I searched high and low for a computer based therapy program that would help correct my strabismus. I stumbled onto Amblyoplay, and have found it to be extremely helpful in my therapy!
So is AmblyoPlay a good program for fixing strabismus? AmblyoPlay is an amazing computer based tool for vision therapy. The red/blue activities cancel perfectly with the glasses provided, making an amazing tool to break suppression and improve symptoms associated with strabismus and amblyopia.
AmblyoPlay isn’t the only tool that you will need to fix strabismus, but it is one thing that will make a big difference! Maybe you’ve never heard of Amblyoplay, I will walk you through what it is and how it can help.
Read more about it and sign up on their website here, make sure to use the coupon code MS2SD for 10% off. Or you can read in more depth my opinion of the program below, but brace yourself, I am REALLY into details.
What is Amblyoplay?
Amblyoplay is a computer or tablet based software designed as a home based therapy to strengthen both eyes and improve their ability to work together. There are a ton of options that can be personalized and adapted to match any condition. It should not be used without first consulting with a vision doctor.
Once the program is purchased, Amblyoplay will mail red and blue glasses that can be used with the different games and therapies in the app. They also send a unique activation code that authorizes an account to track progress.
I have been through several pairs of red/blue glasses and these are by far the best. The lens is high quality and works 10x better than the other pairs I’ve bought off amazon. They also have a design that allows the user to flip the colors and change which eye each color is covering. This is extremely important depending on which is the weaker eye.
I also offer similar glasses in my shop that are available for shipping within the USA.
There are two modes for AmblyoPlay, Monocular and Binocular. Monocular mode is meant to be used while patching to strengthen a severely weakened eye that is completely suppressed.
AmblyoPlay states, “In these cases, we must first develop this lazy eye before we can start with binocular therapy, which both strengthens the lazy eye, as well as teaches the brain how to use both eyes together.”
Binocular Mode is used with the red/blue glasses that are mailed. In the games, each eye can only see a portion of the game so they must work together to complete any of the given tasks.
After the account is setup, AmblyoPlay will set up Daily Training for that is available everyday and is customized to match the eye condition. There are two different 15 minute sessions everyday with a break for about 30 minutes between sessions.
Each session consists of 5 activities. It starts with a game, then alternates between therapy and games. The games are randomly assigned for 4 minutes each, technically, I bet they have a fancy algorithm for picking, but it seems pretty random to me. It is easy to disable any games that you don’t want to be chosen which is fantastic, because they vary in difficulty and some of them were way too hard for me, especially in the beginning.
The therapy section is extremely simple, but effective.
In Monocular Mode there is a green square that is the focus point. Then there is a blue circle that moves around the screen that you watch with peripheral vision. when it turns red you click it. SO simple, but a fantastic exercise for strengthening peripheral!
In Binocular Mode an object appears on the screen and you click it, then the object spilts into two parts, one that can be viewed by each eye. While wearing the red/blue glasses you must either converge or diverge your eyes and the object appears to move towards or away from you. You try to hold the image single and click the mouse when it goes double.
I wish that this part of the therapy was a little slower and that there were more of these types of exercises because they are so important. I ended up making some of my own that help with converging and diverging and they are available over here.
And that is it, you repeat 2 rounds of therapy each day and the program tracks progress on a calendar. When you login on the main website there is a place where you or your eye doctor can check your stats on how often you are doing therapy and if you are improving.
There are puzzles in the awards section and each time daily exercises are completed, a piece to one of the puzzles appears.
It is possible to play the games anytime, but the therapy activites are only available while doing the daily training.
How do I Sign Up for AmblyoPlay?
Signing up is super simple. Just head over to their website here and select either the 6 or 12 month plan. There are definitely savings for purchasing the larger plans so that is a great way to save money if the therapy is going to take longer.
The Standard Plan costs $259.99 for 6 months.
The Premium Plan is $399.99 for 12 months.
If you want a discount code for AmblyoPlay, just use MS2SD at checkout and you will get an extra 10% off. I will get a kickback too to help keep this website up and running, thanks in advance!
I personally signed up for the 6 month package and it was great. I took a break after the 6 months were up and did some other anti-suppression work through the vision therapy office I go to and now I’ve reactivated my account.
