Vision Therapy ??

[suzziesnowflake]

I just had both my ds's eye checked out. They both see fine, however, he suggested trying vision thearapy. My ds12 is a true dyslexic and my ds9 is having reading and spelling problems. The doctor just purchased the software for the vision thearapy (he also did his training under another dr. who specializes in this) and wants me to try it with them. The boys would meet with him so many times a month and would do the therapy at home via internet connection with a software company. I am just wondering how it worked with your children and was there any improvement?

[wapiti]

FWIW, most of my dd's VT did not involve software. Occasionally there was something on a computer that they'd do during a weekly therapy visit, but it was not a mainstay of the therapy.

 

I'd consider being a guinea pig, since it can't hurt, maybe if it were free :D

 

Is there any diagnosis besides dyslexia? I'd want to hear something specific (convergence insufficiency, eye tracking, etc. etc. something vision-related) or is he thinking something with vision processing? It doesn't seem as though he's told you enough specifics as to why this would help. When dd did VT, it was very clear to the optometrist (though not always to me :) exactly what his goals were in terms of how her eyes were moving/working.

[suzziesnowflake]

He made no other diagnosis. He said he would run them through the testing on the computer to see if it would benefit, if at all. The reason why the dr. said he purchased the software was because there is a lack of qualified people in our area that can do vision therapy. (no one in a 55+ mile radius). It is not free. It would cost $30 for the testing and each office visit along with $300.00 for the vision therapy. I am just unsure if this is the real thing or there is much success with this. If it would improve my ds tracking and writing I would agree to it. I know that vision therapy is not a magic bullet to fix the dyslexia though.:glare: Anyone else?

[wapiti]

hmmm... well, I'm sorry to say that it does not sound like "real" VT to me - which involved doing all sorts of odd things looking at a paper on the wall or reading with flipper lenses, good ol' pencil pushups, etc. etc. etc.. However, that doesn't mean it can't help - it might. I do think I've heard of others doing a portion of VT on the computer. It certainly wouldn't hurt - it's just that it's hard (for me) to imagine that something can be done solely at the distance of a computer screen that can in any way approximate for exercises done at a variety of distances. At least it's a whole lot less expensive than regular VT (we paid about $2500 for 24 weekly visits, which also included periodic progress checks with the optometrist; from what I understand, that was a typical price).

 

What I would be most concerned about - in terms of evaluating whether this might be worthwhile or not - is the lack of diagnosis. Without a specific area of deficit (other than academic issues) it could be hard even for the optometrist to know, somewhat measurably, whether it was helping.

 

I wish your optometrist would get enough training to have a full VT program. My only thought is perhaps you could get an evaluation with an optometrist experienced with VT, albeit very far away, and then coordinate the exercises and therapy visits through the local guy. It would be an opportunity for the local guy to get experience.

 

I guess ultimately I would not do it unless the optometrist gave me good reason to believe this would help.

[RamonaQ]

I think having an actual diagnosis would be helpful to assess whether something like this would work. For my son, with severe convergence insufficiency, he did the HTS computer program at home. Within 6 weeks, almost overnight, he stopped skipping words, and getting lost in the page. It was profoundly effective for him. The computer program cost $300, although I do believe our insurance covered that.

[laundrycrisis]

I would not want to start vision therapy (that I was paying for) of any sort unless it was under a developmental optometrist who had done thorough testing, and I had a very clear report on specifically which areas are problems that the vision therapy will target.

 

Our 7.5 yo has been a vision therapy patient for 9 months now, under two different COVD optometrists (because the first one moved out of state). He goes for weekly therapy in the office with a therapist, and the therapist then shows me what to do with him at home that week. He had a ton of testing at the begining, and has been tested several times along the way, has regular re-checks, and he will be retested again soon. I won't say that the computer-based VT isn't "real" because I don't have the background to know that. I imagine it can be used in the same way the exercises are used. But I do believe that any VT needs to be under a developmental optometrist who really knows the ins and outs of both the therapy and the testing, and there should be specific goals for specific problem areas, and the progress should be measurable with retesting. I would not try anything that was more vague than that, or that the optometrist could not explain well.

 

Also it is not uncommon to have to drive a long way for VT. I feel fortunate that I only drive 45 minutes each way. I have met parents there who are driving 2 hours each way. The therapist told me that some kids are coming from 4 hours away.

 

My understanding of dyslexia is limited - I have been researching it because I am pretty sure our son has undiagnosed dyslexia. From what I have read, dyslexia can include some symptoms that are related to problems that may be improved by vision therapy. Our son has made huge improvements since he started. I do not think he was even capable of reading and writing when he started. If we had not started with VT, I am sure he would have been diagnosed as dyslexic down the road when he could not learn to read or write. Now he struggles, but he can do it. The problems they have treated include tracking, convergence, divergence, and focus changing. They are also working on form constancy, visual closure, and visual sequential memory. All of these could be a part of what could be diagnosed as "dyslexia". They are treating it with therapies that are targeted for each specific problem. I would recommend taking the doctor's recommendation for VT - but unless he can give better explanations of how the program works - or at least perhaps put you in touch with the company that sells it so they can explain it to you...I would look for an optometrist with more expertise in this area.

Edited November 6, 2010 by laundrycrisis

[PeterPan]

Our VT has used objects, paper, AND computer at times. The computer has its place, but it definitely can't do EVERYTHING that a skilled therapist can do. Hate to say it, but are you adamant about the 55 mile thing? I drive 2 1/2 hours for my ds's speech therapy. VT has been so effective for my dd, I WOULD NOT HESITATE to drive 2-3 hours for it. If you can find a really good therapist within a 2-3 hour drive, I'd drive. If you can't, then the obvious answer is to take the 2nd best choice, the computer-only therapy. It might be enough, and you only can do what you can do.