In October of 2018 I walked into what I thought was another typical optometry office. Little did I know that the decision to book that appointment was going to change my entire life.
July 20, 2022 I was able to officially graduate from vision therapy after years of hard work. My vision is not perfect, but it is so much better! You can read more about the rest of my journey and how I got to graduation on my timeline over HERE.
If you are interested in trying vision therapy, head over to this article for helpful tips. Let’s take a look at some of the factors involved in my graduation including gains, failures, plans for the future and favorite exercises.
What Gains Have I Made with My Vision Through Vision Therapy?
When I started vision therapy, I had a severe eye turn and wasn’t able to use both eyes together. I had zero stereo and completely suppressed my right eye. Now my eyes are mostly straight and I have a version of binocular vision.
Within 2 feet my eyes are quite straight (less than 4 diopters, if any) and I have some measurable stereopsis. When the optometrist does the official tests, my brain interprets and can see some of the small changes in stereo.
When doing easier tests with red/green glasses and vectographs I am able to successfully appreciate floating illusions only possible with stereopsis and both of my eyes turn on at the same time.
My peripheral has expanded so much (check out the Mastering Peripheral course I created). The tunnel vision is gone and I can see big!
While my small stereo that is measured in office isn’t perfect, my ability to appreciate large stereo in the real world is completely changed. My new and improved depth perception allows me to be more successful in sports, at driving, and makes seeing the beautiful earth so rewarding.
I created a YouTube series highlighting each of the areas where I have see big improvements since finishing vision therapy if you are interested in more details! The video below gives a quick summary.
But the short version is that I can see so much better. Colors are more vibrant, shapes are more solid, the world is more real and I am a part of it and can effectively perceive and interact with it all.
What Were the Most Effective Exercises and Techniques That We Used to Fix Strabismus?
I tried to do therapy on my own with homemade exercises and patching and saw some success, but the true results didn’t come until I started official in-office therapy.
I did over 100 different types of eye/body exercises and some were definitely more effective than others. These are the ones that made the biggest impact:
Quoit on the Overhead Projector– This exercise allowed me to really learn to believe in illusions that can be seen and the space that they occupy. Because it is on an overhead, it is huge and brings in peripheral which helped me learn to see big!
VTS4 and 3D Movies– The technology used for the 3D glasses in these scenarios made it so much easier for my brain to learn to use both eyes and see depth in a safe environment that didn’t threaten double vision. I experienced my first and best 3D experiences with these tools.
David Cook’s Peripheral Techniques– If you haven’t heard me obsess over David Cook, you must be new. He is a genius and his book of techniques for seeing big and using both eyes changed and impacted every single exercise I did in vision therapy (and continue to do). I cover many of them in my Mastering Peripheral course or you can buy his book.
Virtual Reality with Vivid Vision and Optics Trainer– The technology used in virtual reality is amazing and played a huge role in my developing small stereo and the ability to use my eyes together in a more exact way instead of just seeing the big picture. I have several articles about how much they helped.
Yoked Prisms and Peripheral– I still don’t understand why, but I can tell you that yoked prisms can change your life. My optometrist and vision therapist have had me use them in many different ways, everything from helping with suppression to expanding peripheral and adjusting my midline, and I feel like each way is more effective than the last.
Honorable mentions go to glasses with binasal occlusion, anti-suppression with red/green glasses, and eye stretches. Even the seemingly pointless exercises built a strong foundation.
What Parts of Strabismus Was I Unable to Fix (so far) with Vision Therapy?
Because of the way my visual system developed early on in the first months and years of my life, combined with excessive patching for years, I have something called anomalous retinal correspondence (ARC).
While we have improved the symptoms of ARC tremendously, my eyes are still not able to see randot images, magic eye pictures, and other types of exercises that require perfect alignment and excellent coordination. While this doesn’t impact my daily life too much, it does bother me and I hope to one day be able to succeed with these exercises.
I use both eyes together at near and for peripheral, but I still suppress much of my right eye’s central vision at any distance past 2-3 feet. This is partly due to my eyes not being perfectly aligned in the distance (about 8-10 diopters). I’m sure improving this would make my view of the world even more magical, but I am grateful that I don’t have double vision and that my peripheral and ability to see BIG is so much better.
My right, amblyopic eye has 20/25 vision now which is better than before, but it is still not as strong as my right eye. The colors aren’t quite as vivid, it doesn’t respond as quickly, and words aren’t as clear. I only notice this difference when I try to read with just my right eye. It works well enough to combine, but I still hope to improve it even further.
What Will I do to Maintain and Continue Progressing?
As you can see, I have made some incredible progress, but there is still room for improvement. I chose to graduate because I had met my original goals and I wanted to celebrate that success.
I posted my original goals in my first vision therapy post, “The Beginning.”
” I want stereopsis and all the amazing stuff that comes with it; Better eye tracking, improved night vision, straight eyes, more eye endurance, and fewer headaches.”
I definitely met and exceeded all of those preliminary goals! Now I’m hoping to overcome my esotropia and Hypertropia, say goodbye to ARC, and extend my fusion ranges and improve my stereopsis.
I am planning to accomplish this by:
- Monthly vision therapy appointments
- Completing vision therapy exercises for 20-30 minutes 4-5 days each week
- Learning more about vision and relaxation
- Overcoming ARC
Graduating and acknowledging my success was one of those exciting days that I will never forget. Taking the time to appreciate how far I have come has given me the determination and enthusiasm to keep going and pressing on towards my goals.
I can’t wait to see what comes next!
Want to learn more? Head over HERE to get free downloads to help you understand your vision and the steps you can take to take it to the next level.