As a child’s eyes develop, vision problems can occur. Beyond refractive errors like nearsightedness (myopia) and farsightedness (hyperopia), children can develop visual and perceptual problems that a basic vision exam may not detect. Even a child with 20/20 vision can have underlying vision problems.
Vision Therapy for Children
Some of these are functional vision problems related to how the eyes move, work together, and focus. Functions such as eye teaming, tracking, focusing, and hand-eye coordination all affect a child’s success in school, sports, and daily activities. Children with these difficulties often experience symptoms such as headaches, eye fatigue, or short attention spans. When these visual skills are lacking, tasks like reading and writing can become difficult and exhausting, leading to frustration and behavioral problems.
Vision skills can be trained and improved over time. Vision therapy is a doctor-supervised program that helps children develop these skills.
What is Vision Therapy?
Vision therapy is a personalized program of progressive eye exercises that retrains and improves visual skills and processing. Our doctors use vision therapy to manage conditions like strabismus (crossed eyes) and amblyopia (lazy eye), as well as eye movement, focus, and coordination problems.
Sessions typically take place weekly or biweekly in the office and use tools such as therapeutic lenses or prisms. Patients practice exercises at home to reinforce these skills. The goal is to strengthen focusing, eye movement, and alignment so the eyes work efficiently and comfortably. The program typically lasts about 6 to 9 months.
Vision therapy improves functional vision skills and is supported by organizations such as the American Optometric Association. It does not correct refractive error and should not be confused with self-directed eye exercises that claim to improve vision.
Vision therapy is effective for adults. If you think vision therapy may help, schedule an assessment to determine if it is right for you or your child.