Regular eye exams are recommended for everyone, regardless of your age, location, gender or health. That’s because regular eye exams are one of the best ways of assessing the quality of your vision. They are also invaluable for the early detection of eye problems and diseases, such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, or cataracts.

In most cases, you’ll need to schedule your eye exam in advance. However, that’s not to say that you can’t get a same day exam if you really need it.

Eye Emergencies

Our eyes are extremely delicate and can easily be harmed in an accident. Similarly, it’s possible to suddenly develop an urgent problem with our eyes or vision. If you experience a genuine eye emergency, it’s important to speak to your eye doctor right away. They can triage your problem over the phone and advise whether or not you need to come in and get professional support. If you do, it’s likely to be the same day, and an eye exam is likely to form part of your assessment.

Some of the most common types of eye emergency include:

• Chemical burns to the eye
   

• Object piercing or stuck in the eye
   

• Blunt force trauma to the eye
   

• Severe headaches or migraines
   

• Sudden severe eye pain
   

• Sudden changes to your vision – blurriness, floaters, flashing, or loss of sight

Do You Feel Lucky?

We know it can be hard to fit appointments into a busy schedule, particularly when you don’t feel as though you are currently experiencing a problem with your eyes or vision. However, getting your eyes checked regularly should be a priority, so if it’s been a while and you suddenly have room in your schedule, it’s worth calling your eye doctor and seeing if they have any appointments available that day. After all, they may keep some spare for emergencies or last minute bookings, or they may have had a cancellation. If you are lucky, you may be able to snag a same day eye exam.

Can I Get an Eye Exam and Glasses on the Same Day?

In most instances, you can buy new glasses or contact lenses at your eye doctor’s office. Although some eye clinics do keep a limited supply of common prescription lenses, it’s quite unlikely that they will have suitable lenses for your individual prescription in stock. Even if they do, they may not necessarily fit the frames that you have or choose, and they probably won’t have the lens coatings that you would benefit from – such as anti-scratch, anti-glare, or UV protection.

With your vision being so important, rather than settling for glasses that aren’t quite perfect, it’s advisable to wait and get the glasses or contact lenses that best suit your personal needs.

If you have questions about same-day eye exams or prescription eyewear, or if you would like to make an appointment to have your eyes checked, please get in touch with our friendly and knowledgeable team. You can call Natural State Eyecare in Little Rock, Arkansas at (501) 295-4011.