What is Vision Therapy?

Depending on the type of problem found sometimes glasses can help.  If glasses won't solve the vision problem then vision therapy is often your best treatment option.

Vision therapy is much like “physical therapy”, but rather than treating the muscles of the body, it works on the eyes and visual system.  It is an invaluable tool that has changed not only our patients’ vision, but has improved many related areas of their lives as well.

The first step of a vision therapy program is a thorough evaluation to determine if vision therapy is the best course of care.  Having had extensive experience treating patients of all ages, our doctors easily make our younger patients comfortable during this evaluation.

Research has shown that vision therapy can be instrumental in helping increase visual attention spans for children learning to read.  Often, children who had been falling behind in reading are able to improve their performance greatly by reducing the effects of their vision problems.  Vision therapy truly allows kids to enjoy learning and become more confident, productive and happier people.

What Equipment Does a Vision Therapist Use?

Just as a physical therapist might use treadmills or weights, a vision therapist uses hi-tech equipment including prisms, eye patches, filtered lenses, computerized systems as well as a variety of other specialized equipment to conduct vision therapy sessions.

In our office, we use many interactive computer programs that our younger patients enjoy and that result in long-lasting success.

Not only do the programs offer a proven, more effective method of delivering therapy, but the "fun" nature of the programs keeps children motivated to work, and thus, we find that results come quicker and stronger for our patients.

How Long is a Vision Therapy Program?

The number of office visits required depends on the diagnosis and the age of the patient. Vision therapy programs typically involve one to two in-office sessions throughout the week, for a varying number of months depending on need.  We usually prescribe home exercises to reinforce office therapy.

Who Benefits from Vision Therapy?

Children and adults with visual challenges, such as:

• Learning-related Vision Problems
  Vision Therapy can help those individuals who lack the necessary visual skills for effective reading, writing, and learning (i.e., eye movement and focusing skills, convergence, eye-hand activity, visual memory skills, etc.). 
  
  To learn more about learning-related vision problems, visit any of these web pages on:
  • 20-20 Eyesight and 20/20 Eye Screenings - Not Perfect for Learning and School!,
  • All About Learning Related Vision Problems,
  • Learning Related Vision Problems and Attention Deficit Disorders (ADD/ADHD),Dyslexia, and Learning Disabilities (LDs),
  • Eyesight & Vision: Vision Therapy Helps Students with Reading Problems or Reading Below Grade Level, Handwriting, Homework, Spelling, and Math, etc.,
  • Eyesight & Vision: Vision Therapy Helps Students Who've Been Labeled Attention Deficit (ADHD), Slow Learners, Lazy Students, Behavior Problems, Special Education, Gifted Learning Disabled, etc.,
  • Vision Therapy as Treatment for Learning Disabilities.
    
• Poor Binocular (2-eyed) Coordination 
  Vision Therapy helps individuals develop normal coordination and teamwork of the two eyes (binocular vision). When the two eyes fail to work together as an effective team, performance in many areas can suffer (reading, sports, depth perception, eye contact, etc.). 
  
  To learn more about binocular (two-eyed) vision, visit any of these web pages on:
  • What is Binocular Vision?,
  • What is Depth Perception and Stereo Vision?,
  • Adults and Children Gain Binocular Vision and 3D Depth Perception,
  • Adults and Children Improve Eye Tracking and Eye Teaming,
  • The Eye Hop - Explore Your Binocular Vision,
  • The Framing Game - A Binocular Vision Test,
  • What is Seeing Double or Double Vision?
    
    
• Convergence Insufficiency (common near vision disorder)
  
  Recent scientific research -- funded by the National Eye Institute and conducted at Mayo Clinic -- has proven that in-office Vision Therapy is the best treatment for Convergence Insufficiency. 
  
  To learn all about Convergence Insufficiency, go to:
  • What is Convergence Insufficiency Disorder?
  • What is Intermittent Exotropia caused by Convergence Insufficiency?
    
• Amblyopia (lazy eye), Diplopia (double vision), and Strabismus (cross-eyed, wandering eye, eye turns, etc.) 
  Vision Therapy programs offer much higher cure rates for turned eyes and/or lazy eye when compared to eye surgery, glasses, and/or patching, without therapy. The earlier the patient receives Vision Therapy the better, however, our office successfully treats patients well past 21 years of age. 
  
  Recent scientific research has disproven the long held belief that children with lazy eye, or amblyopia, can’t be helped after age 7. 
  
