Source: Neurolens
(Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared in ROWT Magazine titled: “Relief is in the Sight.”)
I became an optician quite by accident. I was a wedding planner, when a long-established dispensary took a chance in hiring me to be part of their independent boutique.
I remember interviewing for the position with little to no understanding of what the job entailed. I understood it involved working with people. And had something to do with glasses. It seemed like a great side job to my primary event planning role. Not something I ever intended on becoming my full-time job and main interest. That soon evolved 180 degrees as I dove down the optics rabbit hole.
The science! The people! The frames! The smiles! I fell in love with it all. I got spoiled from day one, as every single frame line we carried was independent and exclusive to the shop.
In the beginning, I believed all frames were made the same. Later in my career, when the quality discrepancies were palpable, my focus remained fixed on pairing perfect optics with beautiful eyewear, unique and well made. Fast forward more than 10 years. Now, in our digitally dominated world, a frame that fits well and lenses with perfect visual acuity aren’t enough. We may be able to see, but sometimes we’re still not comfortable.
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I remember doing a virtual CE course in 2019 that helped me understand why patients were complaining about their visual comfort. As I read about Trigeminal Dysphoria, an aha moment occurred. The contoured prism patented by Neurolens solves the mystery behind the pain. The headaches, the dizziness, the neck and shoulder aches, the eye strain… It’s all coming from over stimulation of the trigeminal nerve in our brain.
We talk to patients all the time about how we see with our brain first. It makes perfect sense that the constant stimuli we’ve exposed ourselves to also would trigger a series of painful side effects. I was fortunate to be working in a practice that adopted Neurolens into our routine care. I got to witness my friend’s relief from chronic migraines. Migraines she had treated with every prescription imaginable before resorting to expensive and unsustainable Botox injections. I got to talk with patients a month after wearing their Neurolenses and hear touching stories about their life changing outcomes. I got to experience my own relief from vertigo, light sensitivity, and headaches.
The only potential reservation I considered is the curse of the optician: We’re frame junkies, through and through. How would I ever wear just one frame? Thankfully, a couple of fabulous frame reps I know took care to make sure I always had options!
I will only wear my Neurolenses now. And my patients felt the same way. I wanted to combine my love of beautiful, independent eyewear with the comfort of my Neurolenses.
“Fashion meets function” became my platform as I fit my patients in their new lenses.
It took a special, impactful product to get me out of the optical lab and into an outside sales role. I want to empower as many people as I can to facilitate the amazing changes that I’ve experienced with Neurolens. I want to unite precision of sight, unique fashion statements, and most of all, pain relief into a pair of glasses.
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I carried alliances from my previous role with two respected frame reps: Zachary Milam, of Etnia Barcelona, and Ryan Mestas, of WestGroupe, into my new role. We service mutual practices as we partner to blend the importance of well-made, fashionable eyewear with the symptom relief of Neurolenses.
Our practices take care to hand select the perfect frame to accommodate the harmonious blend of acuity and comfort in the patient’s Neurolens. To an unassuming outsider, an optician is a salesperson, peddling frames and pushing upgrades. What they don’t see is every meticulous step we take when nobody is watching:
- We hand select the frames they choose from.
- We research the best lenses and coatings to put in those frames.
- We evaluate the numbers on their prescription to determine which material and lens design will yield optimal sight.
- We triple check our measurements before and after a job is dispensed.
- We educate our patients.
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Katie DeLuca is a Territory Manager for Neurolens.
Previously she held positions as a staff optician, an optical lead, and an optical manager at a pair of practices in Louisville, KY
You can connect with her on LinkedIn.
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