Meares-Irlen Syndrome - colour dyslexia

[Hedgehog]

Our eldest, who is 20, has been diagnosed with the above recently.  (If it doesn't have the same name in the US, I'm sorry.. that's what it's called over here in the UK.)  She is adopted, and we weren't part of her life during her school years.  It staggers me that no-one picked up that she had a processing problem before.  Is there anyone here with a child who has Meares-Irlen?  I'd like to see what there is that we can do to help.. if anything.. she is at university currently, and they have promised colour filters, coloured paper and software for her laptop, although obviously it all takes time.

[ElizabethB]

Most of my students who need vision therapy are helped by the colored overlays and filters. The most common colors that help seem to be blue and green. Even the students that find blue the best seem to be helped by green, which is why I made the font in my online lessons green.

 

I have no idea if they end up not needing the filters after vision therapy because we move so often that we are gone by the time they complete vision therapy.

[City Mouse]

it is called Irlen Syndrome or Scotopic Senstivity Syndrome in the US. It is more well known in some places than others. My DS wears colored filters as part of his glasses in place of the overlays. The colored filters make obvious differences in his reading fluency. He also gets frequent headaches. He usually prefers to work in the dark which makes schoolwork difficult because I have old eyes and need good lighting. He has an even harder time with UV lighting.

[Pen]

I am helped by and sometimes us color filters after a brain injury.  There are special filters, but I also found that simple plastic report covers can help--try out various ones if available in an office supply or book store where she can go in person and see if any seem to make a difference.  And I like to use computer gamma ray glasses, but some that are more of a slight brownish,  rose ones that for me are too bright and garish.  I've not tried the super expensive amber yellow ones. 

[geodob]

Scotopic sensitivity causes a difficulty with reading, but it is wrong to associate it with Dyslexia.

 

Behind it, is the way that the eyes work?

At the back of the eye, their is only a tiny area for clear vision.

To cope with this, and form a larger clear image?

The eyes make about 4 movements a second.

Where they move in a pattern, and look around the image.

They take a snapshot each time, and then the brain puts these images together, to form a larger clear image.

 

But a crucial element of this process?

Is that the last image on the back of the eye?
Needs to be removed, so that a new one can be formed.

This needs to be done, as the eyes move from one point to the next.

Where they have about 40 milli-seconds to do this.

 

But perhaps you can imagine the problem, if the last image hasn't been removed in time?

So that we have overlapping images.

 

Though the 'colour' aspect,  is due to the fact that the back of our eyes, have separate 'Cones' to process red, green and blue.

With scotopic sensitivity, their is most often a variation?

So for example, red might have disappeared, green might have nearly disappeared, but blue still remains.

 

Blue is the most common problem.

 

But behind this, is 'white' and white light.

Where white is actually formed by  combination of red, yellow and blue.

So that regardless of what colour one a problem with?

The white light reflected from a piece of paper, will present a problem.

[Incognito]

Scotopic sensitivity causes a difficulty with reading, but it is wrong to associate it with Dyslexia.

 

Behind it, is the way that the eyes work?

At the back of the eye, their is only a tiny area for clear vision.

To cope with this, and form a larger clear image?

The eyes make about 4 movements a second.

Where they move in a pattern, and look around the image.

They take a snapshot each time, and then the brain puts these images together, to form a larger clear image.

 

But a crucial element of this process?

Is that the last image on the back of the eye?

Needs to be removed, so that a new one can be formed.

This needs to be done, as the eyes move from one point to the next.

Where they have about 40 milli-seconds to do this.

 

But perhaps you can imagine the problem, if the last image hasn't been removed in time?

So that we have overlapping images.

 

Though the 'colour' aspect,  is due to the fact that the back of our eyes, have separate 'Cones' to process red, green and blue.

With scotopic sensitivity, their is most often a variation?

So for example, red might have disappeared, green might have nearly disappeared, but blue still remains.

 

Blue is the most common problem.

 

But behind this, is 'white' and white light.

Where white is actually formed by  combination of red, yellow and blue.

So that regardless of what colour one a problem with?

The white light reflected from a piece of paper, will present a problem.

Thank you so much for this explanation!  Your insights are so helpful. :)