There’s more to vision than just the eyes. A range of skills combine to make sense of what is seen, recall it when needed, and act on it. When there are problems with visual skills, children may exhibit symptoms that are very similar to dyslexia or ADHD as they struggle to keep up with their peers in a world where processing what they see is an uphill battle.

Australian behavioural optometrist and fellow of the International Academy of Orthokeratology and Myopia Control (FIAOMC), Gary Rodney says that he’s had first-hand experience of the difference vision therapy can make in children’s lives. “They can seem like completely different individuals. They move from a situation in which they’re behind in their learning, frequently in trouble for making mistakes, and constantly struggling at school to one where they can fulfil their potential. It really is life-changing.”

However, Gary says that one of the biggest problems is a lack of awareness. “Parents and teachers often consider poor eyesight as a possible reason why children struggle at school, but they may not realise that clear eyesight isn’t enough.”

Visual skills range from the ability to “track” lines of text systematically, to depth perception, spotting differences between one thing and another, and remembering what one sees. When they’re lacking, they can be developed, and Gary has witnessed astonishing changes in many of his young patients as a result.

  Improved Academic Performance

It’s impossible to do well at school when visual skills aren’t properly developed, but with training, the first improvement that parents and teachers notice is improved academic ability. For the children themselves, the change must be even more rewarding. From facing schooldays packed with impossible challenges and frustrations to dealing comfortably with the tasks that have been set for them, there’s no doubt that acquiring the necessary visual abilities is a big win for them.

  Better Coordination

Adults will often shrug off a child’s poor coordination as nothing more than clumsiness when it’s really a symptom of his or her need for vision therapy. From the child’s perspective, there’s embarrassment, failure, and little enjoyment in sports participation. After all, it’s not fun being the kid who always drops the ball or misses an easy goal. With the limiting factor that lay behind poor coordination moved out of the way, it becomes possible to do better at sports and have more fun at play.

  More Self-Confidence

Always feeling like they are the ones who are lagging behind their peers can’t be very pleasant for children with visual skills issues. Trying hard and repeatedly failing to do schoolwork correctly, often being in trouble because adults think they’re ‘careless,’ or ‘naughty,’ and possibly having to endure teasing from schoolmates is sure to hurt self-confidence. Needless to say, overcoming their difficulties and discovering that they’re able to hold their own in any setting must certainly be a huge relief for children who have benefited from vision therapy.

  Do Better Socially

“One can often see the difference,” says Gary. “Children blossom. At first, they’ll be shy, quiet, even sullen. But as they uncover their potential, they also come out of their shells. It’s as if they’ve entered a better, brighter, happier world. It’s one of the things that makes vision therapy so rewarding for all concerned: the therapist, the parents, and of course, the child.”

There are some inspiring case studies on the Smart Vision Optometry website, and those who would like to learn more about how vision therapy benefits children are welcome to view the videos posted there.

For more information on behavioural optometry, or to book an appointment, visit the Smart Vision website: Optometrists Sydney: Optometry Services For Children and Adults | Smart Vision; for specific information about Myopia treatment and prevention visit Myopia Prevention: Solutions, Control And Treatment In Sydney; and for detailed information about Myopia Treatment visit Orthokeratology In Sydney: The Non Surgical Alternative.

To book an appointment for a thorough eye check-up, click here or Call the Bondi clinic on (02) 9365 5047 or the Mosman clinic on (02) 9969 1600.

HEAR: Gary Rodney Interviewed By David Wood Ultra106five.com

Rodney said the reports speak of phones and tablets braced against hands too small to hold them, and with cartoon-streaming digital devices placed in pushchair pockets close to tiny faces. 

Rodney says he does not “blame” parents for doing this. Instead he believes it is the result of a lack of awareness on many Australian parents’ part regarding how babies’ and children’s eyes develop in the first months and years of their lives, and the importance of protecting their children from becoming part of the statistics that indicate myopia will affect half the world’s population by 2050.

Pushchair Screen-time Affects a Baby’s Eyesight

Rodney says exposing babies to screens could unintentionally increase their chances of becoming myopic. Lack of time spent outdoors and too much screen time are two links identified by studies as having possible ties to the development of this treatable but incurable refractive eye condition. This has led to the American Academy of Paediatrics recommending that children under two years old should not watch screens at all, and older children should be limited to around 2 hours a day.

He said babies in prams or pushchairs are extremely vulnerable as their eyesight is still developing, and will continue to do so at least until they reach their third birthday. Newborn babies are shortsighted and unable to see further than a foot (30cm) away, without what they’re seeing becoming blurred, even if that happens to be their parents. This nearsightedness will normally disappear as the baby’s eyesight develops, but not in all cases.

An Eyesight Threat Not Just an Inconvenience

Near or short sightedness are the layman’s terms for myopia, Rodney said, labels which do not sound serious or threatening, and can often be misunderstood to be an inconvenience which can be fixed with a pair of glasses.

“These terms don’t paint a true picture of myopia and how it feels to see everything that’s more than a few feet away as a blur. It can leave a feeling of confusion in children who come to realise they cannot see, or interpret what they are seeing, as others do. For them a blur is a blur, whether it’s actually a tree, a mountain range, or even the family pet playing in the backyard. 

“Their vision is trapped where it was when they were babies in prams and pushchairs. Only now, they are not babies developing their eyesight, but children having to learn about, and react to, a world around them in a world where their eyesight has not developed in the same way as their peers’. When they go to school they are expected to assimilate information, most of which is presented in the form of images some distance away, and is often nothing but a blur to them. This can impact on performance at school,” Rodney says.

The Importance of Myopia Treatment

Unless the right treatment is given, the eye impairment can worsen progressively until children reach their late 20’s when it usually levels off. And later in life can become a serious eye problem which can lead to blindness. 

Smart Vision Optometry clinics in Sydney focus on providing eye care for a number of vision problems with particular focus on children and myopia, and on determining the best treatment for each case. Visit the Smart Vision website: Optometrists Sydney: Optometry Services For Children and Adults | Smart Vision to find more information provided by the Smart Vision behavioural optometrists and for information on the precautions applied during COVID-19.

Click here to book an appointment online or Call the Bondi clinic on (02) 9365 5047, or the Mosman clinic on (02) 9969 1600.  

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