Vision issues after all
 

Hi everyone,

I just got back from my Neurooptometrist appointment today. I was referred by the OT I worked with in Neuro rehab because of a low score on a visual-perceptual test I took with her.

Much to my surprise, the Neurooptometrist found me to have "convergence insufficiency and fusion with defective stereopsis". I guess I will be getting prism glasses to help with this, and she wants to do another test to see if I will need vision therapy.

I could tell you before today's appointment that I experience blurry vision, esp. when I read a lot or have to think a lot. But I did not know that other things I have been experiencing were due to my vision as well. Like my bumping into things frequently (always thought this was due to my balance problems), or how I scare my husband when I think he is too close to the car in front of us, and as he says I "step on my imaginary brakes".

I have read of others of you who have had vision changes, and I felt bad for your problems. I never thought I had the same kind of thing happening to me. The Neurooptometrist told me it is common for vision changes to be seen after concussions, and that most regular optometrists and opthalmologists miss the brain connection because they only see the function and condition of the eye itself. (I had an eye exam 4 months after the accident as a referral from my neurologist and the opthalmologist told me at that time I had no problems with my vision due to the head injury, and that I just needed a stronger prescription.)

Although my vision problems aren't as severe as some here, I hope today's findings will help me with my reading, walking and maybe diminish my daily headaches.

I wish you all the best. Take care, M-i-m

I hope that this will help with headaches! A new diagnosis can bring so many new hopes for reducing symptoms...

Question
 

I too have just been recently diagnosed with vision problems - which certainly explains a lot of the issues I have been experiencing even a 1.5 years after my fall.
My question is - has anyone gone through the vision therapy - it is quite expensive - but I am willing to try anything to help myself get back on track.
Thanks

Yes, I did 10 weeks of vision therapy (it was all my insurance would cover), and it helped me get back to driving and reading. Helped some with headaches though didn't completely get rid of them. Overall, I would say it was very beneficial and I wish I could have continued with it longer.

I've been doing vision therapy on and off for about 10 months. You should be able to do 99% of it from home. The therapist is the one that should guide you through it all.

I made the mistake of going to someone who was probably under-qualified. She recommended that I see her about three to four times a month.

The next person I saw has more training (has a Phd). She recommends that I see her once a month or when I progress on my exercises.

If you have a serious vision issue and are in a major metro area, I'd ask around for the top person. They are often the people that train every one else. Although they may charge quite a bit $120-160 hr, you might only need to see them 2-3 times.

I have done vision therapy and wear prisms. Makes a HUGE difference. Vision is still a challenge and I can't read that much without paying a huge price, but if I think of where I have come from (unable to tolerate reading three words or looking at a calender or box of cookies!!), the progress has been huge.

There are vision therapy things you can do with paying a weekly visit to a therapist. If I have time I will try to post some links.

Hang in there!

M-i-M,

Hopefully this is huge to your recovery!!!

I'm very happy for you at just the thought of how this could improve life for you.

Please keep us updated!

Jace

I learned about vision therapy here from Eowyn's posts and got evaluated and then paid out of pocket for therapy sessions for several months. It helped a little.

But the hormone replacement therapy for the deficiencies that the concussion caused has significantly improved my vision.

My vision improved so much that only a few weeks after taking them, the neuro-optometrist that I was seeing for the vision therapy told me it was a rapid improvement (he was very surprised!) and that I didn't need the therapy any more. He was even more surprised to learn that my vision had even improved more after our 6 month follow up visit and I hadn't been practicing at all - the hormones just fixed the way my brain was seeing the visual data. :)