Why Choose AmblyoPlay Over Other “Lazy Eye” Apps?
There are apps that have similar games that are less expensive, see my post here. AmblyoPlay is on a whole level above those. The main aspects that set it apart from those basic apps are:
- It can be used as an app on an iPad or a program on a computer with a large screen so it works peripheral vision along with other binocular function.
- There is more variety in the games and their difficulty levels
- Adjusting the colors to exactly cancel with the red/blue glasses is actually possible, whereas it isn’t in many of the other apps. This is especially important for kids who will just “cheat” and use their good eye the whole time.
- Progress is tracked in a user friendly interface
- There is actual tech support and they respond so quickly and are really helpful!
- This isn’t just a one-time app created by someone trying to make a quick buck. The creators are very active in the program and in keeping it up to date and adding new features to make it better.
The graphics are great and the colors cancel perfectly which makes it superior to other apps I’ve tried to use with red/blue glasses for therapy. AmblyoPlay is hands down my favorite app for anti-suppression actives! The other apps don’t compare.
What Games are Part of AmblyoPlay?
The program consists of several games that each offer something great. Some are slow moving and allow for some error while others require your eyes to perfectly align and work together. I LOVE that there is a variety and there is plenty of room for growth and progression instead of just repeating the exact same skills in different ways.
Kids will LOVE these games! Every time I go to do my therapy, all of my children gather around and beg for turns. The games are simple enough for a young child, but challenging enough to keep it interesting for older children and adults!
There are multiple levels within the games as well so it is always possible to increase in difficulty and make a challenge.
Here are the games in order from easiest to hardest, based on my opinion and limited knowledge. I just know which ones are easy and which ones make my brain burn.
Collect Shapes
This is the easiest game and is very slow moving. In binocular mode, the shape or picture in the middle of the screen can be seen with both eyes and changes every time a match is found. The shapes and pictures around it are either seen by the left or right eye. The object of the game is to drag objects that match the center picture to the center.
My eye doctor encouraged me to sit super close to the screen and keep my focus on the center image and use my peripheral vision to find the matches. It was great in the beginning as I was opening my field of peripheral vision.
Balloons Pop!
In this game balloons appear at the bottom of the screen and slowly float to the top and the object is to “Pop” each one by clicking it. As the game progresses, the balloons become more frequent and faster! The balloons can be seen by either the left or right eye. It is slightly easier than some of the other games because it is possible to switch from the left eye to the right, they don’t both have to be working together. It is a great exercise for getting both eyes turned on and working.
Flying Candy
In Flying Candy the candy must be “sliced” before it falls out of the screen. It is a little more challenging because there is dynamite from time to time that must be avoided. The movements are also more random so it helps with tracking. The actual fruit alternates colors as well as the explosion it makes afterwards. It definitely keeps both eyes working.
Catch Monsters
In Catch Monsters, monsters appear randomly on the screen and the object is to click them to make them to disappear. This is another one where I like to move closer to the screen to work on my peripheral. Some of the monsters turn into two new ones when they are clicked. When one is yellow and one is blue it is a trick to try to get both eyes to work at the same time to see both.
Catch the Birdy
This one is a little gruesome, but I don’t think kids will notice. There is a little bird flying around and the object is to use the mouse to get it to pass through the trap. It starts out very slow moving and the trap is big so there is a ton of room for error. As the game progresses, the trap gets smaller and things begin moving more quickly. This game is a perfect bridge towards using both eyes together. It made a huge difference and started me on the path towards having both eyes work simultaneously. They don’t need to be perfectly aligned so double vision and misaligned objects don’t impede progress too much.
Flappy Bird
In flying bird the object is to click the mouse to make the bird fly higher and not hit the pillars. One eye can see the bird, the other can see the pillars. It is another in-between game. It would be great to have both eyes working together and aligned, but there is more wiggle room so that the game can still be played without perfection.
Cross the Road
In this game, the object is to get the bird to safely cross roads, train tracks, and rivers without getting hit. The cars are randomly assigned different colors, so if both eyes aren’t working, the bird will get hit by a car. It is great for peripheral and challenges the player to keep both eyes engaged the whole time.
