Susan Scott is a local artist and patient of Dr Dawn Bearden at Visionary Eyecare(The Indepenedent Doctor of Optometry Next to Lenscrafters) in Pembroke Pines. She had previously always had a problem finding an eye doctor who could address all of her creative and artistic visual needs.
One day she was having problems doing an art project and her friend, Evelyn (who is an artist and a patient of Dr Bearden) recommended that Susan go to see Dr Dawn Bearden.
This is Susan’s story…
While Susan and Evelyn were doing an art project together - Susan had THREE pairs of glasses in front of her and still seemed to be having difficulty seeing what she was doing. None of the glasses seemed to meet her artistic visual needs. She felt that she just could not find an Eye Doctor that could give her a prescription that would allow her to see clearly enough to create her art.
After Susan was recommended to Optometrist, Dr Dawn Bearden, from her friend, Evelyn, she realized that Dr Bearden is ALSO an artist. Evelyn originally met Dr Bearden Evelyn because Evelyn was teaching Dr Bearden how to make stained glass art at her store – Glass By Design. Dr Bearden is also passionate about photography. Dr Bearden started taking pictures around age 12 when she was in middle school, she had minored in Photography in College and also had recently attended the Ft Lauderdale Art Institute for Photography. For as long as she can remember – Dr Bearden has ALWAYS had a camera in her hand. Susan felt a connection with Dr Bearden because she felt that they were both artistic and creative individuals. She felt at ease because she knew that THIS particular Doctor would understand her specific visual needs.
After the eye exam, Susan was very happy with the thoroughness of the eye examination. She FINALLY received a glasses prescription that met ALL of her artistic visual needs and she was impressed that the Doctor answered all of her questions in a very clear manner in which Susan could completely understand.
Susan recently moved to Washington, DC – BUT, she still plans yearly trips to South Florida so she can come to Visionary Eyecare and see Dr Dawn Bearden for her annual eye exam.
The above video is from EyeMaginations and gives a great description of what Cataracts are:
Cataracts are a normal and common part of the aging process but, they do not have to interfere with your lifestyle. A cataract is a cloudiness of the crystalline lens inside of your eye. As your lens gets cloudier, your vision will gradually become more blurred.
The human eye may best be compared to a camera. When you take a picture, the lens in the front of the camera allows light through and then focuses that light on the film in the back of the camera. When the light hits the film, a picture is taken. The eye works in much the same way.
In youth, the crystalline lens of your eye is clear and allows light to pass through. Light is focused by your cornea and your crystalline lens onto a thin layer of nerve tissue in the back of your eye called – the retina. Your retina works like the film in a camera. When the focused light hits the retina – a “picture” is taken and sent to your brain.
While a dirty camera lens blurs a picture, any significant cataract or cloudiness in your crystalline lens will blur the images that you see.
When a cataract becomes significant – your vision can become quite blurry. It is suggested if your vision drops below 20/40 or so….then it is common to be told to see an eye surgeon to have cataract surgery.
This surgery involves taking out the cloudy crystalline lens (cataract) and replacing it with a clear implant. Often your surgeon can even do a calculation that can place your current eyeglass prescription into the lens implant. The result after the cataract surgery can be much clearer vision and often there is no need for glasses after the surgery!
For more information – see your local Optometrist or Dr Dawn Bearden or Dr Anna-Kay Tenn in Pembroke Pines 954-430-3808 or Sunrise 954-851-9949 for your yearly eye exam and they will be happy to discuss cataracts and cataract surgery options with you!
Starlene Carter came into Visionary Eyecare (Next to Lenscrafters) in Pembroke Pines in January 2001. She was in the area and decided to stop in to schedule an eye examination for herself the following week. She was not intending to get an eye exam that day – her plans were to spend that day shopping!
Our Office Manager, Carol Marsh, was there that day and convinced Starlene to go ahead and get her eye exam that same day since the office was not busy and the Doctor (Dr Dawn Bearden) would be able to see her right away. Starlene agreed but, was insistent that she would NOT have her pupils dilated that day. Her shopping was waiting and she did not want to “mess up her day” with that “dilation thing”. Carol told her that the Doctor would talk to her during the exam about the importance of dilation. Still Starlene would just not be convinced….
When Starlene met Dr Bearden for the first time – Dr Bearden began to explain and stress the importance of pupillary dilation. Dr Bearden explained that this was Starlene’s first eye exam in our Visionary Eyecare office, there could be a multitude of eye diseases or problems that Starlene may be unaware of (because most eye problems do NOT cause any symptoms like blurry vision, headache, eye pain etc) and that Dr Bearden may NOT be able to detect these issues if Starlene did not allow the Doctor to dilate her pupils. Dr Bearden also explained that Florida laws requires your Optometrist to dilate your pupils on the initial eye exam when you have an eye exam with a new Optometrist. Reluctantly…..VERY reluctantly….Starlene finally agreed.
