Why you might have problems reading longer articles

What you “see” is not simply up to your eyes
The sensory input must be interpreted correctly by the brain

© Madelyn Griffith-Haynie, CTP, CMC, ACT, MCC, SCAC
Another Sensory Integration post

“What if you’re receiving the same sensory information as everyone else, but your brain is interpreting it differently?“

Found HERE

“Then your experience of the world around you will be radically different from everyone else, maybe even painfully so.” ~ Temple Grandin, Autistic Brain

And sometimes not

In my last article on Sensory Sensitivies, [Turtlenecks and Wool – Yea or Nay?] I explained a bit about temperature and tactile sensitivites that most of us probably believe are simply our own little quirks and preferences.

With examples and stories, I hoped to illustrate that sensory integration issues are not nearly as rare as you might believe, even though we hear most about them in the Autism Spectrum population.

“Studies of nonautistic children have shown that more than half have a sensory symptom, that one in six has a sensory problem significant enough to affect his daily life; and that one in twenty should be formally diagnosed with sensory processing disorder, meaning that the sensory problems are chronic and disruptive.” ~ Temple Grandin, Autistic Brain

Sensory Scrambling at the far end

Most people “can’t imagine a world where scratchy clothes make you feel like you’re on fire or where a siren sounds ‘like someone drilling a hole in [their] skull.’ ” ~ Temple Grandin. Autistic Brain

“The world isn’t coming in right. So autistic children end up looking wild.”
~ Temple Grandin. Animals in Transition, p. 192

But most people never dream that struggles with concentration or reading could possibly be the result of a sensory integration issue.

Phillip Martin, artist/educator

The Paul Revere of Sensory Integration

Dr. Temple Grandin was born in Boston in 1947, diagnosed autistic in 1950. She was four years old before she began to speak. Her mother, advised to institutionalize Temple as a child, fought instead to educate her.

Despite the fact that Temple was misunderstood and bullied for most of her life, and despite the fact that she was dismissed as “impossible to educate,” she went on to receive a Ph.D. in Animal Husbandry.  Her ideas and designs have revolutionized that particular industry.

Autism understanding and awareness took off, thanks in no small part to her books and speaking engagements. She is now a leading expert on Autistic Spectrum disorders and Sensory Integration issues [SI].

As the result of a wonderful movie about her life, more people are aware of Temple and her story than ever, able to understand that scrambled sensory processing is a huge problem for individuals on the autistic spectrum.

Few people are aware, however, that scrambled sensory processing affects many people who are otherwise considered “neurotypical” (i.e., brain “normal”) – to various degrees and in various sensory modalities. More than a few have been misdiagnosed with “learning disabilities” or other cognitive problems.

Even fewer people are aware of Helen Irlen, who has been working successfully with VISUAL scrambles for decades now – in many of those different population samples otherwise considered “neurotypical.”

I’ve been ringing the Irlen bell since I included Irlen Syndrome/scotopic sensitivity in the Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions module in my manual for the world’s first ADD-specific coach training (the only one for eight years) – over 20 years ago now.

Her method is still considered somewhat controversial, despite the fact that we now have functional brain scans that could be used to underscore her claims “scientifically,” and despite the fact that it is supported by experts in the fields of education, psychology, medicine, ophthalmology, and neuroscience around the world.

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About Irlen Syndrome

The endorsement below is from Daniel Amen, M.D., Amen Clinics, Newport Beach, CA, author of many books, including ‘Change Your Brain, Change Your Life: The Breakthrough Program for Conquering Anxiety, Depression, Obsessiveness, Lack of Focus, Anger, and Memory Problems’:

“When I first learned about Irlen Syndrome, I was skeptical. I never heard about it in my psychiatry training program. Yet, over time I had friends and family members who benefited from the treatment.

Remarkably, when people obtain benefit from the treatment, it helps to balance brain function. One of the factors that drew me to Irlen Syndrome and the Irlen treatment is its simplicity and effectiveness.”

