Ava had an appointment with the Opthalmalogist last week... I hate these appointments.... This was her 3rd visit to the University Pediatric Eye clinic... After the first visit, I knew I would dread every visit to come.
Our first appointment was scheduled for 10am... I got there at 9:30, since I left the house early, and wasn't completely sure that I knew where the place was... We didn't even get screened until after 1pm.... The whole time, we were sitting in the hallway that they call the waiting area... with about 30 other families. It was a nightmare. By the time we got out of there at 2:45.... Ava was tired, hungry, and in an all out bad mood. Total time spent in with a doctor or caregiver of any kind.... about 15 minutes. In almost 5 hours... only 15 minutes of actual contact with a medical professional. UNREAL.
So, anyway... last week, we had to go back for a checkup. Thankfully the appointment time had dropped some, from 5 hours to 3 hours. And the whole experience was interesting, to say the least. Our appointment was at 10. We sat there until about 11:50, before being called in to see the screener. She sat there in front of Ava and held up these pieces of cardboard with little squares of stripes on one side. By this time, Ava was not interested in anything the lady had to say... she was hungry, and already missing her nap. She paid no attention to her, and really fought the whole time, not to look at her.
About 10 minutes later, another worker came out to the waiting area, and handed me a brochure... She said something along the lines of...'My colleague says that your daughter cannot see anything at all... and we think that she could use the services of this School for the Blind...'
I think that I laughed a little bit.
The lady just looked at me (keep in mind there is a language difference.. This is a German Hospital that we were at!) She asked if I wanted them to contact the school, and I said No. She told me that I might want to talk to our insurance, and see if they will cover it... Hmmmmm....
This was all more than a little funny... Anyone who knows Ava, has seen her navigate a room, pick up the tiniest things from the floor... She can spot Leyton from across the room.. She can DEFINITELY SEE!
I sat there for a while longer, waiting to see the actual doctor. When we were finally called in, He looked at her eyes through his little 'eye checker thingy', and sat back, and said... 'my colleague says that she doesn't think that Ava can see..' I said yes, thats what she thinks. He said, 'well, I don't think its that bad, maybe she just wasn't interested in her test... I can't tell though, if she is still squinting when I shine the light in her eyes, if she is, it is a very small amount... however, even the smallest amount could affect the development of the eyes... If she were my daughter, I would have her wear an eye patch for 2 hours per day... one eye one day, the next eye the next day, until you come back in to see me in 3 months.'
So... here she is... as Leyton says, "Practicing to be a Pirate!"
