About the Author
Hello! This blog is authored by me, Dr. Mary McMains, Behavioral Optometrist. My intention is to share my professional and personal knowledge, thoughts, views and opinions. Yes, this blog will be biased because I am board certified in vision development and my specialty is vision therapy, particularly as one of the treatment options for vision related learning difficulties, developmental delays, attention deficits, sensory-integration delays, acquired brain injury and sports vision enhancement. I have a lifelong goal of making vision therapy a household word due to its profound validity and efficacy in treating many visual dysfunctions that affect how individuals learn, work and play.
It is my hope that this blog will help me do my part to dispel the myth that vision therapy is not a valid treatment option by sharing the latest medical research with you so that those individuals that do have a visual dysfunction will get the help they need to improve their quality of life. I do not want any doctor (primary care optometrist, ophthalmologist, pediatrician, etc.) to be ignorant of the current literature and perpetuate that myth.
I feel that all parents and preschools should be knowledgeable in how to guide vision development from infancy through kindergarten so that every child has the opportunity to develop a good foundation for academic success and are ready to learn before entering school. Ben Franklin said it best when he said “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”
I want all parents, doctors, nurses and teachers to know how to identify those children who are exhibiting signs of vision related learning difficulties and refer them to the specialists that can rule out or identify and remediate any possible vision problems.
Please remember that no comments or posts should be taken as medical advice, because without seeing the individual for an examination, I can only postulate and surmise. If you need medical advice, please make an appointment with a Behavioral Optometrist in your area. You can use the doctor locator feature courtesy of The College of Optometrists in Vision Development at www.covd.org.
I look forward to talking with you!
Mary McMains, O.D., M.Ed., F.C.O.V.D.