According to information on the Irlen website, Irlen Syndrome Affects:

• 12-14% of the general population
• 46% of individuals with reading and learning difficulties
• 33% with ADHD
• 33% with autism
• 55% with head injury, concussion or whiplash

Not ALL of the symptoms show up as reading problems.

Some adult sufferers have trouble seeing well enough to drive at night because of glare – or the glare from a computer screen or other electronic device makes it difficult for them to work very long without problems.

Many have problems with chronic headaches or “unexplained” bouts of nausea. Struggles with concentration and focused attention, or sustained academic and work performance are common in Irlen Syndrome sufferers.

Some can’t abide florescent light or find bright sunlight almost painful, and most Irlen adults have insisted on wearing dark glasses outside for years before diagnosis, even on days that are overcast. Some have altered depth perception, seeming more than a little clumsy.  Throwing and catching a ball can be an ongoing a challenge – and getting on and off escalators can be a bit scary.

Many sufferers tend to read only in dim light, since bright light is part of the problem. Most parents believe that they will “ruin their eyes!” unless the light is bright, unintentionally making things worse for struggling readers.  Kids who wear hats that shield their eyes inside their homes are giving their parents a big clue that parents rarely interpret correctly.

Other problems can actually look behavioral, and Irlen Syndrome is currently misdiagnosed as other conditions a high percentage of the time.

So what IS Irlen Syndrome, what causes it, and can anything be done to correct the problem?

Interpreting Light Waves

Found HERE

Anyone who has ever played with a prism has seen that “white” light is actually made up of different “colors” — in other words, assorted vibrations that our visual apparatus “decodes” as various colors.

But what if something about your magic decoder brain was wonky?

According to Helen Irlen, the author of Reading by the Colors and The Irlen Revolution, Irlen Syndrome interventions are based on processing problems within the brain’s vision centers, not a problem with the way most of us normally think of visual acuity.

Often these problems are the result of brain timing issues — where the perfectly accurate visual information about certain color vibrations is processed by the visual cortex slightly before or after the other color vibrations.

As the brain struggles to make sense of mistimed information, it can only attempt to fill in the missing portions of the pattern – and often totally incorrectly. This misinterpretion can lead to seeing patterns that exhaust the viewer, “rivers” of white space that hijack focus from the words on the page, or static words that appear to be “moving,” similar to optical illusions created intentionally.

Sufferers rarely know

©Phillip Martin – artist/educator

Like asking a fish to tell you about water, most sufferers have no idea that their experience is atypical.

To them it’s simply how it’s always been,
and they don’t understand how everybody else
copes better than they do.

Many conclude that they are simply lazy — or stupid.

Sometimes their physical symptoms have been dismissed
as an excuse or a bid for attention.

Others do realize that something is wrong — with their energy and emotional regulation, for example — but they grudgingly accept those symptoms as a result of PTSD, or how it’s going to be since their head injury (concussion, or TBI/ABI).

Colored filters “bend” light waves

The Irlen Method of treating this condition is simply effective: she compensates for the problem by filtering various wavelengths of light with colored lenses.

This alters the mistimed inputs, creating a consistent data stream that hits the visual cortex in a manner that the brain can process without confusion.  When the lenses are correctly prescribed, the wearer sees the world without color distortion, as happens with some sunglasses available commercially.

With Irlen lenses, improvements are dramatic — and often immediate.

It is essential to understand that just any colored lenses are NOT likely to be effective, any more than the wrong sized band-aid or one in the wrong place isn’t going to be much protection for a physical injury to the skin.

The multi-stepped screening process designed and developed by Irlen is intended to figure out exactly which interventions are appropriate for each particular individual.

• In the earlier, inexpensive screenings it is determined if colored lenses are likely to help your symptoms.  If not, you stop there.
• The subsequent screenings are designed to determine exactly which light waves need to be “bent” for each particular brain.
• Then you need to decide whether the colored “test” overlays, alone or in combination, will be effective or whether you need to move on to a more comprehensive solution: glasses or contact lenses.
• If you need vision correction because of a problem with focusing your eyes, that is done privately, with a optomistrist or opthomologist (as usual), and you bring your glasses to Irlen only for tinting.