This simple decision absolutely saved Starlene’s vision.
During the eye exam, all seemed very normal. Starlene had no family history of eye disease, she was able to see 20/20 in each eye with her new glasses prescription, she had NO eye pain, NO headaches, NO discomfort, her eye pressures were normal, her blood pressure was normal, good color vision etc. But, when Dr Dawn Bearden dilated Starlene’s pupils – she saw 2 very LARGE retinal tears (retinal detachments) in Starlene’s right eye that posed a HUGE threat to Starlene’s vision in her right eye. These tears could have eventually caused blindness in her eye had they not been detected during the dilation and then properly treated.
Immediately, Dr Bearden called Dr Jay Levy – who is a local ophthalmologist who specializes in surgery of the retina. Dr Bearden sent Starlene to see Dr Levy – who did surgery on Starlene’s right eye to repair the retinal tears in her right eye.
Starlene is now a loyal patient of Dr Dawn Bearden’s. She is still able to see 20/20 in each eye and has had no further problems from the retinal tears that were surgically repaired by Dr Levy. Each and every year during her routine eye exam with Dr Bearden, you can find Starlene out in the waiting room telling her story to ALL of the other patients in the office. She does a GREAT job in educating people and everyone that she comes in contact with about the importance of yearly eye examinations and the VITALimportance of pupillary dilation.
It saved Starlene’s vision…..and it can do the same for you and for the people in your life who come in for their annual eye exam!
Scott Nelson had been a trusting and loyal patient of Visionary Eyecare in Pembroke Pines for over 10 years. Earlier this year he even recorded a public Video Testimonial for his Eye Doctor – Dr Dawn Bearden – which appeared on YouTube, our blog and our website. Tragically, on Tuesday September 29th on the 10pm news, Channel 7’s reporter – Nicole Linsalata – reported that Scott and his wife (Julie) were found shot in their home in Pembroke Pines. During the news report – they aired clips of Scott’s Video Testimonial for his Optometrist (Dr Bearden) that they found on YouTube.
According to the news report by Channel 7 – Scott’s 18yo son, Andrew, called police around 330am saying that someone had broken into their home and that his parents had been shot. Scott and his wife were taken to Memorial Regional Hospital where he was listed in critical condition and his wife was listed in serious condition.
The news report stated that Scott fell in love and married his next door neighbor (Julie) on the 4th of July of this year. Friends said that he was a wonderful friend and a happy newlywed.
Dr Bearden clearly remembers Scott to be a very sweet, caring and loyal man. She was shocked and deeply saddened by this tragic news of her longtime patient.
Did you want to learn how to use Social Media (Facebook, Blogging, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn etc.) in order to create an enormous presence online….which will in turn, build your business?? Do you have a website now but, it is not getting a lot of hits or attention from Google?? Do you want to learn how to rank high on Google for FREE?? Social Media (when used properly) can help!
If you are in the Ft Lauderdale area on July 18th – you can come and hear DrDawn Beardenspeak at the Health and Wealth Annex to get more educated about this subject. Learn how to harness the POWER of the INTERNET using FREE Social Media resources. The 2 day weekend event will be held at theFt Lauderdale Hilton Marina and is only $149 (valued at $995).
Robert White- author and keynote speaker on The Power of Extraordinary Results in Organizational Leadership, successfully handling rapid change, entrepreneurial success and being more personally effective
David Naylor – will teach you how to their Inner Passions and get on a path of reconditioning themselves to Live an Extraordinary Lifestyle. He finds ways to have people look at their lives in a different way to discover and take on their passions in life, and getting themselves out of their own way.
Andy Henriquez – creator of The Fundamentals of Real Estate Wholesaling course – learn how to find properties, analyze potential deals, attract buyers, and get to the closing. The course is simple and easy-to-follow and has been designed to assist you in getting your very first wholesale deal.
Errict Rhett – former NFL player will speak on Perseverance and Excellence. He is the CEO of both Errict Rhett Custom Homes and The Errict Rhett Foundation, which was originally founded in Cleveland, Ohio and supports the provision of affordable housing.