Planet Shooter-
The globe spins and the goal is to shoot the lollipops (???) into the globe without hitting the other lollipops. This one requires both eyes working together and is especially hard if the eyes can’t stay aligned. It is definitely one that requires more concentrations for strabismics like me!
Maze
In Maze there is a simple maze with a spaceship. One eye can see the ship, while the other eye can see just the maze. Try to click and drag the maze without allowing the spaceship to touch the edges. It doesn’t quite cancel perfectly, so I think a kid could cheat the system, but I worked so hard on this one! Both eyes must be engaged and straight for this one to work well. It is a great exercise and I have spent many hours trying to master it. I love having something to work towards!
Blocks
Blocks is a version of Tetris that is VERY difficult. You must have both eyes turned on and aligned the whole time. Other versions of Tetris used for lazy eye treatment are much easier. They have the blocks coming down one color, then once they touch down they switch to another color. AmblyoPlay takes it to the next level and each block has both colors. Even though it is really hard, I LOVE that they have such challenging games. There is so much room for growth.
What Vision Conditions can Amblyoplay help?
The AmblyoPlay website sheds light on the conditions that can and cannot be helped with this therapy.
“AmblyoPlay can only help with vision dysfunctions that are rooted in the eye muscles performance and bad eye-brain cooperation. It can improve visual acuity, depth perception and other binocular visual functions.”
Amblyopia is a condition where one or both eyes has poor visual acuity because there is an interruption with the eye and brain connection. Basically, one eye has really poor vision. Many times the good eye is patched to make the weak eye stronger. AmblyoPlay can help with this in the monocular mode by giving challenging exercises to strengthen the weak eye or in binocular mode by strengthening the weak eye and helping the eyes learn to coordinate and work together.
Strabismus is a condition where one of the eyes turns in, esotropia, or out, exotropia. In this case, one eye is being suppressed or turned off, this is my case. I used AmblyoPlay to wake up my other eye and it worked so well! Within a few weeks I was actually starting to see double, which was a little scary, but also exciting because it meant that I was ready to train them to work together. AmblyoPlay is amazing for waking up the eye and helping the eyes learn to work together, but with strabismus you will need more in depth therapy to get to stereopsis. It is a great part of the therapy though!
Convergence insufficiency is another condition it is meant to help. I had a son in vision therapy for convergence insufficiency and we used the more difficult games and the therapy for him and it was great. Some of the games were way too easy for him and didn’t really present much of a challenge so they were ineffective.
I love that the games vary enough that they can work for multiple conditions.
What are the Limitations of AmblyoPlay
While AmblyoPlay is an awesome program that answers many needs in the vision world, it isn’t a one stop shop for vision therapy. You definitely still need to work with an Optometrist who practices vision therapy while you are using it so they can help direct you and add other exercises. Many people think that they will be able to do vision therapy on their own, I was definitely one of those people a year ago. But on my own, I started getting double vision.
This program helped both eyes work, but it took a combination of AmblyoPlay with in-office therapy and home exercises to teach my brain to combine the images from each eye into one and develop stereopsis. I am still not done yet, but I’m getting closer!
AmblyoPlay is a great tool to have in your toolbox, but it isn’t the whole toolbox. I love that it can be purchased without an Optometrist, but I do think there need to be more precautions about using it without their support.
One other limitation that I hope to see change in an update is that while games can be played at any time, the therapy mode can only be done as part of “daily exercises.” There were times when I was doing other types of red/green type anti-suppression activities, but my doctor wanted me to practice convergence and divergence through the app and that wasn’t possible without going through the games first.
I solved this problem by creating my own computer activities for convergence and divergence. They are available in the shop as well.
Other than those minor things, AmblyoPlay is awesome and has been a major help for me as I’ve worked towards overcoming the suppression that comes with strabismus and gaining stereopsis.
Good luck on your journey! There are so many ways to find success with vision impairments, maybe AmblyoPlay will be one of the pieces to your puzzle of success!
Watch this video I made about AmblyoPlay and how it works.
Related Questions
How long does vision therapy take?
Depending on the condition, vision therapy can vary. On average, vision therapy takes 20-40 weeks to complete.
How can I find a doctor who does vision therapy?
If you go HERE and fill out the form, I will email you a list of vision therapy offices close to you for free.