[ajjhmf]

I am soooo frustrated right now.

J has had a lazy eye since birth. He's been seeing an opthamologist since then. We finally got his eyes both working a year and a half ago after patching for 3 months solid. (we'd done part-time patching before then.) Well, we went for a check up again today and he's back to only using his right eye again. Patching full-time again on a child who hates patches.

The thing that's so frustrating is his lazy eye is only off by 4 degrees. They can only correct to 1-2 degres of straight. So, surgery isn't an option and I just have to pray that his eyes are both being used when that part of his brain gets set. Otherwise, he runs the risk of permament vision loss. And he's fighting me on the patching like mad this time.

[Lylac]

We had to patch L's eye's also when she was smaller. She hated that more than anything! Since she couldn't use her left arm, that was no problem, but she'd pull them off with the other and chew them up. We then had to put her right arm in a air splint, talking about a MAD baby!

As it turns out no matter what we did, nothing would improve her vision or ever will

[lucyjoy]

Aren't there any eye exercises that will help improve this or is is not a muscle thing? Some of my kids had tracking issues where one eye would travel without the other but instead of patching for use they had these exercises they did to train them both to work. Wondering if anything like that would work for a lazy eye?

Tell J he looks like a pirate and that its very cool. Tell him H doesn't get to be a pirate like him-I like to use the boys sense of competitiveness. Are you using a regular patch or can you tape something over it? S injured his eye last summer and we had to tape a bandage over it for a couple days. Would something like that work?

[skirbo]

Oh, it's definitely time for a showing of the first Pirates of the Caribbean and now the one at the theater. You can't get cooler than Capt. Jack Sparrow, even if he isn't wearing a patch

Pirate thing is a *great* idea, Lucy.

You could even get him a pirate looking doo-rag to go with it

Sarah

[ajjhmf]

Lylac - I'm so sorry about your daughter's eye. It's so hard when there is somethign we can't fix.

J's lazy eye is such a pain, but it's worth it if it means he won't lose his eyesight. It's frustrating though because it's still such a gamble on whether or not it stays this way.

Lucy - in answer to your question, yes and no. It's a muscle and neuro thing. His muscles in his eye are weak, so his eye looks in. This confuses his brain, so his brain stops using that eye, making it weaker. Eye exercises don't work at this stage because he brain just won't use the eye if the other one is in use as well. Patching is a way to tricking teh brain to turn back on and then strengthening the eye.

The patch we got him is actually a pirate patch. He's got a pirate do-rag as well, so he's been playing the part all afternoon. I'll try and take a pictire of my little scallywags in tehe morning. At the moment, they are both asleep. (insert a pirate smilie )

On the way to Tang Soo Do tonight, he asked me to explain to him again why he had to wear it. I'm taking that as a good sign for future compliance. LOL He even explained it correctly to his instructors at Tang Soo Do.

[lucyjoy]

Good for J for trying hard to understand.

Wonder how much his eye plays into his handwriting issues? I know with my one son's eye issues, the first thing one eye saw and the first thing the other saw were different so the brain got two different messages.
He had nerve damage in his hands as well and writing was a big issue as was reading.

The other really weird thing-A specialized AT that we took our kids to took one look at my step son and says-"He can't spell and has trouble with math right?" I asked her how she new that and she says, "His eyes are bouncing so they won't track right." Wierd, huh?

[ajjhmf]

Interesting. I'm definately going to look into that. Today, when we did school, he had the hardest time. I finally let him stop since I figured out his eye hadn't adjusted. Doh!

They've never said anything to me about tracking, but who knows if they have ever looked.

[Lylac]

L had the muscle surgey at 1, but it didn't last long. She'll have it again when she's old enough to notice it herself. Right now her vision is good, if it doesn't change by age 7, it won't until she's in her 30's.
Praying for the 30's here.

[ajjhmf]

Is L using her eye now?

J's eyesight is such that he got his first bifocals at age 5. The doctor said we may be looking at tri-focals in a couple years. J's 7 now but our doctor told us we most likely have until 9. Scary, isn't it?

[BD2884]

Jenny:

On the Russian board there has been alot of talk about vision therapy. I really dont know anything about it but alot of people have had good result --it sounds like. You might want to do a search about it and some research as well. Just a thought.

Bari

[Lylac]

L doen't have any central vision in her right eye due to tears in her retina. And her left eye is extremely far sighted. She got glasses on her 2nd Bday, but the doc told us, after awhile to stop putting them on her.
They were only making her mad and they weren't helping her one way or the other.

And yes it is very scary about J's eyes! I am terrified for him and you.

[Yvette]

Hmmm! All of this is very interesting. I guess I have had this problem for so long until I didn't know it was supposed to be serious. I, as well as my mom, my brother, sister, and one of my nieces each have a lazy eye.
My niece was patched, and my brother had the surgery. It didn't work for either of them. Only using one eye at a time is not as big a problem for me as it seems to be for the eye doctors. It is all I know and so it is normal to me.
I drive and do everything else I want to do and it has never hindered me except that I can't see the pictures within pictures that you see in the Sunday papers etc. where you have to slowly move the picture back and the hidden picture appears.
I haven't lost any more vision in my left eye compared to the right eye, and I am almost the big 50!
I don't mean to down play your concern by any means. My peripheral vision is a tad weak, but the doctors were always sure it would be worse.
My eye was very crossed when I was a child but as I aged, it strengthened slightly and straightened itself, except for when I am overly tired. Then it tends to cross mildly. Basically it looks just as good as my brother's, who had surgery. The doctor told him the surgery was purely cosmetic and that it wouldn't change his vision. He had the surgey as a child.
I remember how very much my niece hated the patching and it went on for some time. I hope it works for you, and with long lasting results. Maybe it is different or the research is different now. I'm just surprised to hear it really is a bigger problem than I thought. Best wishes

[momraine]

Originally Posted by Yvette

it has never hindered me except that I can't see the pictures within pictures that you see in the Sunday papers etc. where you have to slowly move the picture back and the hidden picture appears.

You know what, I don't have vision problems (OK now I have glasses, but it's cause I am getting old! ) but I have never, ever been able to see those pictures either.

[crick]

Jenny...no advice...just ((HUGS))!

I do love Skirbo's idea though for the Pirate thing!! Leave it to you, Skirb! LOL!

[skirbo]

Originally Posted by crick

Jenny...no advice...just ((HUGS))!

I do love Skirbo's idea though for the Pirate thing!! Leave it to you, Skirb! LOL!

General Weirdness... it's what I'm here for.

Sarah