Patching Begins

Ten days ago, we began patching Abby's good eye. We started this while on a trip to Grandma and Grampa's house, in hopes that having other adults around to distract both Abby and her younger brother would be of some help. With our ophthalmologist's input, we decided on a gradual approach, starting with just two hours on the first day and gradually increasing to the target 8 hours per day.

It has been a difficult process getting used to the patch. It is as much a change for us as it is for her, and so hard to watch her struggle to see. Her resistance has been strong, with much yelling, screaming, kicking, sobbing, begging, and pleading.

The first few days, we made the mistake of having one parent put the patch on (mom), and the other take it off at the end of the session (dad). After a day or two of being the bad guy, I told my husband that was no longer acceptable. If I have to deal with the trauma of putting the patch on, I get to be the parent taking it off. He completely understood.

We decided on a reward system using stickers for each day of successful patching, with the accumulation of a certain number of stickers leading to a prize. We started off with 3 stickers leading to a prize and are now up to 5.

We find that the first hour or two she wears the patch, Abby struggles very much with her vision. She can get around the house, but really she just wants to be held. After that first bit, though, her vision improves and she is able to play independently, play with her brother, do art, and feed herself.