SPECS EYE CARE

Which side of your brain is dominant?

SPECS EYE CARE is thrilled to welcome Dr. Alexis Spencer to the practice! Call us today at 706-396-7671 to set up your appointment with her.

It looks like our kids will be spending a lot of time on computer screens for school which is not great for their eyes. I'm an optometrist. I'm going to give you some tips to share with your children (helpful for you moms as well) that will lessen eye strain: The screen should be as far away as possible. Arm's length or beyond is a good general rule. The height of the screen should be at or slightly below eye level (not above). Illumination of the screen should match that of ...the room. Meaning, they should not be sitting in a dark room with a bright screen or vice versa. Don't have a lamp shining on the screen as it will glare back into the eyes. The 20/20/20 rule: At least every 20 minutes, have your child look 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. Our eyes need breaks and don't do well with very extended periods of near viewing without a break. This is the most important tip. Blink rate: our blink rate goes down automatically about 60% every time we are on a device. This wreaks havoc on our tears leading to burning, redness, etc. You have to remind your children to blink! If your child wears glasses, they should have what is called an anti-glare or anti-reflective coat on the lenses. This cuts down on glare from the screen and provides considerable relief from eyestrain. Newer generation anti-glare coats also offer a small amount of blue light protection. If the device your child is on has an option to lower the blue light, I would do this. We know that too much blue light disrupts our sleep cycle. Lastly, make sure your child has their annual eye exam. If they are farsighted or have astigmatism and are not corrected for this, it will just add additional strain. For those of you who are nearsighted and worry about your kids becoming nearsighted from all the screen time, this is a valid fear. Make sure your child gets adequate outdoor time once school is done each day. Studies show that outdoor time is protective against a child becoming nearsighted. Good luck. I hope they can safely return to school soon.

Does your child have myopia or near-sightedness? Does her/his vision get worse every year? Call our office to find out about this new contact lens that is FDA-approved to slow down the progression!

We are open for ALL of your eye care needs, including routine eye examinations! We are running with a limited schedule to make sure we are abiding by the CDC guidelines. Call us today to schedule your exam at 706-396-7671 or 706-550-7125. See our website for our new protocols in order to keep everyone safe!

I hope you all are staying well and practicing social distancing. Please help support our local business during this tough time. We are available if you are having any eye problems or issues. Also, if you are running low on your contact lenses, please reach out to us at 706-550-7125 to order more. We can ship them directly to your house! We will get through this difficult time. Be kind and stay healthy!

We will remain available to triage eye emergencies as well as help you with routine matters during this challenging time. Please call 706-550-7125. During this period of social distancing and quarantine, we must all do our part by restricting activities outside the home except for getting medical care. Routine Eye Exams: If you are scheduled for a routine eye examination appointment for the remainder of March and early April, we will reschedule your appointment. As of Mar...ch 19, 2020, we will begin rescheduling routine eye examination appointments for 4/13/20 and later. I need to replace my glasses. What do I do? Please contact us at 706-550-7125 via text/call OR email us at [email protected]. We may be able extend your prescription during this time and will help you with your eyewear needs. I’m nearly out of contact lenses. What do I do? Please contact us at 706-550-7125 via text/call OR email us at [email protected]. We may be able extend your prescription during this time, and/or place an order for your contact lenses and have them shipped to your house. I need a refill on the medication prescribed to me by the practice. What do I do? Please contact us 706-550-7125 via text/call OR email us at [email protected]. We can transmit a refill for your prescription directly to your pharmacy so that you have the medication that you need. I have an issue. It cannot wait until you can see me in the office. What can I do? If you have an issue that cannot wait for an office visit, contact us at 706-550-7125 via text/call OR email us at [email protected] and we may be able to schedule a FaceTime, Skype or Telephone appointment with Dr. Roland. Medicare has temporarily relaxed its telehealth rules to allow for this type of care during the pandemic. Other insurers may follow suit and allow for reimbursement of virtual care costs. The consultation must be initiated at your request. What about an eye emergency? What can I do? If you have an ocular emergency, we are, as always, available to help you at any time. Call 706-550-7125 and listen to the recording for directions. Dr. Roland will do her best to accommodate you in the office whenever possible. In some cases, a house call may be possible if you cannot leave your home. If not, we will direct you to the nearest eye emergency facility. We have asked our staff to stay home until further notice to protect them, our patients, our community, our nation, and our planet. Despite the financial and emotional hardships this will cause, we ask every one of you to do the same. Together we will weather this storm.

Effective 3/19/20 Specs Eye Care will be cancelling all routine appointments for the next few weeks due to the latest guidelines from the CDC, American Optometric Association and the Georgia Optometric Association. The safety of our patients, employees, and community is our highest priority. For the time being, we will remain available for emergency eye care and welcome your business for ordering contact lenses. Please call/text 706-550-7125 and we will do our best to assist ...you. We will reopen for routine care as soon as possible. We will post any updates on Facebook and on www.specseyecareevans.com. We are grateful for each of our patients and your patience and understanding during this unprecedented time. Please stay healthy! https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/index.html

We will close at 2:00 pm 12/31/19. Have a wonderful and safe New Years celebration! See you in 2020!!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Many astronauts on long-term missions in space develop a strange syndrome that affects their sight. Read about astronaut John Phillip's case: