westquote

Was there any point (or several) during those 5 years when you almost decided to kill the project? What kept you going?

"Children generally should have their first eye exam at 6 months of age, another exam at age three and again at the start of school. Risk-free children should then continue to have their eyes examined every two years until age 18."

Did your parents not take you for an eye exam ever, or did your vision problems all emerge in the last few years? If your parents haven't taken you in for your annual check-up yet (which is free under most health insurance), you might want to schedule it and see what other quality-of-life benefits you might discover.