Discover Your Best Vision with Wood and Watson Opticians

• Movement of print
• Blurring of print
• Doubling or fading of letters
• Illusions of colour within the text
• Patterns appearing within text (sometimes described as “worms” or “rivers”)
• Glare and the page appearing “too bright”
• Skipping words or lines
• Eyestrain
• Rapid fatigue and eye rubbing.
• Headaches /Migraine 

Signs of visual stress are some or all of the following:

• Moving closer to or further away from the book
• Moving the book around
• Fidgeting continuously
• Using finger as a marker on the page
• Skipping words or lines
• Frequently re-reading the same line
• Rubbing eyes or blinking frequently when reading
• Poor comprehension of reading content
• Frustration and low self-esteem

Yes, we can treat visual stress. The first thing we do is to carry out a thorough eye examination first, to check if the eyes are healthy, and whether a pair of glasses or contact lenses will help. 

When this has not helped to resolve the above issues , then you can then book in to see us for a Visual Stress Assessment, which will include some additional binocular and pattern glare tests, with a coloured overlay assessment. 

There are differing views on the evidence and whether coloured filters help with the symptoms of visual discomfort. Coloured filters are not usually available on the NHS. However, the practice of using coloured filters for visual discomfort is fairly common in the UK and is often used in schools.

There is little risk of harm in using coloured filters, although your colour perception may be affected. 

As specialists, we  can investigate whether there are other causes of your symptoms before considering using coloured filters, and  advise you on the types of coloured filters available.

Yes, It’s important to understand that visual stress and dyslexia are different things,

but some people have both. Visual stress is a perceptual issue with which coloured overlays and lenses help reduced overstimulation . Dyslexia however is a language based learning issue which affects the way brain helps in the process for reading and writing skills. 

So although they can co-occur, they are distinct conditions with different underlying cause.