www.cyoungopticians.co.uk 46 High Street, Shepton Mallet, Somerset. BA4 5AS t: 01749 345259

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Our News

November 2015 Designed by R. Young. Written by C. & R. Young

EYE TO EYE

Hello and welcome to the November edition of our newsletter. It is a little later than usual as I have been so busy at work preparing for a staff training day next week.

Thank you to all of you who managed to find the time to come to our first official William Morris London Style Day. I know Fridays are difficult for a lot of people, but It turned into one of the busiest days that we have ever had. Josh, The William Mor-ris representative who brought the stock, supports two or three style days a month all over the South West, and he informed me that it was the second busiest day that he had ever attended. Not bad for sleepy Shepton!

Too many to choose from!

The Style Day also coincided with Breast Cancer

Awareness Day, so the team wore their pink outfits

to mark the occasion. We are very grateful that we

raised £200 for the charity, from a raffle, spon-

sored by William Morris London and our main lens

supplier Essilor, who between them donated a

complete pair of spectacles to the value of £300.

We haven’t had the prize giving yet, so more pho-

tos next time.

On the home front, Tristan has returned safe, sound

and full of energy following a two week trip hiking in the

Drakensberg mountains in South Africa with the Air Ca-

dets. They performed community work in a local school,

camped out amongst the hyena in a game reserve, and

visited Rorke’s Drift. Angela Twine, one of our clients

who used to live in South Africa told me that she had

planned to visit the same area before she and her family

came to the UK, but the owner of the Lodge was killed

by the Zulus, so they didn’t! I’m glad I didn’t know that

before Tristan went!

Our daughter Cléophée also went on camp with the Air

Cadets, but she stayed in the UK.

The Air Cadets offer fantastic opportunities for teenag-

ers to develop a multitude of skills away from their par-

ents and the computer. First Aid, shooting and flying as

well as independence and leadership skills. Local

squadrons are based in Wells, Shepton Mallet and Glas-

tonbury and are staffed by dedicated teams of volun-

teers, frequently ex RAF. If you have a child or grand-

child between the ages of 13 and 18 who you think may

enjoy something a bit different then have a look at the

Glastonbury & Street website—www.914aircadets.com.

(I am secretary of the civilian welfare committee, so I

have seen first hand the benefits the children get out of

this, absolutely brilliant). www.914aircadets.com.

The Pink Ladies

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www.cyoungopticians.co.uk 46 High Street, Shepton Mallet, Somerset. BA4 5AS t: 01749 345259

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Eye Floaters,

Flashes & Spots

Eye floaters are those tiny spots, specks, flecks and

"cobwebs" that drift aimlessly around in your field of

vision. While annoying, ordinary eye floaters and spots

are very common and usually aren't cause for alarm.

Floaters and spots typically appear when tiny pieces of

the eye's gel-like vitreous break loose within the inner

back portion of the eye.

When we are born and throughout our youth, the vitre-

ous has a gel-like consistency. But as we age, the vitre-

ous begins to dissolve and liquefy to create a watery

centre.

Some undissolved gel particles occasionally will float

around in the more liquid centre of the vitreous. These

particles can take on many shapes and sizes to become

what we refer to as "eye floaters."

You'll notice that these types of spots and eye floaters

are particularly pronounced when you peer at a bright,

clear sky or a white computer screen. But you can't actu-

ally see tiny bits of debris floating loose within your eye.

Instead, shadows from these floaters are cast on

the retina as light passes through the eye, and those

shadows are what you see.

You'll also notice that these specks never seem to stay

still when you try to focus on them. Floaters and spots

move when your eye moves, creating the impression

that they are "drifting."

If you see a shower of floaters and spots, sometimes

accompanied by light flashes, you should seek medical

attention immediately.

The sudden appearance of these symptoms could mean

that the vitreous is pulling away from your retina or that

the retina itself is becoming dislodged from the inner

back of the eye that contains blood, nutrients and oxy-

gen vital to healthy function. When the retina is torn,

vitreous can invade the opening and push out the retina

— leading to a detachment.

Up to 50 percent of people with a retinal tear will have a

subsequent detachment.

In cases of retinal tear or detachment, action must

be taken as soon as possible so that an eye surgeon

can reattach the retina and restore function before

vision is lost permanently.

Posterior vitreous detachments (PVDs) are far more

common than retinal detachments and often are not

an emergency even when floaters appear suddenly.

But some vitreous detachments also can damage

the retina by tugging on it, leading to a tear or de-

tachment.

Light flashes known as photopsia can occur when

your retina receives non-visual (mechanical) stimula-

tion, which can happen when it is being tugged, torn

or detached.

What Causes Eye Floaters and Spots?

As mentioned above, posterior vitreous detach-

ments or PVDs are common causes of vitreous float-

ers. Far less commonly, these symptoms can be as-

sociated with retinal tears or detachments that may

be linked to PVDs.

But what leads to vitreous detachments in the first

place?

As the vitreous gel fills the inside of the back of the

eye, it presses against and actually attaches to the

retina. Over time, the vitreous becomes more lique-

fied in the centre. This sometimes means that the

central, more watery vitreous cannot support the

weight of the heavier, more peripheral vitreous gel.

Vitreous gel then collapses into the central, liquefied

Floaters become more mobile and visible as the vitreous liquifies

with age and detaches from the retina.

www.cyoungopticians.co.uk 46 High Street, Shepton Mallet, Somerset. BA4 5AS t: 01749 345259

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Online Appointments

You can have access to our appointment sys-

tem 24 hours a day, and if we are too busy to

answer the phone, which happens sometimes,

then you can easily log on and get booked in.

Just follow the ’Book an Appointment’ link

from our website at:

www.cyoungopticians.co.uk

You can also download our APP to your

smartphone or tablet.

