Can Vision Therapy help with Attention Problems?
A lot of kids may not realize how they are struggling, and their actions could be attributed to other problems, like behavior issues. It might be seen as Attention Deficit when they struggle in the classroom, or in sports, when in reality it may be that their vision is not working the way it needs to be.
That’s why it’s so important to have regular exams, even if your child isn’t expressing that they are having any issues.
Vision is more than just eyesight, and seeing 20-20. It’s the way we are actually using our eyes and our vision, to function in the world around us.
What is Vision Therapy?
There is a difference between eyesight, and vision. Our eyesight is how well we see objects at distance and up close, but vision is what happens in our brain.
Our brain has to actually process the information that our eyesight is giving us, and sometimes there's a disconnect between the two. This can lead to issues in the classroom, at work, while driving, and in sports.
Vision therapy is a way to have the brain, eyes, and body have an easier time all talking to each other. We use special glasses or contact lenses, prisms exercises, and some computer activities to not only help the eyes gather the information correctly, but for our brain to also process that information to help us in the classroom, at work, and in sports.
Our individualized visual vision therapy program consists of in-person therapy sessions along with supplemental home activities.
Who would benefit with Vision Therapy?
Patients come to us with multiple symptoms, and previous diagnoses, such as dyslexia, dysgraphia, ADHD, post-concussion syndrome, headaches, dizziness, and double vision. All of these issues can cause a decrease in school and sports performance and even lead to anxiety.
We see a lot of kids struggling in the classroom with reading, handwriting, and attention issues. These can all be the result of binocular vision dysfunction, when both of the eyes are not working together as a team, or not able to track appropriately across a page when we're reading, or a ball across a field.
We also have children and adults with more noticeable issues of strabismus, which is when one or both eyes are turning in or out, and amblyopia, which is where one or both eyes are not able to be corrected to 20/20 even with glasses or contacts.
We have a handful of patients that have had car accidents, strokes, traumatic brain injuries, or different neurological conditions that can also cause them to have similar symptoms.