  To learn more about crossed eyes, eye turns, or lazy eye, visit any of these web pages on:
  • About Eye Turns: Constant (Always) or Intermittent (Sometimes, Occasionally),
  • Amblyopia, Lazy Eye, and Strabismus - Not All The Same!,
  • Children's Vision: Amblyopia (Lazy Eye), Strabismus (Crossed Eyes, Cross-eyed, Wall-eyed, Intermittent Exotropia, Hypertropia, Esotropia, etc.), Exophoria...,
  • Eye Muscle Surgery: Treatment for Strabismus, Lazy Eye, Intermittent Exotropia, etc.,
  • What is Amblyopia or Lazy Eye?,
  • What is Convergence Insufficiency Disorder, Intermittent Exotropia, Exophoria?,
  • What is Seeing Double or Double Vision?,
  • Vision Therapy Eye Exercises as Treatment for Amblyopia (Lazy Eye), Strabismus (Crossed eyes), Convergence Insufficiency Disorder, etc..
  
  
• Stress-related Visual Problems - Blurred Vision, Visual Stress from Reading and Computers, Eye Strain Headaches, and/or Vision-induced Stomachaches or Motion Sickness
  21st century life demands more from our vision than ever before.  Many children and adults constantly use their near vision at school, work and home.  Environmental stresses on the visual system (including excessive computer use or close work) can induce blurred vision, eyestrain, headaches, etc. To learn about these visual problems and vision therapy, see:
  • What is a Common Near Vision Problem and the Leading Cause of Eyestrain, Blurred Vision, Double Vision, and/or Headaches?,
  • Told They Had 20/20, but Still Had Problems...,
  • Eye Exercises for Blurred Vision, Blurry Eyesight (Reading and Computer Work),
  • Dizziness, Motion Sickness, Eye Strain, Stomachaches, Double Vision...,
  • Eye Exercises for Eye Strain, Eye Fatigue (Computer Work and Reading),
  • Relief from Frequent or Chronic Headaches, Visual Stress, Eyestrain, and/or Stomachaches during or after Reading, School or Office Work.
    
    
• Visual Rehabilitation for Special Needs - Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Stroke, Birth Injury, Brain Damage, Head Injury, Whiplash, Cerebral Palsy, MS, etc.
  Vision can be compromised as a result of neurological disorders or trauma to the nervous system. Vision Therapy can effectively treat the visual consequences of brain trauma (including double vision). 
  
  To learn more about visual rehabilitation with vision therapy, see:
  • Visual Rehabilitation following Brain Damage, Birth Injury, Head Injury, Stroke, Acquired Brain Injury, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), etc.,
  • Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI): Blurred Vision, Reading Problems, Double Vision, Eye Pain, Headaches with Reading, Visual Field Loss...,
  • Brain Injury Rehabilitation - Success Stories with Vision Therapy.
  
  
• Visual Rehabilitation for Special Needs - Developmental Delays, Visual Perceptual Visual-Motor Deficits, Attention Deficit Disorders, Autism Spectrum Disorders 
  
  To learn more about vision therapy as it relates to developmental delays or disorders, see:
  • Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders (ADHD): Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatments,
  • Autism Spectrum Disorders: Eye Examinations, Eyesight, Vision Therapy,
  • Vision Therapy for Visual Perceptual Visual-Motor Deficits,
  • Article: Diagnosis of Non-Verbal Learning Disorder (NLD), Hidden Disability.
    
• Sports Vision Improvement
  Strong visual skills are critical to sports success. Not much happens in sports until your eyes instruct your hands and body as to what to do! We can measure and successfully improve eye-hand coordination, visual reaction time, peripheral vision, eye focusing, eye tracking and teaming, visualization skills, and more. Find out how children and adults improve coordination and sports ability through Vision Therapy.

Is Vision Therapy the same as “eye exercises”, “Colored Lenses”, “pinhole glasses” or “orthoptics”?

There are a number of programs of "eye exercises" and techniques for improving vision that are not associated with Vision Therapy, such as colored lenses or other programs advertised to quickly improve eyesight.

Likewise, education therapy and vision therapy are not to be confused.  We do not treat learning problems directly.  We treat them only to the extent that an underlying vision problem is the cause of the learning issue.  Once this sort of vision problem is treated, we may refer a patient to a tutor to help them with learning techniques.

Orthoptics means to straighten the eye with exercises.  Depending on the diagnosis, sometimes the vision therapy program will include orthoptics.  However, there is much more to vision therapy than just orthoptics, for example vision therapy can include:

1. Pursuit and saccade therapy (to improve the speed and accuracy of eye movements)
2. Visual-vestibular therapy (to integrate eye movements with balance)
3. Visual perceptual therapy (to enhance visual information processing)
4. Eye-hand coordination therapy (to develop visually guided movement)
5. Accommodative therapy (to enhance focusing stability, flexibility, and comfort)
6. Visual attention therapy
7. Peripheral awareness therapy (enhances the use of vision as a simultaneous sense, synchronously receiving and processing multiple inputs)
8. Visual-spatial awareness including laterality, directionality, and visual imagery
9. Visual-auditory integration
10. Orthoptics (mechanics of eye movements)

Signs & Symptoms of a Vision Problem >>