Andrea – Ben’s Mom

We began our adventure seeking support for our 2nd grader after we had noticed a growing concern of inverting letters and numbers, struggling to read the smallest words, and high levels of frustration in and out of the classroom. After visiting a general practitioner, a neuropsychologist, and an ophthalmologist the only thing we had in hand was essentially “let your son be average,” a diagnosis of mild ADHD, and a confirmation of 20/20 vision. Yet my son could read the word “adventure” and not the words “he,” “it,” “she,” or “and.” He could repeat entire stories that I read to him in great detail, but he couldn’t tell me what was in the last sentence he had attempted to read.
We arrived at Indiana Vision Development Center with a frustrated child who was tired of discussing his struggles with others. Thankfully, we finally came out of an appointment with a diagnosis that made sense: convergence insufficiency. After a year of vision therapy, my son is in a completely different state of mind. He loves to read and has been recognized at school for it. He has gone from failing spelling to achieving an A+ on his last report card. The excessive bathroom breaks and constant movement in the classroom to avoid working have disappeared. No longer do we receive bi-weekly emails from his teacher with concerns and complaints about his behavior. Instead we receive praises and compliments on his growth and his compassion. Yes, we still see an occasional letter flip or have a day where it’s harder for him to focus. However, I welcome the latest teacher complaint – Ben needs to focus a little more on his classroom work before he picks up that irresistible book that he now carries with him everywhere. That’s something that I can celebrate in and then discuss with him balancing schoolwork with personal reading.