Autism and Vision

Children with autism frequently suffer from functional vision problems—and those vision problems are often overlooked.

This is about more than 20/20 eyesight.  This is about being able to effectively take in and process visual information.  If your child falls within the autism spectrum and demonstrates some of the following visually associated behavioral characteristics, vision therapy can make a profound difference.

Children with autism frequently suffer from functional vision problems—and those vision problems are often overlooked.

This is about more than 20/20 eyesight.  This is about being able to effectively take in and process visual information.  If your child falls within the autism spectrum and demonstrates some of the following visually associated behavioral characteristics, vision therapy can make a profound difference.

• Poor eye contact
• Staring at lights or spinning objects
• Side viewing and looking through or beyond objects
• Light sensitivity
• Atypical reactions to visual stimuli
• General difficulties attending

While commonly associated with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), these behaviors are often symptoms of visual dysfunctions.  An individually designed vision therapy program can help with these symptoms.

The ramifications of visual dysfunction can also lead to poor eye-hand coordination, issues with fine and gross motor skills, impulsivity, poor spatial awareness, and reduced depth perception.

Vision therapy helps to treat sensory issues and retrain the brain. 

Parents have reported improvements in:

• Better eye contact
• Visual motor skills
• Body coordination
• Social interaction
• Body awareness and balance
• Interest in reading and looking at books