Hearing me sing the praises of vision therapy isn't anything new; those months spent travelling to Columbus with my homeschooling girl and preschool boy were the best investment I've made in Caden so far, and I'm sure you're tired of hearing about the miracle that I know it was. Every time I see him enjoy something that he previously was too afraid to detach from my body to even try to experience, I get a little emotional. This year brought his first ride on a kiddie roller coaster, and other bigger-kiddy rides (before now, he was even afraid of most of the baby ones). He played on his first real soccer team, and is trying really hard to control those scissors and crayons!
Most importantly, this kid learned to jump off of and climb up on things. Never in his 5+ years did he jump down..from anything. Climbing was limited to how far I could reach to hold on to him, because he wasn't going solo. Being evaluated by the vision therapist made us realize that the kid had little to no depth perception, and didn't see 'in 3-D'. His world was flat, and he was having trouble navigating the round one the rest of us lived in. No wonder he just sat with his mama when everyone else was playing. Our family doc was convinced that he has Asperger's Syndrome, or was 'somewhere on the spectrum', because of his lack of interaction with his peers. I knew he really enjoyed playing quietly with other kids, when he could find one that would stand still long enough to play with him. We had him evaluated for autism at Children's in Columbus, just to but that worry to rest once and for all.
On our trip to Old Man's Cave this past weekend, this wild man of mine climbed trees, rocks and his dad, just to jump off again. He ran into the dark crevices of the rock structures, balanced on fallen logs, and gave me heart attacks from running too close to the edge of the cliffs. Drawing in dirt with sticks, and sliding down muddy trails to try to be one with the 6 year old indian kids of long ago (because they didn't have real playgrounds) were all on his agenda.
Had we not discovered, and believed in vision therapy enough to take a major chunk out of our lives to make it happen, I am positive he would have spent yesterday clinging to my body, freaking out in fear and resorting to spending the day playing quietly in the car while we waited for everyone else to finish hiking. So, when you see me witha goofy grin on my face, and a tear rolling down my cheek when my kid is in the crazy-zone, it's probably because I'm 'having a moment'; a moment of thankfulness and gratitude for my son who has turned 'all boy'.
Most importantly, this kid learned to jump off of and climb up on things. Never in his 5+ years did he jump down..from anything. Climbing was limited to how far I could reach to hold on to him, because he wasn't going solo. Being evaluated by the vision therapist made us realize that the kid had little to no depth perception, and didn't see 'in 3-D'. His world was flat, and he was having trouble navigating the round one the rest of us lived in. No wonder he just sat with his mama when everyone else was playing. Our family doc was convinced that he has Asperger's Syndrome, or was 'somewhere on the spectrum', because of his lack of interaction with his peers. I knew he really enjoyed playing quietly with other kids, when he could find one that would stand still long enough to play with him. We had him evaluated for autism at Children's in Columbus, just to but that worry to rest once and for all.
On our trip to Old Man's Cave this past weekend, this wild man of mine climbed trees, rocks and his dad, just to jump off again. He ran into the dark crevices of the rock structures, balanced on fallen logs, and gave me heart attacks from running too close to the edge of the cliffs. Drawing in dirt with sticks, and sliding down muddy trails to try to be one with the 6 year old indian kids of long ago (because they didn't have real playgrounds) were all on his agenda.
Had we not discovered, and believed in vision therapy enough to take a major chunk out of our lives to make it happen, I am positive he would have spent yesterday clinging to my body, freaking out in fear and resorting to spending the day playing quietly in the car while we waited for everyone else to finish hiking. So, when you see me witha goofy grin on my face, and a tear rolling down my cheek when my kid is in the crazy-zone, it's probably because I'm 'having a moment'; a moment of thankfulness and gratitude for my son who has turned 'all boy'.
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