Most vision benefits don’t roll over. Learn when your plan resets, why exam and eyewear coverage are separate, and what to ask before your benefits expire. […]
Do Your Vision Benefits Expire? How to Use Them Before Your Plan Resets
Halloween Contact Lenses: What Costume Lenses Really Do to Your Eyes
Halloween contact lenses can be safe, but only when they’re licensed, properly fitted, and worn the right way. The cat eyes, the solid white zombie stare, the glowing red vampire look: all of it is doable without putting your eyes at risk. The problem is the pair grabbed from a mall kiosk or a random […]
Thyroid Eye Disease: When Thyroid Problems Show Up in Your Eyes
Quick Facts: Thyroid Eye Disease Thyroid eye disease is most commonly linked to Graves’ disease and hyperthyroidism, though it can occur with hypothyroidism as well. Eye symptoms can appear before, during, or after a thyroid diagnosis is made. Common signs include eye bulging, eyelid retraction, gritty dry eye, and double vision. Women are affected more […]
Why Does My Prescription Keep Increasing Every Time I Have an Exam?
Quick Facts The eyeball keeps growing through childhood and the teen years, which is the main reason kids’ prescriptions change so often during that stretch. Prescriptions for most people level off in the early to mid-20s once eye growth is complete. Presbyopia, the age-related loss of close-up focusing power, typically starts showing up somewhere between […]
Why Your Eyes Get Dilated at an Exam (and How Long It Lasts)
Quick Facts: Why Your Eyes Get Dilated at an Exam Dilation drops widen the pupil so the optometrist can view the retina, optic nerve, and blood vessels Drops take about 20 to 30 minutes to reach full effect Blur and light sensitivity typically last 4 to 6 hours, and can run from about 3 up […]
Something in Your Eye or a Scratched Cornea: What to Do Right Now
Quick Facts: Something in Your Eye or a Scratched Cornea A corneal abrasion is a scratch on the clear surface covering the front of the eye Common causes include fingernails, eyelashes, contact lenses, dust, sand, and tree branches Most minor scratches heal within 1 to 3 days with proper care Rubbing the eye is the […]
Eye Floaters and Flashes: Harmless or an Emergency?
You’re going about your day when a spray of tiny specks drifts across your vision, or a flicker of light sparks at the edge of your eye like a camera flash going off. It’s unsettling, and your first thought is probably that something’s gone wrong. Here’s the honest version, and the part most people are […]
Sudden Blurry Vision: Causes and When It’s an Emergency
One second the world’s in focus, the next it’s gone soft and fuzzy, like someone smeared a thin film of grease over everything. Sudden blurry vision is unsettling, and the first thing racing through your head is usually whether you need to worry. Here’s the honest answer: most of the time, sudden blur comes from […]
Trouble Seeing at Night While Driving: Causes and Solutions
You used to hop in the car after dark without a second thought. Now the drive home feels like work. Oncoming headlights flare into a blinding starburst, streetlights wear glowing halos, and the road ahead looks dim and washed out, like someone turned down the contrast on the whole world. Maybe you’ve caught yourself gripping […]
Red Spot on Your Eye? What a Subconjunctival Hemorrhage Really Means
You glanced in the bathroom mirror this morning and froze. One patch on the white of your eye has gone bright, solid red, like someone spilled paint just under the surface. It looks dramatic. It may have shown up overnight with no warning, and now you’re wondering if something just went seriously wrong. Here’s the […]
