little eyes....

Hello everyone! This post is not art related but I really feel like I need to share this. 

A couple of months ago my oldest (12 yo) said that she was having trouble seeing the board at school.  I took her to the eye doctor and was wondering if she was subconsciously trying to get glasses (she always wanted them!) Nope.  She needed them.  (Not a shining moment in parenting) :)
She came home and told her little sister all about it (she is 7). How you get your eyes dilated, how they ask you a ton of questions. Her sister said "I want to go to the eye doctor"  I explained how J was having trouble seeing and that she (L) had passed the vision test at school so she might need to go later.  She very quietly said "I do have problems, I see two of everything."  Um. what?  I glanced over at Mark to make sure he had heard too. Soooooo, I made an appointment for her too.  After a few tests the doctor asks us to schedule another appointment she wanted to run more tests.  We come back a week later and she confirms there is in fact a problem. I figured there was. As I looked at the one giant H on the board in front of her. L said there were two, and after 40 minutes of the Dr. flipping lenses in front of her and the H's "moving in different directions" the doctor could not get them to ever line up.  She gave an initial diagnosis, and scheduled an appointment in a month with  a specialist....a month.   It has been a long month.    I did the bare minimum of research on her initial diagnosis and saw the frequent mention of eye surgery, the unknown part was overwhelming.

Yesterday was her appointment with a specialist. I was so ready to get this done. I promise I am not putting this out there as a pity party.  This is more of a public service announcement, because of the diagnosis.  The tech came in and did a few tests without her dilated.  Looked at me, told me that her initial diagnosis was wrong. What L has is called Convergence Insufficiency.  He made me watch as he asked her to follow the tip of the pen as it moved to the bridge of her nose. She should have been cross eyed. She looked straight ahead during the test. She cannot move her muscles in that way. It will cause double vision if this is how you are made.  It will be fixed with exercises and potentially glasses.  YAY!! To say we are relieved is an understatement.   Once I researched more about this I feel like I need to stand tall and scream to people about this condition.  
ONE IN 20 KIDS have this. It goes undetected in most school eye appointments.  SO most likely there is a kid in each class that has this. It effects learning and many other things. Sometimes the kids are diagnosed as a having an attention problem or even (rarely) ADHD is diagnosed  and this is the actual problem.  here are more facts.... I just want others to know. SO many of these things were going on with L and we just didn't put it together because she never mentioned it and was doing pretty well in school.

Convergence insufficiency disorder interferes with a person's ability to see, read, learn, and work at near (close distances).

In the past, convergence insufficiency disorder has often gone undetected because testing is not included in (1) pediatrician's eye tests; (2) school screenings; or (3) basic eye exams¹.

A person can pass the 20/20 eye chart test and still have convergence 

      What are the Symptoms of Convergence Insufficiency? A person who has convergence insufficiency may show and/or complain of the following while doing close work (i.e., reading, computer work, deskwork, playing handheld video games, doing crafts, etc.):

• eyestrain (especially with or after reading)
• headaches
• blurred vision
• double vision
• inability to concentrate
• short attention span
• frequent loss of place
• squinting, rubbing, closing or covering an eye
• sleepiness during the activity
• trouble remembering what was read
• words appear to move, jump, swim or float
• problems with motion sickness and/or vertigo

It is not unusual for a person with convergence insufficiency to cover or close one eye while reading to relieve the blurring or double vision. Symptoms will be worsened by illness, lack of sleep, anxiety, and/or prolonged close work. Many people who would test as having convergence insufficiency [if tested] may not complain of double vision or the other symptoms listed above because vision in one eye has shut down. In other words, even though both eyes are open and are healthy and capable of sight, the person's brain ignores one eye to avoid double vision. This is a neurologically active process called suppression.¹ Suppression of vision in one eye causes loss of binocular (two-eyed) vision and depth perception. Poor binocular vision can have a negative impact on many areas of life, such as coordination, sports, judgment of distances, eye contact, motion sickness, etc. Consequently, a person with convergence insufficiency who is suppressing one eye can show some or all of the following symptoms:

• trouble catching balls and other objects thrown through the air
• avoidance of tasks that require depth perception (games involving smaller balls traveling through the air, handicrafts, and/or hand-eye coordination, etc.)
• frequent mishaps due to misjudgment of physical distances (particularly within twenty feet of the person's body), such as:
  • trips and stumbles on uneven surfaces, stairs, and curbs, etc.
  • frequent spilling or knocking over of objects
  • bumping into doors, furniture and other stationary objects
  • sports and/or car parking accidents
• avoidance of eye contact
• poor posture while doing activities requiring near vision
• one shoulder noticably higher
• frequent head tilt
• problems with motion sickness and/or vertigo

If untreated, in some cases, convergence insufficiency can lead to an outward eye turn that comes and goes (intermittent exotropia).^{1, 2}                                                                       
Detection and Diagnosis of Convergence Insufficiency
Convergence (eye teaming) and accommodation (focusing) tests are the important diagnostic tools. A basic eye exam or screening with the 20/20 eye chart is not adequate for the detection of convergence insufficiency (and many other visual conditions). A person can pass the 20/20 test and still have convergence insufficiency. A comprehensive vision evaluation by an eye doctor who tests binocular (two-eyed) vision and who can refer or provide for in-office vision therapy is recommended for all individuals who do reading and deskwork -- particularly students of any age.    

   

Here is a link  about how simple these tests are to diagnose this... in other words its not invasive.
  http://convergenceinsufficiency.net/detail.asp?id=18&pid=13

I am just putting all this out there in case you have a kiddo that has more of these symptoms on the list above and you cant figure it out. 

Very happy for the results this week and the people that kept us in their thoughts and prayers!
L