If you ever received a bad report card as a child, you know how frustrating it can be. You likely experienced the feeling that you weren’t as smart as your classmates or that you'd never be a good student.
Parents often feel that same sense of hurt when their children aren't reaching their full potential at school, despite their best efforts to learn.
While it’s easy for children and parents to get discouraged, there’s something you should know: many children struggle in school because of undetected vision problems that hinder their ability to read, learn and even play sports. In many cases, vision therapy can help.
If you suspect your child has a vision problem or you'd like to rule out any vision problems, contact Grand Developmental Vision Institute in Winnipeg today. We provide vision therapy, which is made up of various customized activities and exercises that retrain the brain to interact effectively with the eyes and improve vision functioning.
Some Proven Vision Problem Studies
Studies have shown that more than 25% of children struggle with undetected vision problems. While poor eyesight is one such problem, 1 in 10 children suffers from visual skills deficits that cause them to read below grade level and prevent them from succeeding in school and sports.
Sometimes children's undetected vision problems are misdiagnosed as a learning disability, dyslexia or ADHD, so the therapies they receive for these conditions might not correct the problems they face. The wrong diagnosis can cause the child even more stress as the real issue remains unaddressed.
If you suspect that your child may have a vision problem, there are steps that you can take to get them the help they need.
But First, Let’s Learn About The Visual System
The visual system is the part of the brain that allows us to see and engage with the world around us. Vision starts with the eyes, which take in light and send signals to the brain. The brain interprets these signals and creates a mental image of what we see.
The visual system is an amazing feat of evolution. It allows us to see the world around us and make sense of it. Without it, we would be lost in a sea of sensory data.
There are many different parts of the visual system, and when the eyes and brain have trouble communicating, it can cause a number of conditions and symptoms, some of them debilitating –impacting our ability to learn, read and pay attention in class.
That’s where vision therapy can help.
What Is Vision Therapy?
Vision therapy is a fully customized treatment program designed to improve and strengthen visual skills and retrain the child’s visual system to interpret visual input with increased accuracy and ease.
Vision therapy consists of a series of eye exercises and activities that are designed to improve brain-eye communication and the overall functioning of the visual system. These activities consist of in-office exercises at Grand Developmental Vision Institute and home exercises.
What Conditions Are Treated With Vision Therapy?
Vision therapy is effective in treating:
- Double vision
- Lazy eye (amblyopia)
- Crossed eyes (strabismus)
- Convergence insufficiency
- Depth perception problems
- Visual perception and visual processing difficulties
- Poor hand-eye coordination
- Focusing problems
- Eye fatigue
- Eye teaming and tracking problems
So if you want to help your child succeed, make sure that their visual system is functioning at its best. Give your child the gift of great vision by visiting your optometrist at Grand Developmental Vision Institute in Winnipeg today.
Ensuring your child has the visual skills to meet the demands of school is one of the best actions you can take for your child’s academic success.
Our practice serves patients from Winnipeg, Selkirk, Portage La Prairie, and Brandon, Manitoba and surrounding communities.