Kids and Glasses

I would let her pick out her own frames. You can get the flex frames if they offer them for kids so they don't break as easily. They are a little more expensive but I think its worth it. I bet she'll be just fine with them. There are all kinds of neat glasses out there.

Before I became a full time mommy, I was an optician who helped people select glasses. I have fitted several young children, and always found the best route is to let them help pick out the frames. (Yes, even 4 year olds!) My 2 middle children have been wearing glasses since kindergarten, (7 & 11 yrs. old) and I found they did well with them from the get-go. It's a 2 fold thing...once the glasses are on their face & they realize how much clearer than can see, most kids WILL keep their glasses on. And part 2 is they like showing off to people the glasses that 'they' picked out! Make sure they are a good fit from the start...too big, they'll be constantly slipping down her nose. Fit & adjustments are very important keys to successful eyeglass wearing! And comfort. FYI, adjustments are always free of charge at any optical shop, whether or not you initially bought the glasses there. :) Good luck!

When my DS first started wearing his glasses he would constantly look over the top of them because he wasnt used to the prescription, so we put a strap on the glasses which seemed to make the adjustment eaiser for him and us, since we werent always having to remind him to look through the glasses.

My oldest son got glasses at 4, too. I had heard stories and was very concerned about him taking care of them, too. We adopted the phrase 'If they're not on your face, they're in the case!' I have no idea if our saying that made any difference or not, but he did very well, is 13 now, and has never broken his glasses!

I don't honestly remember a lot about it learning to be responsible for my glasses, but I started wearing glasses at that age, too (and still do to this day).

One thing my mom did was tell me that I had to wear them all the time, unless I was "resting" (napping, laying in my bed, or sleeping at night). She said that for the first couple of weeks, I spent a lot of time laying in my bed "resting" because I didn't want to wear them. She was adamant about it, though and didn't give in when I begged, which I think helped me over the long term.

She helped me get in the habit of always putting the glasses in the same spot every night, which helped me avoid losing them (though I'm sure I lost them sometimes!).

I think after a while, as I got older, I realized how much better I could with them on, so I just kept using them.

It would probably help to get her to pick out her own frames... but unless she is totally crazy in love with the frames, that won't keep her wearing them.

Good luck with this.

She will adjust ALOT faster than you think. I was surprised when my two youngest both needed full time glasses and by the 3rd day it was like they had been wearing them all of their lives. I will make one suggestion. When I first got their glasses, I had a strap that went around the back of their heads to keep them from falling off when they were playing. The straps were worthless (maybe there are better ones out there than I had). I ended up getting the special ear pieces put on that are soft rubber and kind of curl around the ears (you see these on babies glasses). BEST move I ever made. The boys like them better and they work a ton better than the straps ever did.

Good luck!

I had to LOL at Jessica C's first post at the bottom there..."If they are not on your face, they are in the case!"..we had the SAME catch phrase at our house when my then almost 5 year old had to get glasses to be worn all the time. She is 16 now and still wears them..always will. We tried contacts in the last few years but she didn't like them and her glasses are part of her funky personality! (currently her frames are red, a bit cat-eye shaped and have tiny white polka dots on the sides!)

For a girl, one thing that worked great for us with our daughter, was we got a doll with glasses. It was the Target version of an American Girl doll (I would have spent the $$ for the AG girl doll, but she hated their teeth...LOL...so this was what she wanted!..She named her after her kindy teacher in the end a few months later..so sweet! Her name was Susie!). But the doll had glasses, just like she did, so she identified with her. It worked wonders. And loads of compliments. Plus for my daughter..she could see now...literally had that "look at all this and that" moments on the car ride home.

Also, on her second set...she picked them out without my assistance. I hated them at first..they were very colorful and funky, but I came to realize, she is the one who has to wear them every single day...12 hours or whatever she is awake....and after a week or so, she got TONS of compliments on them..and now she seeks sorta fun and funky ones as it is a statement for her and part of her personality (think Penelope from NCIS if you watch that show).

We went thru our share of replacement lenses..more so after she started school and I wasn't there to watch over and offer reminders..but it was much better after the first 6 mos or so of kindergarten. She took them off a few times at the bus stop for some reason? To show her pals maybe? And there is a giant rock there..she scraped the lens and we had to replace them after I think the second day of school...then again a few months later. But after that we had a free replacement each year and some years didn't need it.

Good luck!

My 4 year old son just got his glasses a few weeks ago. It took a couple days of adjustment for him and then he realized that he can see much better with them on. Now he only takes them off for bed. I gave him an extra case to keep in his bookbag in case they are doing something in gym that might break the glasses. His teacher tells him "if they are not on the face, they must be in the case". Good luck!