Fill me in. Tracking issues, etc

[Mom2OandE]

I know I've seen some talk on here about tracking and eye evals and such. I took my kids today for a free consult. I mainly went for my son who just seems to have everything working against him. His reading therapist has been concerned about possible tracking issues. Well dd failed one out of 7 areas they evaluated - eye alignment - but ds failed 5 (Visual acuity, refractive error, ocular motor skills/tracking, eye alignment and focusing). He goes back for a 3 hour eval on the 23rd. It's very pricey but I'm going to have to swing it somehow. I just need some more info and some idea of what to expect. Thanks.

[PeterPan]

Is it a COVD doc? Sounds like you're going to get a full developmental exam. They vary a bit, so you just call the place you're looking at and ask. Don't feel compelled to use this particular place, just because they screened him. The eval is expensive, and therapy is expensive. I would make sure you get feedback from people who've used this doc and make sure you've got the doc you want.

 

As far as our full eval, well they had tools to check all the parameters (focusing, convergence, etc. etc.). They talked through school issues, did visual perception testing, and used a Visagraph which is infrared goggles on a computer to track eye movement. It was all pretty fascinating, and I was able to be in there to *see* each thing happening. It took 2.5 hours, like you're saying. They sent me a write-up of the results, but I left knowing we needed VT.

[Mom2OandE]

Yes he's a COVD. He came highly recommended from a friend who not only uses him for her child but herself.

 

He struggles so much and reading is one of those areas that is awful for him. I want so much to find the solution but I'm also afraid to grasp at straws. Does that make sense?

 

I'm reading online and I see this subject is very hotly debated. I guess I need to know that it does work and isn't just throwing our money away.

[PeterPan]

Well the best way to resolve yourself on that is to stay connected in the process. Watch the eval and have him explain what it means. And during the therapy, don't plunk out a ton upfront. A month is fine, but not a year or anything. That way *you* are in control. If you're not seeing results, you stop. Plain and simple. We saw small changes in a month, more changes in 2 months, and radical, radical changes in 3 months. It's not like you're going to keep doing this forever and see no changes and just hope. And you'll probably see changes week to week in his ability to do the homework tasks, which should reassure you that something is changing.

 

Have you been to their office yet? Ours is plastered with letters kids have written about their experiences and the changes. It's going to be FINE. It's not grasping at straws. When vision is the problem and you get someone who's good at treating it, you can get radical changes. It might not be the ONLY problem, but it's going to improve the things affected by the vision problems. It's not going to change everything else, but it lets everything else start to work better.

 

You're gonna be fine! Just deep breath and take the plunge. You never know till you try. :)

[herekittykitty]

Sounds like you are on the right track. We are just finishing vision therapy and the difference has been huge. I think the controversy comes in when people expect vision therapy to solve things other than visual issues. It's not a cure for learning disabilities, though some of those symptoms may alleviate if visual issues are the "true" cause. Good luck.

[Mom2OandE]

Thanks ladies. We were at the office today and the doc was great at explaining it some of what he was seeing and even demonstrated with me so I could understand a little more. I like the idea of going a month at a time. They told us the 3 hr eval was $290 but I'm not sure what the therapy would be. Any ideas?

[simplyme99]

:bigear: Have an appt for my DD to get an eval too. I was quoted $115-250 for a limited exam ... $345-460 for full. Also not covered by insurance. If the eval is this much, I'm afraid to see how much the therapy is.