James Chin

Hi! I’m Dr. Chin and I was born and raised in Spring, Texas. In middle school, I failed a vision screening at school and had my first visit with the local neighborhood optometrist. I still remember my first eye exam and my fascination with the phoropter (the machine we use when we ask “1 or 2?”). I was less excited for the unflattering wire frames my mom picked out.
My childhood fascination later led me to my career in optometry. I attended the University of Houston, where I completed my degree in nutrition science as well as my doctorate of optometry. I completed my internship rotations at the Community Eye Clinic in Fort Worth, Texas and Cedar Springs Eye Clinic in Dallas, Texas where I received extensive training in the treatment of diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, cataracts and fitting specialty contact lenses. I particularly enjoy discussing and treating myopia management and dry eye disease.
My father owned and ran his own pharmacy, and my grandfather before him owned a small grocery store in Houston. I shadowed my dad at his pharmacy, and always admired his personable approach to making sure customers were informed and taken good care of. As a result, patient education became a core emphasis of my practice as I want to ensure that my patients have an understanding of their ocular health and can take a proactive, preventative stance.
I started practicing in 2017 after moving to DFW, but quickly became frustrated with the impersonal approach of rushed, in-and-out appointments. Entrepreneurship is in my blood, and I wanted to take my passion for eye health and patient education and make it my own. I knew I wanted to practice in a warm, welcoming environment and highlight independently owned frame lines. Thus, Thrive Eye + Optical was born. When I’m not looking at eyes, I enjoy cooking at home, catching up on my Netflix queue, trying new restaurants posted on the Facebook group Asian Grub in DFDUB, and hanging out with my two cats.