You probably don’t consider an optometrist when you or your child has trouble getting ready for school in the morning, or procrastinates on projects. But, vision and visualization have far reaching effects. Visual symptoms take forms that you don’t usually associate with eyes. In school, work, or simply life there are some categories in which vision plays a large role: Organization and Social Skills (awareness and control of the environment) People are on overload and not seeing the big picture Co-ordination and Balance (awareness and control of the body) People appear to be clumsy Attention and Motivation (awareness and control of the mind) Vision is a learned skill. People like Walt Disney learned it well, and are called visionaries. Language requires vision too. Language is difficult to learn without visualization skills. Visual Processing includes visualization, spatial organization and memory. This can be evaluated by our neuro-optometric clinician, Heather. Specialists in optometry can often be a primary source in helping design a game plan and for coordinating a team of people. When given the big picture, it’s easier to diagnose problem areas. For instance, medication affects vision. If you are taking medication which changes the nervous systems and alters visual test findings, your eyes will not measure the same way as when you are not on the medication. In addition, realize the fact that there are different triggers for the muscles working in your eyes. The body and head movements vs. gravity: the eye muscles which reflexively move as the head moves. The eyes vs. head: The eye muscles used to aim and focus on selected targets. Optometrists can measure habitual patterns of these muscles and also the comfort ranges of various positions.