Through The Lens: Life as An Optometry Student - Graceful Ventures: Women Embracing Calling and Career # 3

Today's special guest is my classmate and close friend Cindy! Fun fact: we became friends after she read one of my blogs and messaged me about it <3. Now here she is, we're really fully circle here.

1. Hi, could you share a little bit about yourself (your name, age, and what your current job is or how far are you along in your journey)? Also share any interesting facts about you or your interests outside of work.

1. Hi! My name is Cindy, I’m 25 and I’m a 3rd year (perhaps 4th year by the time this blog post is up) optometry student at SUNY in NYC. I’m from Indiana and went to Indiana University to major in chemistry and French. In my free time, I enjoy bouldering and playing tennis, as well as watching k-dramas/YouTube while doing my nails. 

2. How did you hear/learn about your field? What about it fits your interests or goals at the time?

1. I grew up wearing glasses and contacts, but started first considering optometry as a potential career after a project in middle school where we researched future careers. I thought optometry would be a nice way to be involved in healthcare while also offering a good work-life balance so I can pursue other interests and goals (which I don’t even remember what they were at the time, probably something to do with art). Personally, I like to be involved in a lot of groups/activities, so it really gives me more flexibility to explore new interests and hobbies. I also liked that I could focus on the eyes right away instead of going through the entire med school curriculum before specializing.

3. What are the steps that you needed to take to get to where you are now? Was there anything you expected/didn’t expect about the journey?

1. Especially because I did not have any friends who were pre-optometry, I tried my best to get involved in high school and school with optometry-related opportunities via shadowing and the pre-optometry club at my college. Since I knew I wanted to go into optometry fairly early, I also factored that into my decision when deciding where to go for college. Indiana University has its own optometry school and going there for undergrad opened opportunities to explore the field more than if I had gone elsewhere, such as vision screenings for the sports teams, taking a class with the optometry students, and vision-related research. 

2. Something that I appreciated about the journey to and through optometry is the amount of support between classmates and colleagues. Since the field is relatively small, I feel like there are plenty of opportunities for everyone to pursue their personal interests and support from faculty/classmates really helps get you through the difficult parts of school.

4. How was your faith a part of this journey? Was there anything that made you feel like God allowed you to do this line of work? 

1. In terms of choosing my career, I had plenty of time to pray about this choice. I had a couple of Christian mentors that spoke truth over how God is working in my career journey. 

2. I’m also not going to lie, optometry school isn’t easy. Many tears have been shed and at times, I just had to stop and give everything to God, remembering that school isn’t everything! I also had a lot of anxiety when I first started seeing patients in clinic, and taking the time to pause and pray over the day and the patients (who I prob will never see again) helped keep me focused on the patients and worry less about my performance/grades. 

5. What is something most people don’t know about your job? What did you wish more people knew?

1. Optometry is more than just prescribing glasses/contacts! Even for people who have never worn glasses, you would be surprised by what we can discover during an eye exam. For example, if you have trouble reading for long periods of time or playing sports, consider an evaluation with vision therapy! There could be an issue with how well your eyes work together, even if you can see 20/20. It is also important to get a dilated eye exam once in a while to look in the back of the eye! We can see signs of diabetes and hypertension, among other conditions, that can be undiagnosed otherwise. And as always, if you see any flashes (bright lights that shouldn’t be there) or sudden floaters (little shadows over your vision, could look like a curtain), make sure to schedule an urgent visit to your eyecare provider!

6. What made the sacrifices you’ve made to pursue this career path worth it? If you don’t feel like it was worth it, why is that?

1. It’s easy to prioritize school over living life, telling yourself you’ll enjoy things later after graduation. I can’t count the number of times I’ve said no to visiting family, going to church events, or getting to spend more time with friends in the name of studying for an upcoming exam. There’s a big financial cost for optometry school and all its equipment/certification board exams too. Still, seeing patients and applying all the knowledge I’ve learned makes it feel worthwhile. I can simply focus on the patient and do my best to help them. It also isn’t why I’m staying in this career, but it’s very encouraging when the patients themselves tell you that they appreciated having you for their exam! It’s a glimpse of your potential future impact.

7. What is a typical day/week in your life like?

1. As a third-year student at SUNY, I have lectures 3 times a week that are also available virtually via Zoom and recorded for later. I also am in clinic 2-4x/week, but that depends on the time of the quarter and how you arrange your schedule (it could be more or less, minimum 1-2x/week). 

8. Flash forward 5 years, where do you see yourself in your career? If you’re not in the same field you’re in now, why did you make that change?

1. I’m at the point of school where I have to start thinking about where I want to work. Right now, I’m considering looking for a hospital-based practice, but also can see myself a couple days at a sports vision therapy practice. It’s still to be determined, I want to go through my rotations first and explore a little more!

9. Looking back, what would you tell yourself? 

1. School is important but so is living life! Take an hour daily to call a friend/family member, take a walk, read a book, and do anything else that’s not eye-related. Finding a good church community is so important too, they understand that school is a lot but will always be there for you when you need them.

10. What would you tell anyone interested in this field? 

1. There’s a lot of sub-specialties in optometry (ex. glaucoma, vision therapy, specialty contact lenses, peds, etc.)! Be open to all paths and take every opportunity you can, without burning yourself out (which is very easy to do). And try not to compare yourself to others! Everyone is struggling and doing their best, it’s their first time through life too. 

11. Can you be contact or reached if someone has any further questions? (If you’d rather not post it then just write they can reach out to me to get your info or that you’d prefer that wouldn’t be available at all) 

1. You can reach me via studygram IG @cyndeeli (not super active on the account but I promised I’ll get back to you 🙂 )