See over for details

EYES FACTS : Around the world, about 39 million people are blind and roughly 6 times that many have some kind

of vision impairment.

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Welcome

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I’d like to officially welcome all our new

clients from the last month or so:

Georgina Baker, Conrad Dillon, Sultan Binladen,

Jade Hoskins, Zak Conybeer, John Wickes, Jake No-

ad, Leah Mulvey, Sandra Phoenix, Richard Masters,

Claire Wickens, Violet Vyner, Jackie Robinson, Emi-

le Braibant, Mary Wilkinson, Jay Barrett, Grace

Brownhill, Sophie Harding, Kevin Bolt, Patrick Rog-

ers, Jean Cooper, Saskia Talbot, Bozena Waleri-

anczyk, Rita Gallagher, Lucy MacKenzie, Charles

Stephens, Nicola Harris, Jean Barnes, Katie Brown-

hill, Kim Evans, Cassius Mogg, Morgan Mogg, Nie-

sha Mogg, Leylund Mogg, Breanna Mogg, Levi Bar-

rett, Jayden Barrett, Andrew Hill, Alfreda Trippick,

Martin Trippick, Jowita Cur, Gabriela Cur, Paulina

Smiechowska, Ellie Treasure, Sharon Kirwan, Arthur

Wade, Frank Short, David Searle, Anne Howard,

Madaleine Whatling, Patricia Cox, Wojciech

Mroczek.

We are glad you found us.

vitreous. While this occurs, the peripheral vitreous de-

taches from the inner back of the eye where the retina is

located.

Eye floaters resulting from a vitreous detachment are

then concentrated in the more liquid vitreous found in

the interior centre of the eye.

More than half of all people by the time they are 80 will

have had a vitreous detachment.* If you are among the

40 percent of people with PVDs who also experience

light flashes, then you have about a 15 percent chance of

also developing a retinal tear.**

Light flashes during this process mean that traction is

being applied to your retina while the PVD takes place.

Once the vitreous finally detaches and pressure on the

retina is eased, the light flashes should gradually subside.

What Causes Eye Flashes?

Ordinarily, light entering your eye stimulates the retina.

This produces an electrical impulse, which the optic

nerve transmits to the brain. The brain then interprets

this impulse as light or some type of image.

If the retina is mechanically stimulated (physically

touched), a similar electrical impulse is sent to the brain.

This impulse is then interpreted as a "flicker" of light.

When the retina is tugged, torn or detached from the

back of the eye, a flash or flicker of light commonly is

noticed. Depending on the extent of the tear or detach-

ment, these flashes of light might be short-lived or con-

tinue indefinitely until the retina is repaired.

If you notice any new floaters or flashes of light then it is

important that you contact us so that we can confirm

that you do not have a torn or detached retina.

References & Notes

www.allaboutvision.com

By Marilyn Haddrill; reviewed by Charles Slonim, MD

Judith Lee, Gretchyn Bailey and Vance Thompson, MD, also contribut-

ed to this article.

Incidence of posterior vitreous detachment after cataract sur-

gery. Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery. June 2009.

**Not just a PVD: differential diagnosis of flashing lights. Retinal Physi-

cian. November 2007.

*Anamolous vitreous detachment. Ophthalmology, 3rd ed.

A special thank you to:

Graham Cockill for recommending Joseph Marshall

to us. I am very grateful.

www.cyoungopticians.co.uk 46 High Street, Shepton Mallet, Somerset. BA4 5AS t: 01749 345259

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Eye to Eye is a monthly conversation about life

as it looks from the helm of Christopher Young Opti-

cians…..

I believe in relationships and we really value having a

strong relationship with our customers. This is our

way of being open and showing people what we’re

like.

For regular clients, many of you only come in once a

year or once every two years. So we can go a long

time without seeing you. And a lot can happen in a

year or two, hence we like to keep in touch.

For new customers, as we grow I don’t personally

meet lots of you. This unusual publication is an open

dialogue between us so that you can get to know

who we are as a company. And painful as it can be,

we like to show some of our personality. We’re not a

faceless company.

The feedback is invaluable. I am extremely interested

in what our customers have to say. I enjoy respond-

ing to the comments. And finally I enjoy writing it!

Please send your thoughts and comments on what

we are talking about to:

chris@cyoungopticians.co.uk.

Every month I try to rise to the mammoth challenge

of making an “opticians newsletter” a riveting read. If

I’ve failed, in your eyes, to do that, you can unsub-

scribe by just sending an email to:

smile@cyoungopticians.co.uk

All About Us

Please share this copy with your friends and family!

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Chloe joined us in August this year as a Dis-

pensing Assistant having completed her De-

gree in Ophthalmic Dispensing at Anglia Ruskin

University in Cambridge.

She will be completing her studies with us to

become a fully qualified Dispensing Optician.

When she is fully qualified Chloe will be dis-

pensing glasses and advising on Low Vision

Aids.

Originally from Canterbury in Kent, Chloe went

to school in Tonbridge and worked as an Opti-

cal Assistant at Arthur Hayes Opticians before

moving to Cambridge. She now commutes dai-

ly from Gillingham in Dorset where she lives

with her partner who is studying to become

an optometrist.

Chloe’s hobbies include air rifle target

shooting, sewing, cooking, computer gaming

and going to the cinema.

App now available

I am extremely proud to announce that we now

have our very own App called MySight and it is

available to download from the relevant App Store.

Features include the ability to make appointments,

view your prescription and contact lens specification

and updating your personal details.

The app is only available for clients registered on

our system and requires a linking code for it to

work, which you can get by contacting us or by cre-

ating an account on our website:

www.cyoungopticians.co.uk

Chloe Hunt