Treatments
Your eyes do a lot more than see. They track moving objects, shift focus, and work together with the inner ears and neck to keep you steady. When those systems are not working smoothly, you may notice blurred or double vision, headaches with reading or screens, dizziness in busy places, or trouble after a head injury. Eye movement therapy is a set of exercises for how the eyes track, focus, and work together. This page explains what it is, who it is for, and how we use it. It is general information, not a diagnosis.
At Strong Tower, eye movement therapy means exercises for how the eyes move. It is not EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing), which is a different, talk-based therapy used for trauma.
Sudden vision loss, double vision, a drooping eyelid, or eye pain with a severe headache needs emergency care. Call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department. New vision changes should be checked by an eye doctor, who can look for eye disease and prescription changes.
Exercises may involve following a moving target, shifting gaze between two targets, focusing on something as it moves closer, or combining eye movements with head movements or balance tasks. The goal is to challenge the way the eyes work with the rest of the nervous system, at a level you can manage.
Vision therapy is best known for convergence insufficiency, a common childhood vision problem in which the eyes struggle to work together when focusing up close. The National Eye Institute describes an NIH-funded trial of in-office vision therapy for this condition in children (National Eye Institute, October 2019).
We may use eye movement exercises for vision and balance problems after a head injury.
People with visual symptoms after a concussion. See Post-Concussion Syndrome. People with dizziness or motion sensitivity in busy places. See Vertigo & Balance. Athletes working on tracking and reaction time. See Sports & Performance. How we use it at Strong Tower
Dr. Wright is a Doctor of Chiropractic with advanced training in functional neurology. He is not an eye doctor. We examine eye movements as part of our Neurological Exam & Evaluation. Where it fits, we use eye movement exercises alongside vestibular and balance work, and we refer you to an optometrist or ophthalmologist when an eye exam is the better step.
Related, but not identical. Vision therapy usually refers to programs run by optometrists. We use eye movement exercises as one part of nervous system care.
No. EMDR is a talk-based therapy for trauma.
The NIH-funded trial in children with convergence insufficiency found therapy improved eye teaming but did not improve reading more than placebo therapy.
Yes. An eye doctor checks eye health and prescriptions, which we do not.
Next steps
If visual symptoms are part of your picture,