Take the self-test for free on the Irlen Website –
and find out how to proceed if your results lead you to believe that YOU
(or someone you love) might be helped by getting screened professionally.

BUT, don’t waste your money on some of the colored filter glasses sold in sets by assorted vendors on various websites – or even in the offices of some eyewear “professionals” who don’t really understand what’s involved.  Get your colored lenses from a certified Irlen practitioner.

And don’t blame the Irlen method if you don’t take that advice
and you see little to no symptom improvement.

 

DO NOT MISS: A teen’s video account of Irlen Syndrome

The video is also found on the What is Irlen? page on Helen’s website,
along with other helpful information to help YOU or someone you love
who has never been fond of reading and never really understood why.

 

A series of videos for Educators and Parents below
(or if YOU have always struggled with reading, comprehension,
headaches, glare, or other vision problems)

DISCLOSURE:  I have NO personal or professional association with the Irlen organization and receive NO remuneration for recommending testing (or anything else!)

© 2017, all rights reserved
Check bottom of Home/New to find out the “sharing rules”
(reblogs always okay, and much appreciated)

Shared on the Senior Salon

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There’s a lot to know, a lot here already, and a lot more to come – in this Series and in others.
Get it here while it’s still free for the taking.

Want to work directly with me? If you’d like some coaching help with anything that came up while you were reading this Series (one-on-one couples or group), click HERE for Brain-based Coaching with mgh, with a contact form at its end (or click the E-me link on the menubar at the top of every page). Fill out the form, submit, and an email SOS is on its way to me; we’ll schedule a call to talk about what you need. I’ll get back to you ASAP (accent on the “P”ossible!)

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You might also be interested in some of the following articles
available right now – on this site and elsewhere.

For links in context: run your cursor over the article above and the dark grey links will turn dark red;
(subtle, so they don’t pull focus while you read, but you can find them to click when you’re ready for them)
— and check out the links to other Related Content in each of the articles themselves —

COACHING LINKS at end of all posts

• Brain-based Coaching with Madelyn Griffith-Haynie
• Brain-based Coaching Fees & Formats
• The Group Coaching LinkList – explaining how this format works

Related articles on ADDandSoMuchMore.com

• Happy Birthday Temple Grandin
• Turtlenecks and Wool – Yea or Nay?
• Sound Sensitivity and Sensory Integration
• Top Ten Reasons Why Summer Needs to take Early Retirement

Other supports for this article

A Few LinkLists by Category
(to articles by topic on ADDandSoMuchMore.com)

• The Optimal Functioning (Challenges) Series of articles
  (about the Inventory & articles from each category)
• Back from Boggle™ Series

• When you are NEW to ADD (or this blog/Attentional Struggles/ADD Coaching)
• Variations on ADD-ADHD

Related Articles ’round the net

• Take the Irlen Self-Test on her website
• Reading by the Colors: Overcoming Dyslexia and Other Reading Disabilities Through the Irlen Method
• Helen Irlen’s Amazon author page
• Sensory Processing Disorder – Could Light/Colour Sensitivity be the Underlying Cause?
• The Girl with Kaleidoscope Eyes: How Tinted Glasses Changed my Life
• Seeing things differently – Jenni’s Irlen Journey
• I’m just not me when my Irlen symptoms return
• SAD – IS – me (until her Irlen diagnosis, that is)
• IRLEN SYNDROME: AN UNDER-EXPLORED HIDDEN CONDITION?
• SmartDrugsSmarts interview with Irlen (audio & showpage)

BY THE WAY: Since ADDandSoMuchMore.com is an Evergreen site, I revisit all my content periodically to update links — when you link back, like, follow or comment, you STAY on the page. When you do not, you run a high risk of getting replaced by a site with a more generous come-from.