Seven-year-old Amelia tells us her experience as an Orthoptics patient

“My name is Amelia I am 7 years old. I first started wearing my glasses when I was 2 years old. My Mummy and Daddy noticed that my left eye started turning in just after my 2nd birthday. They were very concerned so they took me to the Orthoptic Department at Alder Hey who ran some tests, they discovered that my eyesight was not very good and I would need to wear glasses. I loved my glasses from the very first time I wore them. I could see the world so much more clearly! When I was 3 the Orthoptists gave me a patch to wear over my right eye to try and strengthen my left eye and improve the vision. I started off having to wear my patch for 8 hours a day then it gradually went down to 3 hours. My vision in my eye did improve and has remained stable. My patching lasted over 12 months, but I didn’t mind at all because it was helping me. My turn in my eye hadn’t always been visible when wearing my glasses as my prescription helped straighten it. When I got to around 6 years old, we noticed my eye was turning a lot more whilst wearing my glasses which had never happened before. I had my prescription changed a couple of times to see if this helped but it didn’t. I didn’t like my turn in my eye. I didn’t like looking in the mirror at myself it made me feel sad. I had corrective surgery 3 weeks ago to straighten my eye. I was very nervous but really wanted to have it done. My operation was a success and the doctors at the hospital are really pleased with the results. The Orthoptist measured my turn and it has gone from being at an angle of 45 to now 8! I am so grateful to everyone at Alder Hey who has helped me.”

If Amelia’s story had inspired you to become an Orthoptist, you can find out more about Orthoptics here. You can also check out our course finder.