is good at treating some types of cases and patients may be poor at treating others, so a good doctor for one patient may be a terrible doctor for another.

Seek multiple opinions whenever possible. Strive to understand and be proactively involved in your own care. Don't let yourself be treated like a slab of meat on a processing plant's conveyor belt, despite large parts of the medical industry preferring that of patients.

In general, beware of blindly trusting authority figures against your own gut instincts.

Trust but verify!! Second opinions are important in cases where you have a recurring issue.

Im someone who is kind of in awe of doctors, it takes so much work and is such a vital job. But there are always plenty of bad eggs, its something i'm sure i'll get over as i age and need lots of doctors who are of varying quality...

After I posted this I knew that I should have used another word than 'right'; but I had committed to the word and I have now paid the price. :-)

Definitely agree. Also maybe don't go to the eye doctor at the mall? I went in there once when I was a kid. Far away things like words on chalkboards were a little blurry to read. Some how I ended up with reading glasses instead.

I agree too. As I kid I was Dyslexic and because of that I got slightly above average pediatric care. Every few years they would test my eyes, my ears, my balance and reflexes because I was learning disabled. The fact was I was just Dyslexic and other than that cognitively spatially, audiorialy fine....bu they had to check. Really in depth care takes longer and cost more out of pocket for my parents, but I got good care.

From birth to age five my father's eyes were slightly crossed. He had then fixed as kid, which was in teh mid-1940s. I don't even want to know what was considered "state-of-the-art" eye surgery in 1945, but it was done and it fixed the crossed eyes. My father lived on Martha's Vineyard and there si a story of him at age four walking down to the dock with his father. He was wearing red rubber boots and when my grandfather turned away my dad walked off the edge of teh docks (a depth perception issues?) When he looked over the side all my grandfather could see was two red rubber boots bobbing on the surface. So my grandfather had to jump in and scoop him out. My dad got his eyes uncrossed a few months later.

Eye doctors and dentists are only worthwhile if they are nay good. A bad dentist or eye doctor can do a lot of damage, but a good one can save you a lot of "retroactive" repair.

Why do you say eye doctor in America? For basic eyecare and glasses in the UK we see opticians, though I also go to an actual eye hospital for serious care because I have diabetes.

"Optometrist" is the actual name of eye doctors in the US, but a lot of people just say eye doctor for short.

@spaceinsomniac: thank you!