Update: Sensory Integration/Vision Therapy
 

Hi all,

I went into this therapy not realizing that what I was doing was different than the standard vision therapy. I pretty much just trusted my physical therapist's recommendation. Had I known, I might have hesitated, because as far as I can tell, there is less science supporting sensory integration therapy as a treatment for PCS. It's costing me hundreds of dollars that my insurance will not cover but I decided to try it anyway. So far, I've seen definite improvements. The first week of he therapy; my depth perception noticibly improved. Maybe about two weeks into it, I felt like MAYBE my dizziness was a smidge better. I finished my 30 days of therapy on Thursday, and I think it was on Tuesday that I realized I was spinning round and round in the pool with my daughter without getting dizzy!!!!! I could have cried I was so so happy! I want to push some boundaries, see what I can do now, but I also don't want to do the wrong thing and set myself back! Right now, I'm at Disney World with my family and I soooooo want to ride the teacups, but I think the better first step is to see if I can watch people on the tea cups! Just 3 months ago, I could not watch my daughter bounce on a trampoline without getting extreme vertigo! If I can find just a traditional playground, I might try swinging on a swing with her and see how that goes. I couldn't even move back and forth gently and slowly on a swing just three months ago either, so that would be a good test. (Don't worry, I won't endanger my daughter! I'll try it without her before I try it with her!)

I do also feel that my light sensitivity to the sun has improved slightly, but my light sensitivity to computer screens and fluorescent lighting seems to be just as bad as before. Still, the dr said that this doesnt tend to start improving until after the therapy is over. I'm anxiously awaiting further results!

Anyway, just wanted to share my results/experience thus far! Keep your fingers crossed fOr me!

P.S.!
 

Just the fact that I'm at Disney World is evIdence of how much I have improved over the last 6 months. At one point, this would have been a nightmare scenario for me! It's still a bit of a challenge, but I'm doing fine with it so far!

Great good news
 

This is really encouraging and I hope it lasts!!! Keep the updates coming.

Poetry?
 

Thanks! I will! Poetrymom, do you write poetry? Or just like it? I am a poet (or was one?) so I'm just curious! I haven't got back on that horse yet!

Oh yes I write!
 

I write a lot, but mostly stuff for school (teacher) but have published poems here and there and work on fiction and memoire writing too. But more sporadically...mostly rhyming poems for children is what I have though our kids here are nearly 17 and 19. I love to do dialogue writing with students when I can work that in the curriculum.

My symptoms have suddenly improved a ton this week and I feel very hopeful, but know, I've been well before only to slide back into that dizzy, tired hole.

Keep on feeling better!!

Me too
 

I've published poems here and there too but am now working on kids books. I'd like to start writing poems again but my eyes need to improve a bit more first!

Check out CBI and ?? Children's Writer
 

CBI (children's book insider) is a great site and they have a montly newsletter about the children's book business -- which is hard, hard, hard to break into. There is also Childrne's Writer and I subsribe to that. Ok I have to go,, I can't type for anything which is part of this whole TBI thing.....ack tired, but keep writing

All for now

JJ

Thanks for the info!
 

I'll definitely check those out!

I found some advantage in using the dictation app that comes with the new Mac (apple?) operating system. It allowed me to get some thoughts down on paper even with my sore brain and eyes!
Great to keep those writing ambitions and dreams alive!

Yippee!
 

I rode with my daughter on the Dumbo ride! It spins around in circles and goes up and down, and I didn't get dizzy at all! I was too chicken to try the teacups, though I was very tempted, but there are three kinds of spinning going on there, and I just thought it would be too much. I didn't want to ruin the rest of my day. At this point, I am calling my sensory integration therapy a success regardless of whether it helps with my light sensitivity issues. I've had this dizziness for six months and it was not getting better with vestibular therapy. It's too soon to say that I'm cured, but after one month of the sensory integration therapy, I've experienced significant results, and according to my dr, it takes time to get the full effect of it, so I'm hopeful for more.