Dr Dawn Bearden – Local Broward County Eye Doctor / Optometrist from Visionary Eyecare (3 Independent Doctor of Optometry Offices located next to Lenscrafters in Pembroke Pines and Sunrise / Sawgrass Mills Mall and Pearle Vision in Davie) and educator specializing in Harnessing the Power of Social Media Marketing and Networking
Frank Polancic- Author of “Why Wait? Create Your Soul Mate Now”. He will speak about about using the Law of Attraction in finding your Soul Mate
Gustavo Pinero – will educate you about Transforming Your Mind Around your Health – the dynamics that the mind and food have on healing. Gustavo is a Seminar Leader, Coach, Visionary, Healer, Medical Intuitive, Advocate for Synergy between Eastern and Western Medicine, Board of Trustee Member for Students of Medicine.
Lee Clark - As a life coach he specializes in guiding clients in discovering their passions via a Passion Test, defining career options and furthering the Discovery of their Life’s Purpose.
Michael Kennedy- from Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC speaks on Creating Your Own Environment in Corporate America
A Visual Representation of the Visionary Eyecare Blog
Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words!!
And sometimes that picture is made from a thousand words…..
Here are some visual representations of the Visionary Eyecare Blog from Wordle.
It visibly shows that our blog talks about the Eye, an Optometrist, an Eye Exam, Pembroke Pines, Sunrise, Eye Dr, Contacts, Dr Dawn Bearden, Dr Emily McCulluh, Dr Anna-Kay Tenn, Lenscrafters, an Eye Doctor, Vision, Eye Care, Eye Health and more….
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Just by scanning one of these images – a reader can immediately get a feel for what the Visionary Eyecare Blog is all about!!
Ask Dr Dawn Bearden… or any Eye Doctor or Staff member at Visionary Eyecare in Pembroke Pines or Sunrise….and they will always tell you that having an annual eye exam is very important. But why?!?!???
Is it because your eyeglasses prescription changes every year and you need to get new glasses?!?!??! Well, often the prescription can change from year to year BUT, there are MORE IMPORTANT reasons to have your eyes checked annually.
Martha Stewart recently interviewed Optometrist, Dr Rhonda Robinson, about annual eye examinations. Dr. Robinson explained that the reasons to have an annual eye exam change as a person goes through each life stage.
We are in a new age where the visual demands of children and teens are being stressed in completely different ways – iPods, cell phones, computers, Blackberries, MySpace & Facebook, texting….the list is endless.
Even SMALL changes in a prescription can make a HUGE difference in visual comfort.
Adults need to have a yearly eye exam to ensure good eye and systemic health. The majority of eye medical issues DO NOT cause any visual problems or blur…eye health issues like glaucoma, retinal holes and tears, tumors in and behind the eye etc may be completely asymptomatic. A comprehensive eye exam can also help detect systemic problems that you may be unaware of – like diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, multiple sclerosis, brain tumors and more…
Adults around 40 and over usually experience near vision blur called Presbyopia. Now there are a multitude of options to help correct Presbyopia and give clear near vision while reading – reading glasses, multifocal/bifocal/progressive eye glasses, multifocal/bifocal contact lenses.
Dr Dawn Bearden regulary “tweets” (writes posts on Twitter) for Visionary Eyecare in South Florida under the Twitter screen name “VisionaryEyes” (@VisionaryEyes). Dr Bearden connects with numerous eye and health experts on Twitter from around the globe to bring you the most up to date and cutting edge information in eye and health care news.
When you follow @VisionaryEyes on Twitter you will always find interesting “tweets” about eye health care, eye health tips, inspiring quotes, health news, any new blog posts that were recently posted on our blog (www.VisionaryEyecare BLOG.com), real time conversations with local South Floridians, eye related trivia, Twitter Tips and much more!!
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Click the Twitter Logo...
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Twitter is the FASTEST growing social network in history. According to Mashable – The Social Media Guide (@Mashable), Twitter has grown a staggering 1382% in the past year. In January 2009 alone, Twitter grew 50% in ONE month. Wow. This is a POWERFUL social media platform for those who understand how to harness its power.
Most people have the perception that Twitter is for people tweeting about what they ate for breakfast….this is NOT what Twitter is all about. You can connect with people in your local community or all around the globe who are experts in fields that you may be interested in learning about. People like Robert Kiyosaki (@TheRealKiyosaki), Donald Trump (@DonaldJTrump), Oprah (@Oprah), Anthony Robbins (@TonyRobbins), Larry King (@kingsthings) and more…all tweet regularly. Its truly a wealth of knowledge.
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If you’ve never checked out Twitter….go to www.Twitter.com/VisionaryEyes and check it out. Maybe you will even decide to jump in, give it a try and start Tweeting – its a lot of fun and very educational!
