Things to bring
- Your current contact lenses or glasses, if you have them.
- Your vision and medical insurance cards (if applicable).
- Questions. Your eye care professional is there to help, so don't hold back. Here are some good starting points:
Get ready for your eye exam
Lay the groundwork before you go
When scheduling your appointment, be sure to talk about the following, so you and your eye care professional can make the most of the time.
Share your vision history
Describe any new issues you’re experiencing and let them know if you currently wear glasses or contact lenses.
Ask for a contact lens fitting
A fitting is a different kind of appointment so let the eye care professional know that you are interested in contact lenses so they can schedule a fitting.
Questions to ask
- How is the health of my eyes?
- Have you detected any eye disease or risk of eye disease that I should treat or monitor?
- How is my vision?
- Is it possible for me to see more clearly?
- Will my vision stabilize?
- What are my vision correction options?
- What's going to provide the best vision and the most flexibility given my activities and needs?
- What are the advantages of trying both contact lenses and glasses? What situations are best for each?
- What do I need to do to wear contact lenses safely?
- Are there any long-term issues with wearing contacts?
Four steps to a typical contact lens fitting
- Eye health exam
First and foremost, your eye care professional will review your medical and ocular history, assess eye health, check how well your eyes focus, and more. - Contact lens eligibility
Next, your eye care professional may perform a few more tests to make sure contacts are right for you. If so, your eye care professional may ask about your lifestyle to help pick a lens type. - Fitting with lenses and learning to use them
With the test results and your input, the eye care professional will recommend lenses to meet your individual needs. Then you'll be taught how to put on, take off and properly care for your lenses. - Follow-up and prescription
Especially if you are new to contact lenses, after an initial trial period, the eye care professional may have you return to make sure you're adjusting well to your new lenses and make changes if necessary. If all is well, they will release a prescription so you can order a supply of contact lenses.
