{"id":17704,"date":"2021-09-22T17:51:16","date_gmt":"2021-09-22T17:51:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/?page_id=17704"},"modified":"2021-09-22T17:51:16","modified_gmt":"2021-09-22T17:51:16","slug":"vision-therapy-how-do-i-get-started","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/vision-therapy\/guide-to-vision-therapy\/what-is-vision-therapy\/vision-therapy-how-do-i-get-started\/","title":{"rendered":"Vision Therapy: How Do I Get Started?"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>Up to 15% of all people have a vision problem that can be successfully treated with vision therapy.<\/b><\/h2>\n<p>Has your eye doctor recommended <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/vision-therapy\/guide-to-vision-therapy\/vision-therapy-faqs\/\">vision therapy<\/a>?<\/p>\n<p>If you have a vision problem that\u2019s affecting your quality of life\u2014 your performance of daily activities, your academic or professional success and your athletic abilities, vision therapy may be the answer you have been searching for.<\/p>\n<p>Many people visit doctor after doctor looking for answers to why they suffer from frequent headaches, dizziness, eye strain, restlessness, reduced concentration, and more. Unfortunately, after many tests and procedures, many people are still left without a diagnosis for their unexplained symptoms.<\/p>\n<p>Fortunately, developmental optometrists have heard many stories like these and are able to search within the person\u2019s visual system for the answers.<\/p>\n<p>In most cases, these unexplained symptoms are due to a visual dysfunction, or a problem within the eye-brain connections that impacts the functioning of the eyes and results in a range of uncomfortable symptoms.<\/p>\n<h2><b>What is vision therapy?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b>Vision therapy is an<\/b> <b>effective program designed to treat a variety of vision problems that cannot be treated with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/optical\/guide-to-optical-lenses\/\">eyeglasses<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/general-practice-optometry\/optical\/guide-to-contact-lenses\/\">contact lenses<\/a> alone<\/b>.<\/p>\n<p>Vision therapy aims to strengthen your entire visual system, to enhance your vision for all aspects of living.<\/p>\n<p>Vision therapy gets to the core of the problem by strengthening the connections between the eyes and brain to improve vision clarity and comfort.<\/p>\n<p>If you or your child has been diagnosed with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/vision-therapy\/vision-therapy-for-lazy-eye\/treating-amblyopia-a-new-way\/lazy-eyes-are-not-lazy\/\">lazy eye<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/vision-therapy\/vision-therapy-for-children\/convergence-insufficiency-2\/do-i-have-convergence-insufficiency\/\">convergence insufficiency<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/childrens-vision\/a-guide-to-eye-turns\/strabismus-crossed-eyes\/strabismus-faqs\/\">strabismus<\/a>, or difficulties with eye tracking or visual processing, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/practice-search\/\"><b>contact an eye doctor near you that is trained and experienced in vision therapy.<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n<p><b>SEE RELATED: <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/vision-therapy\/guide-to-vision-therapy\/what-is-vision-therapy\/do-all-optometrists-provide-vision-therapy\/\">Do All Optometrists Provide Vision Therapy?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\t<div class=\"practice-search-widget\">\n\t\t<h3>Find a Vision Therapy Eye Doctor Near You<\/h3>\n\t\t\n\t<form class=\"practice-search-form practice-search-form-widget\" action=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/practice-search\/results\/\" method=\"get\">\n\n\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"distance\" value=\"100\" class=\"practice-search-distance\">\n\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"page\" class=\"practice-search-page\">\n\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"address_latitude\"><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"address_longitude\">\n\n\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"address\" class=\"practice-search-address\" placeholder=\"City, Surburb or Address\" value=\"\">\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"distance\" value=\"100\" class=\"practice-search-distance\">\n\n\t\t\n\n\t\t<button type=\"submit\" class=\"practice-search-button\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path fill-rule=\"evenodd\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M10.6796 0.130005C9.15708 0.130059 7.66615 0.5646 6.38198 1.38258C5.09781 2.20057 4.07373 3.36803 3.43004 4.74783C2.78634 6.12763 2.54976 7.66246 