Dr Florian Safner, Dr Dawn Bearden, Dr Ross Goukler and Rhonda Kratz - RVP of Lenscrafters
In March, Lenscrafters held its annual “Summit” in Nashville, Tennessee for the company’s top executives and leaders. Dr Dawn Bearden not only manages 2 Independent Doctor of Optometry Offices Next to Lenscrafters (In Pembroke Pines and Sunrise) but, she also serves on the Lenscrafters Optometric Advisory Council. Dr Bearden was invited to the Summit along with other leading Eye Doctors affilitated with Lenscrafters.
Lenscrafters, who’s new brand story is “Lenscrafters Loves Your Eyes“, recognized several leaders of the company. Those who received awards had delivered above and beyond exceptional service and had a positive impact on the company, their peers, customers, patients and the public. Dr Bearden was honored with one of these few distinctive awards.
Dave Reaves, VP of Lenscrafters and Dr Dawn Bearden
Here are some excerpts from the award:
What does someone who creates a Mind Blowing Patient Experience look like to me?
For those of you who don’t know her, she is an amazing clinician, entrepreneur and a Guru when it comes to using the internet for promoting eye care.
Spend two minutes on her website and you’ll be emotionally connected to her, her practice, her patients and her cause: educating the public on the importance of preserving sight.
This individual provides a consistent and a thorough eye exam experience that keeps her patients coming back year after year. Which is great news, especially in those cases when her drive to deliver a consistent and thorough eye exam turns out to be life saving too.
Lenscrafters Summit Recognition Award
This is a story that is connected to this Doctor’s strong leadership. Not only did she provide life-saving care to her patient, she then used her website and her blog to educate her peers and the public about the importance of annual eye exams with her story about her patient, Judy.
Judy is now this doctor’s patient for life and an advocate for the importance of annual eye exams.
Judy McNabnever really felt the need for yearly eye examinations until shestarted to need glasses in her 40’s and 50’s. Like most people, she thought she did not need to see an eye doctor if she did not need to wear eyeglasses or contact lenses.
One day she came intoVisionary Eyecare in Pembroke Pines for an eye exam because she lost her glasses. She was not having any problems with her eyes, no eye pain or pressure, no headaches, no vision problems….nothing. She just wanted to quickly get an eye examination so she could get a new prescription to buy a new pair of glasses at Lenscrafters.
During the eye exam at Visionary Eyecare (the Independent Doctors of Optometry next to Lenscrafters in Pembroke Pines), Judy was able to see 20/20 in the examination room, her eyes looked perfectly healthy during the dilated retinal examination and also on the digital photographs taken of the inside of Judy’s eyes. During the examination, Eye Doctor - Dr Dawn Beardenrecommended that Judy get a visual field (peripheral vision) test as a baseline – because Judy was over the age of 40 (much like a baseline mammogram is done at age 40) . This test is an advanced test that is not part of the routine eye examination and would take extra time and cost Judy extra money (unfortunately – unlike a baseline mammogram- most medical insurances and vision plans and will NOT pay for this preventative testing as a baseline). At first, Judy did not want to take the time to do the additional test butDr Bearden explained that visual field testing could uncover early and subtle eye health issues that sometimes a routine eye exam could not. Judy was convinced and did the additional visual field test… and the results came back positive – TWICE.
Dr Bearden immediately referred Judy to an ophthalmologist for a secondary evaluation. At first, Judy did not really want to see the ophthalmologist…..she kept telling Doctor Bearden that her vision was fine and she was not having any problems or symptoms….but, Dr Bearden INSISTED that she go for the secondary evaluation. Judy did see the ophthalmologist, who then referred her to Bascom Palmer in Miami to see an eye doctor that specializes in eye tumors and eye cancer.
Judy was diagnosed with a tumor in her left eye and had laser treatment to help destroy the tumor in her left eye. This was in 2005. Now in 2009 Judy still has good vision in her left eye (she is able to see 20/25 in that eye). Luckily, the tumor did not spread to anywhere else in her body and the surgeon was able to treat the tumor without having to remove Judy’s eye.
Judy shares her experience in the above and below videos. She reminds us all that YEARLY eye exams are very important to help detect eye health issues that you may be unaware of… since many eye health issues DO NOT CAUSE SYMPTOMS and can only be detected by a COMPREHENSIVE eye exam.
Well, if you were there – we’re sure you had a great time….Free Gift, Free Chair Massage, Raffle for Free IPod!!Visionary Eyecare in Pembroke Pines created a really fun Patient Appreciation event along with Lenscrafters Customer Appreciation event….. and here are the pictures to prove it!
It is a day that we give back to our community in partnership with Lenscrafters and Pearle Vision to provide Free Eyecare and Free Eyewear to select members of our community.
