It is not uncommon for a patient to have a vision related learning problem that not only affects their reading but also their ability to do well in sports. As they acquire better vision skills through office-based vision therapy, they will often report, "Oh, by the way, I'm hitting the ball better in baseball or golf or what ever their sport may be.
One special example of this was one of our 17 year old patients who "graduated" from vision therapy last year. His name is Cameron Luther. Cam's initial diagnosis before treatment was accommodative and oculomotor dysfunction. He presented for a vision evaluation because he and his parents were very concerned about his difficulty with reading efficiency. Cam is a bright guy who was having serious trouble perfroming on his ACTs. In general he was very frustrated keeping his place and concentrating on his reading material. Following 25 sessons of officed-based vision therapy Cam has improved in many ways. Below is his story in his own words:
"Since beginning vision therapy, I have noticed improvements in nearly every aspect of my vision, but there are two improvements that have stood out amoungst the rest. They are my reading speed and my ability to track a baseball when hitting.
At the start, my reading speed was not where it needed to be. In my preliminary test, as a seventeen year old, I was reading at around a sixth grade efficiency. This really took a toll on my ACT score, since the test is timed and requires a lot of reading. I knew I was bright and the potential to read faster and score better, but my eyes had trouble focusing. Throughout my training I noticed steady improvements and by the end, my reading speed and efficiency was at the level of a third year college student. Thanks to this improvement, I wass able to reach my goal, and scored a 33 on the ACT.
During the spring, I had had a mediocre baseball season, and I was getting worried. Having just finished my junior year of hight school, that summer was going to be my last chance to be noticed by the colleges. As it turns out, the vision therapy which I had originally done to improve my reading, helped a great deal with baseball as well. I felt like I could track the ball out of the pitcher's hand and could read the spin on a curveball like never before. As it turns out, I led the Midwest region in home runs oer the summer with nineteen, and was offered a baseball scholarship by the University of Michigan! I doubt any of this would hve worked out had it not been for the vision therapy.
Lastly, I would like to thank my vision therapist, Dr. Lindsey, Dr. Fortenbacher and everyone at Wow Vision Therapy. You all really made a difference."
Cameron Luther
P.S. On Thursday night I will talk about another well known professional athelete who attributes his success in his game to his experience with having vision therapy as a kid. Any guess who this might be?
Thank you all for your comments too!
Dr. Fortenbacher
