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Trusted Eyecare Since 1909
Vision Therapy
What Is Vision Therapy?
Vision is more than seeing 20/20! Many vision problems can be misdiagnosed or undetected, often leading to learning and behavioral problems. Vision Therapy is a "physical therapy" for the eyes that helps with common conditions such as crossed or turned eyes, "lazy eye," double vision, and focusing problems. This therapy is either done at the office or at home with a computer system, and requires a time committment for both the patient and the doctor. Once implemented, Vision Therapy has a very high success rate for curing symptoms of eyestrain, blurriness, and double vision.
How Do I Know If I Need Vision Therapy?
The first step in any Vision Therapy program is a comprehensive eye examination. After the general exam, we are able to see if a Vision Therapy Evaluation is needed, or if glasses need to be prescribed. A Vision Therapy Evaluation is an extended testing examination that evaluates not only the how well the eyes see, but how well they work together. Motor skills and visual processing skills are also assessed at this visit. After the evaluation, a written report summarizes the findings and recommendations.
If Vision Therapy is prescribed, the patient will be assigned exercises that work on the eye's flexibility in focusing, convergence (turning the eyes in) and divergence (turning the eyes out), depth perception, eye movement and tracking skills. Mastering these skills can often lead to decreases in eyestrain and increases in reading speed and comprehension.
Here are some signs and symptoms, taken from www.covd.org, that may indicate a vision problem.
Symptoms Checklist:
Vision is more than seeing 20/20! Many vision problems can be misdiagnosed or undetected, often leading to learning and behavioral problems. Vision Therapy is a "physical therapy" for the eyes that helps with common conditions such as crossed or turned eyes, "lazy eye," double vision, and focusing problems. This therapy is either done at the office or at home with a computer system, and requires a time committment for both the patient and the doctor. Once implemented, Vision Therapy has a very high success rate for curing symptoms of eyestrain, blurriness, and double vision.
How Do I Know If I Need Vision Therapy?
The first step in any Vision Therapy program is a comprehensive eye examination. After the general exam, we are able to see if a Vision Therapy Evaluation is needed, or if glasses need to be prescribed. A Vision Therapy Evaluation is an extended testing examination that evaluates not only the how well the eyes see, but how well they work together. Motor skills and visual processing skills are also assessed at this visit. After the evaluation, a written report summarizes the findings and recommendations.
If Vision Therapy is prescribed, the patient will be assigned exercises that work on the eye's flexibility in focusing, convergence (turning the eyes in) and divergence (turning the eyes out), depth perception, eye movement and tracking skills. Mastering these skills can often lead to decreases in eyestrain and increases in reading speed and comprehension.
Here are some signs and symptoms, taken from www.covd.org, that may indicate a vision problem.
Symptoms Checklist:
| Symptoms |  |
Possible Vision Problems |
| -Complains of blurred vision -Rubs eyes frequently -Squints |
|
Nearsightedness, Farsightedness, or Astigmatism inability to see clearly in the distance or up close |
| - Closes or covers one eye - Occasionally sees double - Rubs eyes frequently - Able to read for only a short time - Poor reading comprehension |
|
Eye coordination problems inability to coordinate the eyes together effectively |
| - Holds things very close - Complains of blurred vision - Poor reading comprehension - Says eyes are tired - Able to read for only a short time - Has headaches when reading |
|
Eye focusing problems inability to easily refocus eyes or maintain clear focus |
| - Moves head excessively when reading - Frequently looses place, skips lines when reading - Uses finger to keep place - Poor reading comprehension - Short attention span |
|
Eye tracking problems inadequate ability to smoothly and accurately move the eyes from one point to another |
|
- Mistakes words with similar beginnings |
|
Faulty visual form perception inability to discriminate differences in size, shape, or form |
| - Trouble visualizing what is read - Poor reading comprehension - Poor speller - Trouble with mathematical concepts - Poor recall of visually presented material |
|
Faulty visual memory inability to remember and understand what is seen |
| - Sloppy handwriting and drawing - Can't stay on lines - Poor copying skills - Can respond orally but not in writing |
|
Faulty visual motor integration inability to process and reproduce visual mages by writing or drawing |
| - Trouble learning right and left - Reverses letters and words - Trouble writing and remembering letters and numbers |
|
Difficulty with laterality and directionality Poor development of left/right awareness |
