Astigmatism & behavior: any connection with your child?

[warriormom]

My daughter (4.5) was diagnosed with a pretty significant astigmatism in both eyes. I am getting her glasses this week end.

 

Did you see a change in your child's behavior, attention or coordination once they were given eye glasses?

 

 

 

 

Thanks,

 

Courtney

[EKS]

The day my son (also at age 4) got his first glasses for a moderate astigmatism, he started pointing out things that he had apparently never noticed before. For example, he very excitedly pointed out mosquitoes and called them dragonflies--and he had had *plenty* of opportunities to notice mosquitoes previously.

 

I didn't notice a change in his coordination or his ability to maintain visual focus until he had been through a few months of vision therapy (about a year after getting the glasses), but when it happened, it was dramatic.

[SKL]

The day my son (also at age 4) got his first glasses for a moderate astigmatism, he started pointing out things that he had apparently never noticed before. For example, he very excitedly pointed out mosquitoes and called them dragonflies--and he had had *plenty* of opportunities to notice mosquitoes previously.

 

I didn't notice a change in his coordination or his ability to maintain visual focus until he had been through a few months of vision therapy (about a year after getting the glasses), but when it happened, it was dramatic.

 

Similar experience here. My dd got her glasses (also for severe astigmatism) at 2.5, and started vision therapy at 3.5. The glasses enabled her to identify things like what colors a traffic light has, which apparently she never saw before. However, she still had trouble learning letters etc. until about a month or two into vision therapy.

 

My dd didn't have behavior issues to speak of, but she would always go in the opposite direction if she saw someone opening a book. She wasn't into screen time, either. Because she was so young, I didn't push these; otherwise maybe we would have had behavior issues, who knows? She also could not stand some things like being swung, and this could have been related to vision since it involved rapid changes of scene, which bothered her. These issues faded around age 4.

[NotSoObvious]

The day my son (also at age 4) got his first glasses for a moderate astigmatism, he started pointing out things that he had apparently never noticed before. For example, he very excitedly pointed out mosquitoes and called them dragonflies--and he had had *plenty* of opportunities to notice mosquitoes previously.

 

I didn't notice a change in his coordination or his ability to maintain visual focus until he had been through a few months of vision therapy (about a year after getting the glasses), but when it happened, it was dramatic.

 

 

Very similar here.

[Occasionally]

My DS4 was diagnosed with refractive amblyopia due to astigmatism in the fall and got his glasses a few days after that. His coordination has definitely improved. My guess is that his depth perception has improved now that he can see well. He was previously very wary of jumping off of things, or even going up or down the stairs with only one foot on each step.

 

I don't think there has been much change in his attention or behavior.

[hollyh]

It's been about a year for my 3yo and I haven't noticed any differences.

[Donna]

I still remember the day I got my glasses in 2nd grade. I remember riding home in the car, looking at the trees going by, and seeing they actually had individual leaves. I had always thought they just had a large green blob on top of the trunk.

[TechWife]

Donna, I had the exact same experience you did! If I get a prescription update now, the first thing I look at when I go outside is the leaves on the trees, just to make sure they're still there!

[SKL]

I still remember the day I got my glasses in 2nd grade. I remember riding home in the car, looking at the trees going by, and seeing they actually had individual leaves. I had always thought they just had a large green blob on top of the trunk.

 

 

Me too! (Except I was in 3rd grade.) I remember exclaiming to everyone in the car: "I can see each brick on that building! I can see each blade of grass!" Once I got used to being able to see, it used to amaze me that I'd gotten along without glasses so long. I don't think it affected my behavior or academic learning, other than that teachers were no longer exasperated as I repeatedly asked to leave my seat to go "see" the chalkboard.

[LittleIzumi]

I have horrible astigmastism and my coordination ends where my glasses do. Coordination is a dirty word here, LOL. Pretty much zero depth perception once you get past the edge of my glasses, so essentially my peripheral vision.