April is World Autism Month, a time to shed light on a complex neurological condition that affects millions worldwide. Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) encompasses a wide range of symptoms, behaviors, and challenges. While there’s no cure for autism, various therapies and interventions can significantly improve quality of life. One such therapy that’s gaining recognition is vision therapy.
What is Autism?
Autism, or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is a developmental disorder that impacts communication, social interaction, and behavior. It typically appears in early childhood and lasts throughout a person’s life. ASD is a spectrum disorder, meaning it affects individuals differently and to varying degrees. Some individuals with autism may have exceptional abilities in certain areas, while others may face significant challenges in everyday functioning.
Vision and Autism
Vision plays a crucial role in how we interact with the world. Studies suggest that a significant portion of people with ASD may experience visual processing difficulties. These challenges can manifest in several ways, including:
- Visual fixation – Difficulty shifting gaze or becoming fixated on specific objects or movements.
- Depth perception issues – Problems judging distances or spatial relationships.
- Visual crowding – Difficulty processing information in a visually cluttered environment.
- Sensory sensitivities – Light sensitivity or discomfort with certain visual stimuli.
Benefits of Vision Therapy for Individuals with Autism
Vision therapy is a personalized program designed to improve visual processing skills. While it doesn’t “cure” autism, it can address specific visual processing difficulties that may be impacting an individual’s daily life and overall well-being.
- Enhancing Visual Processing: Many individuals with autism experience difficulties in visual processing, including tracking objects, depth perception, and visual attention. Vision therapy can help strengthen these skills, leading to improved coordination and perception of the surrounding environment.
- Addressing Sensory Integration: Sensory sensitivities are common among individuals with autism. Vision therapy can help individuals better integrate visual information with other sensory inputs, reducing sensory overload and improving overall sensory processing.
- Improving Eye-Hand Coordination: Poor eye-hand coordination can impact activities such as writing, drawing, and sports. Vision therapy exercises can enhance hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills, and spatial awareness, making daily tasks more manageable.
- Facilitating Reading and Learning: Many individuals with autism struggle with reading comprehension and learning difficulties. A vision therapy program can target underlying visual issues that may hinder reading ability, such as tracking difficulties or visual processing delays, leading to improved academic performance.
- Supporting Social Skills: Since vision plays a crucial role in social interaction and communication, improving visual processing can indirectly benefit social skills development. Better visual attention and perception can help individuals better interpret facial expressions, gestures, and social cues.
Family Vision Development Center Specializes in Vision Therapy
Our experienced eyecare providers have advanced training in a variety of vision therapy techniques. Additionally, we are experienced in working with kids with ASD and can properly diagnose any vision issues that may be associated with a child’s autism. We work closely with our patients of all ages and carefully develop individualized programs to target the challenges faced by those with autism in order to help improve their daily interactions and overall quality of life. Reach out to our team at 630-862-2020 to learn more or to schedule a consultation.
Family Vision Development Center is a full-service vision center offering innovative vision therapy services, sports vision therapy services, post-concussive vision rehabilitation, comprehensive vision exams for eyeglasses and contact lenses, management of ocular diseases including glaucoma, diabetes, macular degeneration and cataracts, and a state-of-the-art optical center offering the latest designs in eyewear. We are dedicated to keeping our patients comfortable and well-informed and we will explain every exam and procedure and answer all of your questions. We accept both scheduled and emergency appointments, and offer convenient financing and insurance options to ensure that high-quality vision care is available and affordable to all of our patients.
Vision plays such an important role in our everyday lives, at every age. That’s why it is essential to take the necessary steps to correct or enhance visual abilities whenever possible. Adult vision therapy is one way to sharpen or restore visual skills that are used on a daily basis. Here are some situations encountered by most adults that are easier when supported with proper visual function.
Common Vision Problems Addressed by Adult Vision Therapy
Before jumping into real-life examples, it is important to understand what vision issues adult vision therapy actually addresses. Vision therapy programs are a kind of training for the eyes and brain, that involve visual activities and exercises. These exercises are not necessarily about strengthening eye muscles, but rather retraining the brain to process visual signals more efficiently. Adult vision therapy programs could target any of the following visual concerns:
- Eye teaming issues: Difficulty using both eyes together, leading to double vision or poor depth perception.
- Focusing problems: Difficulty focusing on near or far objects, causing eye strain and headaches.
- Eye tracking problems: Difficulty following moving objects or keeping the eyes focused on a single point while reading.
- Peripheral vision problems: Limited awareness of the visual field on either side.
- Visual-motor integration problems: Difficulty coordinating eye movements with hand movements, impacting hand-eye coordination.
Adult Vision Therapy Benefits in Action
Working with our trained team to complete an adult vision therapy program can make a significant difference in many daily activities.
Job Performance
Proper visual skills are needed for many aspects of a job, such as fine-detail work, computer work and presentations. Vision therapy can help improve reading and writing ability, concentration, as well as the ability to shift visual focus from close up to farther distances. Additionally, it can help to reduce eye strain during extended periods of close-up work. These improvements can increase performance, efficiency and productivity and reduce stress on the job.
Athletic Performance
You don’t have to be a professional athlete to desire above-average performance in sporting activities. Many adults play on recreational leagues for basketball, softball, volleyball or pickleball, for example. Adult vision therapy programs are a very effective way to improve athletic performance. In fact, athletes of all skill levels can see improvements in visual skills such as hand-eye coordination, peripheral vision, tracking and reaction time.
Driving Ability
Vision, of course, plays an important role in a person’s ability to drive a car. In order to safely operate a vehicle, you must be able to see clearly, both up close and at a distance. Eyeglasses or contacts can help with improving general vision issues. But adult vision therapy can significantly improve additional visual concerns, such as poor night vision, glare sensitivity, or difficulties with depth perception or peripheral vision. Correcting these issues would ultimately lead to a much safer driving experience.
Social Anxiety and Confidence
Adult vision therapy is certainly not a direct treatment for social anxiety. However, the positive effects it can have on visual function can contribute to an overall improvement in confidence and comfort in social interactions. Living with a vision disorder can have the same effect on an adult as it does on a child. And certainly, a daily struggle with underdeveloped visual skills can potentially have a big impact on your overall emotional health. An adult vision therapy program is a great way to improve overall performance, motivation and self-confidence, which can result in more happiness at home and with your friends and family.
Family Vision Development Center for Adult Vision Therapy
We are known in our area for providing the most comprehensive, advanced vision therapy programs for our patients of all ages. Our vision rehabilitation specialists treat all forms of vision disorders for both kids and adults, as well as provide vision rehabilitation services for treatment following a concussion or stroke. It’s never too late to make the commitment to better vision! Contact us at 630-862-2020 to learn more about our services or to schedule an appointment.
Family Vision Development Center is a full-service vision center offering innovative vision therapy services, sports vision therapy services, post-concussive vision rehabilitation, comprehensive vision exams for eyeglasses and contact lenses, management of ocular diseases including glaucoma, diabetes, macular degeneration and cataracts, and a state-of-the-art optical center offering the latest designs in eyewear.
