( A note from Joy Benson, She is at age around 33)
****
----- Original Message -----
From: "Otis Brown" <otisbrown@pa.net>
To: "Lawson's_optom.ltd" <lawson_s@pacific.net.hk>
Sent: Wednesday, March 20, 2002 5:23 AM
Subject: Fw: An old, but informative e-mail

> Steve,
>
> Here is some more commentary from my niece on her
> use of the plus lens.
>
> Best,
>
> Otis
>
> ********
>> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Joy Benson" <joyvb@hotmail.com>
> To: <otisbrown@pa.net>
> Sent: Tuesday, March 19, 2002 12:59 PM
> Subject: An old, but informative e-mail
>
>> > Uncle Otie,
> >
> > The e-mail message that I wrote below is evidence of how behind I am. It was an answer to the e-mail Alison Dall had written to me almost three years ago. It's embarrassing that I never responded to her. I wrote the e-mail below but never sent it! Her e-mail address is at the end of the message.

> > Have you kept in touch with her? I could send it now. I hope she didn't give up on having her son use the glasses.
> >
> > In any case, this information might be helpful to Steve and perhaps for your records.
> >
> > One thing I would add in the way of advice is that it has been very helpful for me to have several pairs of glasses so I have them handy in places where I usually read. I also sometimes can use different diopters that way. I should get a pair with less diopters to use at the computer. I would think
> > that for children it would be especially important to make sure that the
> > diopters fit the work, without making it too hard or easy for the child
to
> > see and to make sure the glasses don't interfere with their work or play.
> >
> > The other thing I didn't mention in my unfinished e-mail was that the  first time I started using a computer for several hours on a daily basis (while doing an internship without using plus lenses), I noticed my vision got worse very quickly, probably within a couple weeks.
> >
> > Here's the e-mail I was going to send 2-3 years ago! (I only corrected
> > typos, so my job and age information are not up-to-date.)
Joy
> >
> > Subject: RE: Plus Lenses for Myopia
> >
> > Dear Alison:
> >
> > I'm sorry I didn't get back to you sooner. I realize this is an
important decision for you and your son.
> >
> > I am Otis Brown's niece. Thanks to him, I have been wearing the plus lenses since fifth grade. I am now 32 and was very happy to pass my driver's license eye exam once again this July (though because the
> > vision in my left eye is not so good, I just got a restriction--I must have a rearview mirror on the left side, which is standard for most cars, anyway).
> >
> > As I know my uncle has expressed to you, finding the motiviation to wear plus lenses while reading is not so easy, and I think it might be especially hard for a younger person. Even after more than 20 years of wearing the plus lenses, I struggle to do so consistently. But I'm happy that I have the choice of whether to wear glasses or not. There's no doubt in my mind that I would have to wear glasses or contacts all the time if I had started wearing negative lenses more frequently.
> >
> > Perhaps knowing some of my history will help you to guide your son:
> >
> > When I started wearing the plus lenses in fifth grade, I was a little bit shy. The glasses, as a new item, called attention to me. The fact that they were different than regular glasses meant that I might have to explain why I was wearing them. At the same time, I think some of my friends thought they were kind of cool. I can't remember how often I wore the glasses.
> >
> > In junior high and high school, I continued to wear the galsses on and off. My memory is a bit vague, but I assume, as has been my trend, I wore the plus lenses more at home than at school. Perhaps participation in sports helped me to maintain far vision, but because my studies were very important to me, I always read a lot. (I also had the advantage of not growing up using a computer; I believe computers can ruin your eyes very quickly.)
> >
> > In college, I continued with tennis, but I had trouble seeing the
> > chalkboard, so I got negative lenses. (Again, my studies were important to me and my mother wears glassses and doesn't mind it a bit, so she did not pressure me to wear the plus lenses.) Nevertheless, I rarely wore the negative lenses, and I continued to wear the positive lenses (in part due to the encouragement from my uncle). Even my memory of plus-lense use in high school and college is a bit vague, probably because I've never been very strict about wearing the lenses every single time I sit down to read.
> >
> > Partly it's hard because it's easier for me to read without the lenses. (In order to improve my vision, I try to read at a distance that will slightly blur the text, but without glasses I see the text clearly.) Also, my glasses always have to be at hand. Even at home, I don't always read in the same place, so it's an extra step to get my glasses before I read something (and oten I'm just reading short items--letters, articles, etc.--so it's easy to think that a little reading without glasses won't hurt).
> >
> > After I finished college, I continued to do work that required plenty of reading. (I did a master's in Spanish literature and a certificate program for translation, among other things.) Currently I work as an editor and it is a big challenge for me to wear the plus lenses, but all the more crucial. I sit in front of texts and the computer eight hours a day. Because I can't afford to slow down my work, and because the many texts (including the screen) that I look at are at all different distances, I am not able to wear the plus lenses much of the time. I still have my negative lenses from college, but I only wear them when I feel it's absolutely necessary--mainly if I'm driving in an unfamiliar place or if I'm at a workshop and need to see at a distance. I haven't tested my eyes since before I took my driver's exam, but I know my vision is not as good as it oculd be. I still need to work on wearing the plus lenses every time I possibly can.
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: AlisonDall@aol.com [mailto:AlisonDall@aol.com]
> > Sent: Tuesday, July 20, 1999 3:18 PM
> > To: bensonj@ext.missouri.edu  (no longer a valid e-mail address)
> > Subject: Plus Lenses for Myopia
> >
> > I got your e-mail number from Otis Brown's mailing list. Do you have an interest in using plus lenses to help myopia? I would like to try to help my son but would like to speak to anyone who has already tried or is considering using this method.
> >
> > Regards,
> > Alison Dall