2.74808 9.17205C2.9464 10.6816 3.57139 12.1033 4.54964 13.27L0.729639 17.08C0.6364 17.1732 0.562439 17.2839 0.511979 17.4058C0.461519 17.5276 0.435547 17.6581 0.435547 17.79C0.435547 17.9219 0.461519 18.0524 0.511979 18.1743C0.562439 18.2961 0.6364 18.4068 0.729639 18.5C0.917942 18.6883 1.17334 18.7941 1.43964 18.7941C1.5715 18.7941 1.70207 18.7681 1.82389 18.7177C1.94571 18.6672 2.0564 18.5932 2.14964 18.5L5.99964 14.62C7.35406 15.6038 8.98566 16.1324 10.6596 16.13C12.7814 16.13 14.8162 15.2871 16.3165 13.7869C17.8168 12.2866 18.6596 10.2517 18.6596 8.13C18.6596 6.00827 17.8168 3.97344 16.3165 2.47315C14.8162 0.97286 12.7814 0.130005 10.6596 0.130005H10.6796ZM10.6796 14.13C9.49295 14.13 8.33291 13.7781 7.34622 13.1188C6.35952 12.4595 5.59049 11.5225 5.13636 10.4261C4.68224 9.32975 4.56342 8.12335 4.79493 6.95946C5.02644 5.79558 5.59788 4.72648 6.437 3.88736C7.27611 3.04825 8.34521 2.4768 9.5091 2.24529C10.673 2.01378 11.8794 2.1326 12.9757 2.58673C14.0721 3.04085 15.0092 3.80989 15.6685 4.79658C16.3277 5.78328 16.6796 6.94332 16.6796 8.13C16.6796 9.7213 16.0475 11.2474 14.9223 12.3726C13.7971 13.4979 12.2709 14.13 10.6796 14.13Z\" fill=\"#fff\"\/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t<button type=\"button\" class=\"practice-search-use-my-location\">\n\t\t\tSearch near me\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\n\t<\/form>\n\n\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n<h2><b>How to get started<\/b><\/h2>\n<p>The first step is to have your eyes and visual skills fully evaluated by a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/vision-therapy\/guide-to-vision-therapy\/what-are-the-benefits-of-vision-therapy\/how-can-a-developmental-optometrist-help\/\">developmental optometrist,<\/a> an eye doctor who has undergone extensive post-graduate training to become a vision therapy provider.<\/p>\n<p><b>The best way to start is to use the \u2018Find an Eye Doctor\u2019 search on this page to find the nearest vision therapy eye doctor.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Once the eye doctor has performed an extensive range of tests you will understand where the vision problems lie and which visual skills require strengthening.<\/p>\n<p>With a comprehensive vision evaluation, your eye doctor will be able to design an individualized vision therapy program for you or your child\u2019s specific needs.<\/p>\n<h2><b>What to expect during your first vision therapy session<\/b><\/h2>\n<p>Vision therapy is performed together with a vision therapist on a weekly basis in sessions lasting 30-45 minutes. Each vision therapy program is personalized, and depending on your needs, your program may include the use of lenses, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/vision-therapy\/neuro-optometry\/what-are-prism-lenses\/how-are-prisms-used-in-vision-therapy\/\">prisms<\/a> and occluders, along with a variety of eye exercises.<\/p>\n<p>In some cases, corrective eyewear, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/vision-therapy\/neuro-optometry\/what-are-prism-lenses\/\">prism lenses<\/a>, or surgery may be required as well.<\/p>\n<p>At the end of your session, your eye doctor or vision therapist will give you exercises to practice at home for the duration of the week. This will help to reinforce what has been learned during the in-office sessions. For optimal results, commit to performing these exercises as directed by your optometrist.<\/p>\n<p><b>LEARN MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/vision-therapy\/guide-to-vision-therapy\/\">Guide to Vision Therapy<\/a>\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p><b><a href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/practice-search\/\">Schedule an appointment with an eye doctor near you<\/a> to learn more about vision therapy and take your first step forward!<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Up to 15% of all people have a vision problem that can be successfully treated with vision therapy. Has your eye doctor recommended vision therapy?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1206,"featured_media":17705,"parent":277,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"template-article.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17704","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Vision Therapy: How Do I Get Started? - Optometrists.org<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.optometrists.org\/vision-therapy\/guide-to-vision-therapy\/what-is-vision-therapy\/vision-therapy-how-do-i-get-started\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Vision Therapy: How Do I Get Started? - Optometrists.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Up to 15% of all people have a vision problem that can be successfully treated with vision therapy. 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