Here are videos of three of our patients who came in for their eye exam with eye doctor, Dr Dawn Bearden, at Visionary Eyecare(Independent Doctor of Optometry Next to Pearle Vision) in Davie:
Our Patient Amber:
Our Patient Kandra:
Our Patient Corina….her Dad, Cesar, talks about Visionary Eyecare:
Luxottica is the parent company for Lenscrafters and Pearle Vision and they have created the Luxottica Group Foundation called OneSight (www.OneSight.org)
OneSight is dedicated to improving vision through outreach, research and education. Visionary Eyecare previously contributed to the community for the past 12 years through “The Gift of Sight” at our Independent Doctor of Optometry locations next to Lenscrafters in Pembroke Pines and Sunrise (INSIDE the Sawgrass Mills Mall). This year, the “Gift of Sight” has merged with “Pearle Vision Foundation” and “Community I Care” to form OneSight
Over 250 million adults and children suffer from poor vision because they do not have access to eye examinations and glasses. OneSight helps the world see through making a significant difference in the world for people who need them – locally and globally. Over 6.5 MILLION people have received eye care and eye wear all over the world from OneSight!!
A few years agoGinny Dixon (who is a Pulitzer Prize winning photographer, an instructor at the Miami Ad School and also Dr. Dawn Bearden’s wonderful friend) created a project as a fundraiser for the Center for Assisted Living of South Florida called Uncensored Life: Raw Beauty.
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The mission of the project was to be an innovative visual arts project designed to inspire the public to create new perceptions, transform stereotypes and break through personal obstacles by expanding awareness of women with physical challenges.
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On May 19th 2006 the project was turned into a hugely successful photo exhibit portaying 20 women with disabilities and physical challenges as strong, sexy, uplifting and inspiring photographic images. Ginny Dixon invited Dr Bearden to be one of the 10 contibuting photographers (whose awesome pictures are displayed on this blog post) for the exhibit – which, of course, was an invitation that she was honored to accept! Many of the photos that night were enlarged to sizes much larger than life – some as big as 10ft by 10ft. Dr Bearden was in awe to see her own photograph enlarged to around 10×10 and in a successful Miami photo exhibit!! It was a truely amazing and inspirational project.
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Since the open of the inspiring photo exhibit in Miami Art District and the Miami Design District in 2006 – which had originally started as a fundraiser….it now has ballooned and continues to expand to other states and countries. This project has now blossomed into its very own book“The Raw Beauty Project”…..withALL proceeds going to the Center for Assisted Living of South Florida.
All proceeds go to the Center for Assisted Living of South Florida.
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A Quote from the Raw Beauty Project Website: Raw Beauty was a collaboration of 10 photographers and 20 women with disabilities. The photographers worked closely with the women to create images that were anything but predictable when one thinks of a disability. You are invited to look past what you perceive as disabled and see them as powerful, beautiful and extremely extraordinary women that they are.
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Dr Dawn Bearden was really excited to be a invited as a contributing photographer for the Raw Beauty project….and she’s totally thrilled that the project has now come out as its very own book with all of the proceeds going to the Center for Assisted Living in Florida.
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In addition to having a passion for being an Eye Doctor / Optometrist – Dr. Bearden has always had a true passion for photography. She started taking pictures and developing them in the darkroom when she was in grade school (around age 11). In high school she was in the photography club and in college, her Minor was Photography. Year after year, through Optometry school and beyond - you would see her with the camera in her hand at every event – just enjoying every minute behind the camera.
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After many years as a hobby, Dr Bearden decided to take it to the next level in 2004 when she enrolled in The Art Institute of Ft Lauderdale for Photography. Here is where she really learned the details about lighting, composition and flow. She also started taking workshops and courses to better herself as a professional photographer. She has been taught in workshops byMatthew Jordan Smith (a celebrity fashion photographer from America’s Next Top Model and author of Sepia Dreams) and Seth Resnick(a world famous editorial, corporate and stock photographer). Photography has always been and always will be one of Dr Bearden’s true passions. The Raw Beauty Project was her first photographic exhibit.
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Here is a picture of the postcard for the Miami exhibit that took place in
Miami’s Art and Design Districts in 2006:
Uncensored Life: Raw Beauty - postcard for exhibit in Miami
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Ginnyhad a dream…..and she made it happen….she is a true leader and a real VISIONARY.
Pictures from Dr Bearden’s birthday at Visionary Eyecare next to Pearle Vision in Davie…birthday cake brought by Dr McCulloh and Ralph, Balloons and other fun stuff from Bronson, Andrew and friend’s and patient’s of Dr Bearden….Julio Astacio and Dawn Astacio.
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