Vision Therapy, revisited.
When we asked Luke of all the therapies we tried which one was the most successful, he mentioned VISION therapy. With Luke’s approval, we reconnected with Dr. Tamsyn Sitler of “Kamloops Vision Therapy” https://kamloopsvisiontherapy.ca/ on Battle Street.
Dr. Sitler worked with Luke years ago (2015–2017), but of course back then Luke wasn’t able to verbally respond to her examinations and recommendations.
This time Madison came along to interpret, and Luke was able to communicate during the assessment. After the petite Dr. Sitler got over how tall Luke had grown (lol), she was quickly moved to tears to have him participate fully, answering her questions and affirming her deductions. She was also tickled to discover that her aura was pink, which means “caring”. She had been told before that her aura was pink, so it was now confirmed through Luke!
Aside from the eye exam, Luke was asked to do a number of tests.
He had to read an age appropriate paragraph (this one was at Grade 11 level), and then answer 10 questions pertaining to the paragraph. Luke got 9/10 on this test. We were all very impressed. The paragraph was complicated (see picture), and yet his answers were quick and assertive.
Memory shape/sequence:
Colour Blind test: https://youtu.be/qh3POAMvDQc
There were more tests—some he did well on, some not so well. We learned that Luke needs to have two pairs of glasses: one for distance and one for close-up. This will not be forever, but for a year or so, which, when coupled with vision therapy exercises, will hopefully correct his vision impairments. Technically Luke sees 20/20 with a super slight astigmatism (which does not need correcting at this time), but he struggles with convergence, as he himself deduced.
Dr. Sitler asked us to purchase either distance or close-up glasses, and then schedule an appointment later this spring to begin six months of vision therapy exercises (one hour a week x 20 sessions).
We will see her again on Thursday May 23 and are grateful that Madison will be back in Kamloops to attend this appointment with us.
Luke chose distance glasses first, but was visibly upset about getting glasses. He has super sensitive skin and he worries how the glasses will feel on his face/skin. Dr. Sitler recommended glasses with nose pads, as well as thinner wire frames that are lighter and have less skin contact. We are picturing John Lennon glasses of course, but we will see (pun intended!).
The other recommendations in the comprehensive vision assessment report included:
14pt font, double-spaced for reading
Allow 2–5 minute breaks during sustained work
Extend time to complete tasks, meet deadlines, and to complete projects
Use a slant board
Afterwards, we went with Madison for a coffee at his favourite restaurant, The Art We Are. I asked Luke what he thought of vision therapy and the results...
He replied: “I DON’T LIKE MY OPTIONS, BUT I’LL TRY.”