Written by Nihithasri Anepally
Edited by Jocelyn Wang and Sharon Park
Hi everyone! This feature article was written by Nihitha to bring awareness to Children's Eye Health Month. August is dedicated to promoting Eye Health for children and encourages individuals to be aware of early signs of vision problems in children. Hope you enjoy this article!
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She was walking around the beach, dragging her feet through the soft sand. She looked up, her big, amber eyes watched the seagulls fly by. The wind was blowing her beautiful ginger hair back, and the scent of the sea gently grazed her face. She finally made her way towards the ocean as she focused on the horizon, where she saw a clear glimpse of the sun starting to rise. As the sun began to rise, the pixelated images in her mind became clearer. And clearer. For the first time in a long time, she could actually see a sunrise-
“AMBER!”
The girl jolted awake, slightly bumping her head onto the desk, and looked straight at the teacher. Well, at least she thought she was looking at her.
“Eyes up here! Please read what I have written on the board,” her teacher said in a strict manner.
Amber gulped down the lump in her throat and squinted. She wasn’t even sure she was looking at the board. She saw nothing but pixels. White and black pixels. After minutes of struggling and laughter in the background from her classmates, the teacher gave up and decided to move on with the lesson.
Blood rushed up to her face as embarrassment broke through her soul. It was like this every day. She was struggling to read, struggling to see. She hated seeing pixels everywhere around her. She wanted to see something real for once.
When the bell rang, Amber stood up and reached out her hand to feel her surroundings. Once she reached the wall, she began striding against the surface, trying not to bump into anything and get another injury of the day. But, before she could step out of the classroom, a voice stopped her.
“Amber?” It was her teacher.
Numerous questions ran through Amber’s head. Did she do something wrong? Maybe her teacher was fed up with her constant daydreaming? What if it had to do something with her vision? What if-
Shaking her thoughts away, Amber slowly turned to face a pixelated figure, just to be handed something. She couldn’t read the paper the teacher handed her, but she said to give it to her parents. And so, she made her way to her parents' car with this mission in mind.
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Darkness. All she could see was darkness.
Then suddenly, she felt someone take away the cloth over her eyes. She opened her eyes just to be struck with a flash of bright light. She quickly shut her eyes, adjusting to this new feeling. Her eyelids fluttered a bit as she slowly opened them. Tears were forming in her eyes, not because of the light but because she could finally see clearly.
She could see her beloved parents as clear as day for the first time. Her tears of joy rolled down her face faster as she tightly hugged her parents, grateful for this miracle.
The paper her teacher gave was a reference to the Vision Resource Center. Amber’s parents called the listed contact number and got the little girl the proper treatment she needed. Amber was signed up for a laser eye treatment that treated her astigmatism, or when everything is blurry or pixelated from any distance.
As Amber walked out of the center, she was again struck by a bright light. It was the sun, rising behind the two hills, that made up the horizon. The only difference is there were no more pixels. She saw a true sunrise.
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The month of August is focused on promoting eye health, especially for children. Many children in our modern world don’t receive eye screenings at an early age. Without an eye screening, there is no telling if there is some problem revolving around their vision. This month is primarily dedicated to encouraging parents to learn how to protect their child’s vision through proper eye care and treatments.
As shown through the story above, 60% of children who seem to have difficulties learning have an undetected vision problem. Statistics also show that one in four children has a vision problem. This unsettling data is the main reason why promoting eye health for children is essential.
Signs like constant squinting, wandering eyes, eye discomfort when using electronics, or excessive tearing without any tear-causing stimuli are warning signals to get an eye checkup soon to figure out any problem and create a solution.
Eye problems are common in people, no matter what age. It is crucial to learn where your nearest eye doctor is located and the proper eye equipment that should be used. This topic should be discussed more as we often take our vision for granted. Eye injuries or problems can happen anytime, anywhere. Therefore, keeping our vision safe and protecting ourselves from harm’s way is vital.
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Thanks for ready our Children's Eye Health Month article! We hope you were inspired by Amber's story and learned about some signs of eye health problems in children.
if you enjoyed this article, drop a comment below to share your thoughts! And make sure to check out our Plastic Surgery article written by Mahee Mishra, linked here.
Until next time,
Nihitha and the Writing Committee :)