*Update at bottom of review*
My first appointment here was in early October, and it was just a routine visit---I wanted an eye exam so I could have an updated prescription for new contacts and glasses. I have been very nearsighted my entire life (in glasses since I was eight), so I know the drill. We had a fine exam and everyone was very polite and friendly, and Jenny helped me try on several frames until I found a pair I really liked. When I left that day, I was looking forward to receiving my new glasses.
About a week later, I got the call that my glasses were in. I came by the store, tried them on, and it felt like I was in a fishbowl. As I said, I've been wearing glasses and contacts for years, so I could tell something wasn't right. I said things looked way off, but I was told I "just needed some time to adjust" to them. I took the glasses home and tried to wear them for a few days but couldn't because they made me nauseated and gave me a headache.
I took the glasses back. As it turns out, my ocular center (where the prescription is placed in the lens based on where my eye looks out through them) was completely off. Also, the angle of the glasses was off, so they weren't sitting square on my face. They sent the glasses off to have them adjusted and remade.
About a week later, I got the second call that my glasses were in. I tried them on again, and things were less like a fishbowl but still didn't seem right. I was told again that I "just needed to adjust" so I took them home again and tried to wear them for a few more days. They still gave me a headache and made me nauseated, and still weren't sitting squarely on my face, so I took them back again.
This time, Dr. Knouff saw me again. She essentially redid my eye exam and discovered that she had a blatantly wrong prescription in my left lens. She tried to explain it, saying "We have to do this a lot with patients who are as nearsighted as you, just because their eyes are so sensitive to any little changes in the prescription." (For the record, my prescription is around a -8 in my right eye and similar in my left eye, but with an astigmatism.) I answered the standard "one or two" questions to find a better prescription, and my glasses were sent off to be remade again.
About a week later, I got the third call that my glasses were in. I tried them on and felt like the prescription was really close, but the frames still weren't sitting square on my face. There was another pair of the same frames that did sit square, so Dr. Knouff wanted to use my lenses in those frames. She couldn't change the lenses herself, though, and asked me to come back after Thanksgiving when Jenny would be back. I left without my glasses.
After Thanksgiving, I came back for the fourth time to pick up my glasses. I tried them on again and this time the frames were square and I was able to drive in them. I was really optimistic until I got home and tried to read a book---they still felt way overcorrected for anything I tried to look at near myself. Still, I thought maybe I just needed to give it more time, so I wore them to the office the next day. I work on a computer, and I had to change into my contacts after about an hour because I had such an awful headache from looking at the screen through my glasses. I just can't wear them.
When I called back to say that somehow the prescription still wasn't working, I was told that "The only option would be to go back to the prescription in your old glasses." I asked for a refund, since I don't really feel confident in their ability to fix it on their fifth try, and was told, "Well, we were charged each time we had to remake the glasses, so we didn't make any money on this anyway. A refund is impossible." I asked if there was any way I could get more contacts instead, since I used up my insurance benefits on this pair of glasses and will run out of contacts in five more months. I was told that they would check on additional contacts for me. That was ten days ago (Dec 19) and I have yet to hear back.
I am frustrated and feel stuck, because I would have to pay full price for a new eye exam elsewhere, but I have ample evidence that this place can't get my prescription right even after essentially two exams.
***Update: January 8, 2015 - Dr. Knouff did call me back to address this issue with me and try one more time to get me into glasses that work. She offered to put my current glasses prescription into my new frames and provide the additional contacts I requested. When I went in last night to pick up my extra contacts and the new frames, she checked my vision in the new pair to make sure they would work. They finally feel like the right power (not overcorrected) and I felt satisfied and thankful for her persistence in working to get the right prescription. She then insisted on giving me a refund since it had taken so much time to get the prescription right. So despite some struggle, I have what I need now. Thanks Dr. Knouff! read more
