so annoyed with optician re suggesting hannah montana frames to 7yo

hi

my 7 year old wears glasses. she was complaining her eyes werent right again so took her to optician

She has 2 pairs - both the same for the economy range. i thought there was no point in spending loads in anticipation of breakage etc

Went to optician who confirmed that her vision has indeed changed and she needs new lenses. absolutely no problem...would pay any money to ensure she has the right lenses.

But then he announces they are getting a new range of hannah montana glasses in and she might like to see them. of course her little face lights up and she says she would love a pair. over the weekend she has told her friends about how she cant wait to see the hannah montana glasses.

The receptionist then took her to see the spongebob ones so she would get an idea of the style and i asked how much they were - 89 euro.

now i am sorry but i really think spending that on frames is crazy. whatever about if she older. also the spongebob ones just have a tiny face of spongebob on the bit that sits behind the ear!

so when we went to collect the new lenses today she asked me about the hannah ones. i said i couldnt afford them this month and she said she would save her pocket money.

now thankfully i do have the money to buy them but i really think it was very unfair of the optician to say what he did.

is it just me being cranky or does anyone agree? Was half thinking of ringing him and telling him i didnt appreciate it.

Re: so annoyed with optician re suggesting hannah montana frames

I think you should tell the optician exactly what you have said here- it's ridiculous spending that amount of money for glasses for a 7 year old- and yes, of course you could say no, but I'm sure like most parents you don't always want to be the one saying no, especially if her expectations are up.

It may not help you, but it might stop him doing it again to someone else. And you never know, if it was a genuine error on his part, and not a cynical ploy, then he might even offer a discount as an apology.

Re: so annoyed with optician re suggesting hannah montana frames

ssm - are you aware you are entitled to a voucher towards the price of the glasses (it's for about €55) plus if you go into specsavers they normally do 2 for 1 offers so you get 2 pairs for about €25. Just take your script to the local HSE office which issues the vouchers.

I would be very annoyed if the optician did this with my fella - one shop had nothing in their value range which would fit him (they acually had hardly anything in the range....maybe about 15 pairs in total) - and the person suggested a pair from the more expensive range.....I suggested I'd find somewhere with a better range and left!!

Can you not get the frames online?

thats ridiculous for a 7 yo. A few strong words with the optician wont do any harm and suggest you dont go back there

You can't possibly blame the optician for trying to make a few bob, he's in the business to make a living. He's not responsible for what goes on in your chid's head.

Tell the child the glasses are too dear and that's that. Simple.

Vanilla said:

but I'm sure like most parents you don't always want to be the one saying no, especially if her expectations are up.

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I am so tired of hearing parents say this kind of thing. If something is too dear, it is your job to say No. Once you've said it a few times, children learn very quickly that certain things are just not affordable and will accept it.

Slash said:

You can't possibly blame the optician for trying to make a few bob, he's in the business to make a living. He's not responsible for what goes on in your chid's head.

Tell the child the glasses are too dear and that's that. Simple.



I am so tired of hearing parents say this kind of thing. If something is too dear, it is your job to say No. Once you've said it a few times, children learn very quickly that certain things are just not affordable and will accept it.

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I'd have to agree with the above - Hannah Montana frames are sold purely to attract the interest of kids just so they will badger their parents for them. In much the same way as adverts showing toys etc are on during their daytime programmes. It is not opticians job to restrain your child - tiz yours! - not nice though that may be.

As sam h points out, bring your prescription to you local HSE office and they will give you a docket for €56 euro off, then go to specsavers for a 2-for-1 deal. You can just get regular frames but get Spongebob/HM cases, and everybody will be happy.

Folks,

The optician is of course out to make a living. But it is also the case that many seven yeara olds are not that terribly happy at wearing glasses - and he may genuinely feel that he is doing a good thing by making kids feel happy about wearing the glasses. OP has doen the right thing by refusing her child - I don't think she really needs to do any more about it.

To be frank, if we are going to start listing the ways in which our children are inappropriately bombarded with messages to purchase consumer goods, the optician is fairly low down the list.

MOB said:

The optician is of course out to make a living. But it is also the case that many seven yeara olds are not that terribly happy at wearing glasses - and he may genuinely feel that he is doing a good thing by making kids feel happy about wearing the glasses.

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+1. (I was about to say the very same thing, until I saw your post!)

This is maybe an odd suggestion - I would get new lenses in the old frames, then diy them to put whatever character she wants on them. This http://www.plaidonline.com/productDetail.asp?itemID=CS11220 (stuff) is brilliant, and a 7 year old will not know the difference.

If the spongebob frames are really just a logo on the ear tab, then do your own!
As for the optician, I bet he thought he was just being nice. I had health board glasses when I was a child and absolutely hated them.

You acually can get spongebob (and Beano, Mr Men, harry potter etc) glasses from the likes of specsavers. The voucher is to be uswed towards the price of the glasses - you can choose from any of their ranges - but I have always got glasses from their standard range (which has the above).

There is little point in changing the lens for kids - the glasses tend to get bent and out of shape and the kids grow out of them. Plus it is more expensive (HSE voucher doesn't cover this)But nice idea to adapt basic frames

Mel said:

This is maybe an odd suggestion - I would get new lenses in the old frames, then diy them to put whatever character she wants on them. This http://www.plaidonline.com/productDetail.asp?itemID=CS11220 (stuff)is brilliant, and a 7 year old will not know the difference.

If the spongebob frames are really just a logo on the ear tab, then do your own!
As for the optician, I bet he thought he was just being nice. I had health board glasses when I was a child and absolutely hated them.

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Great idea.

I wouldnt be angry with the optician. I always had decent looking glasses as a child. I have worn glasses since I was 3, with the eye patch at stages and the whole lot. From my holy communion, I was allowed choose my own specs cos kids are brutal about glasses and to have "cool" ones did make the difference. It would be great if you could do the DIY job as metioned in the replies.