Sunflower Vision Development Center

04/14/2026

"I’m almost embarrassed to admit that this slim volume of less than 200 pages has been on my reading list since it was first published in 2016 by The MIT Press, and I just got around to reading it now. It is co-authored by two brothers, one of whom is a vision scientist and the other a practicing ophthalmologist. Here are some snippets of what the Dowling brothers write in a section on amblyopia (page 132-3):

'To conclude, most agree that after the age of 8 or so, amblyopia does not develop following visual deprivation, but relief from aspects of ambloypia can be achieved, at least partially for many years thereafter by intense training of the amblyopic eye … In Oliver Sacks’s book, The Mind’s Eye is the story of a woman, Sue Barry, who as a had a crossed eye that was surgically straightened … As a result of visual exercises she regained some binocular vision and depth perception in her late 40s. It required intense work … Clearly the young brain is more modifiable than is the older brain, and the notion of a critical periods reflects a period of exceptional modifiability. But critical periods are not absolute – modification of brain structure and circuitry is possible throughout life.'"

I’m almost embarrassed to admit that this slim volume of less than 200 pages has been on my reading list since it was first published in 2016 by The MIT Press, and I just got around to readin…

03/19/2026

"It wouldn’t be that much of a stretch to say that the pairing of Nadeem Ali and Robert Lederman seems, at least on the surface, to be a bit of an odd coupling based on their respective backgrounds. Many of you know Robert, who runs the leading vision therapy practice in Jerusalem by way of the UK, and has spearheaded the OVDRA chapter in Israel. Robert graduated with Honours (as they spell it on that side of the pond) from The City University of London’s department of Optometry and Visual Science, and in 2001 he became Israel’s first optometrist to be awarded Fellowship from OVDRA.

Nadeem Ali is what they refer to in London as a 'squint surgeon'. He was a consultant surgeon at the famed Moorfields Eye Hospital and now runs the London Squint Clinic. Squint is the term applied to strabismus, most likely because patients squinted one eye to avoid diplopia, or perhaps alluding to the classic squinting indulged in by the patient with intermittent exotropia when in bright sunlight. Be that as it may, when you go to Nadeem’s website, you’ll see nary a word about vision therapy, or orthoptics for that matter, but you will see great YouTube testimonials about surgery as a cure for double vision.

Yet somehow, as improbable as it is, these two ophthalmic professionals found each other and shared enough conceptual common ground that Nadeem invited Robert to do an interview with him."

It wouldn’t be that much of a stretch to say that the pairing of Nadeem Ali and Robert Lederman seems, at least on the surface, to be a bit of an odd coupling based on their respective backgr…

03/03/2026

"We’ve blogged about Larry Fitzgerald a number of times before, but Robert Nurisio, COVT did a better job than I ever could with his blog about Larry yesterday. Have a look:

Larry Fitzgerald: A Hall of Fame Career Built on More Than Talent

When Larry Fitzgerald is inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the headlines will surely focus on the numbers: the catches, the yards, the longevity, the loyalty to one franchise. And rightly so. Few receivers in the history of the NFL combined durability, grace, and production the way he did. But if you zoom out, and then zoom in, you’ll find something deeper than stats. You’ll find vision."

We’ve blogged about Larry Fitzgerald a number of times before, but Robert Nurisio, COVT did a better job than I ever could with his blog about Larry yesterday. Have a look: Larry Fitzgerald: …

02/18/2026

"A Powerful Message for the Profession—and the World

The central theme of the 2026 MVTSG Conference was clear: neuro‑optometry is not optional in the care of patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) or acquired brain injury (ABI)—it is critical. Across a wide range of lectures, case examples, and research presentations, the conference reinforced a growing body of evidence demonstrating that visual dysfunction is both common and treatable following brain injury, and that timely intervention matters.

For too long, patients with concussion and post‑concussion syndrome (PCS) have been advised to “wait and hope” that symptoms will resolve on their own. This outdated approach was directly challenged throughout the meeting, most notably by the presentation of prospective clinical trial data and meta‑analyses showing that delayed referral often leaves patients living unnecessarily with persistent symptoms—while early neuro‑optometric rehabilitation leads to better, faster, and more complete recovery."

Highlights from the 2026 Michigan Vision Therapy Study Group Educational Conference On January 23–24, 2026, the Michigan Vision Therapy Study Group (MVTSG) Educational Conference convened in Grand …

02/05/2026

"The conclusion of the paper begins: 'The efficacy of vision therapy in treating neurological, cognitive and vision related issues such as accommodation dysfunctions, convergence problems, oculomotor functions, perceptual and spatial functions, which primarily affect the literacy skills of children, have been supported by significant data.'"

https://visionhelp.wordpress.com/2026/01/13/the-efficacy-of-vision-therapy-in-reading-and-literacy-skills/

01/20/2026

01/17/2026

"For those of us in VisionHelp, and I suspect for many of you reading this, the '20/20 is not enough' message works well enough that it remains a cornerstone in your practice. Hey, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. So where does this drive toward getting the message out to a wider public, as seen in the TEDx talks referenced above, or podcasts, or other forms of social media come from? I’d surmise it’s prompted by the many patients who are still being told that 'there’s nothing wrong with your eyes', or 'your vision is perfect', based on superficial vision testing. The vision problems behind the struggles too often remain hidden. In that regard, the system is still broken.

Contemplating what might be more effective messaging, I thought about how I conduct my vision evaluation. After an assistant does an auto-refractor, and after taking visual acuities, and after asking some key questions, I rapidly go into binocular testing. But as I place a pair of anaglyphic filters on the patient I say: 'Now we’re going to find out how your two eyes talk to each other.'

The patient may not articulate it, but that is fascinating to them. Some younger children might say: 'My eyes don’t talk to each other!' And I might reply: 'Actually they do, it’s just that you normally aren’t aware of it because it’s happening quietly in your brain.' And a parent, sitting in on the evaluation, watching all the binocular testing that we’re doing is thinking: 'Wow; I’ve never seen anything like this before.' Or 'Wow, I never thought about vision like this before.' How can I be so sure of this? Because parents typically volunteer those observations when we’re done."

https://visionhelp.wordpress.com/2025/10/13/has-the-20-20-is-not-enough-message-failed-to-deliver/

01/02/2026

Extending best wishes to past, current, and future patients in the new year!!!

12/30/2025

The French neuroscientist Stanislas Dehaene, in his book “Reading in the Brain,” writes, “Scientists can track a printed word as it progresses from the retina through a chain of processing stages, each of which is marked by an elementary question: Are these letters? What do they look like? Are they a word? What does it sound like? How is it pronounced? What does it mean?”

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/12/29/dyslexia-and-the-reading-wars?fbclid=Iwb21leAPADJRjbGNrA8AMj2V4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHozeglEFKsk4Mu-x5wuAgsOgglwU1QZx_kZx4LFmOQMRrHgg9skJYTs9V84e_aem_hVacAWt-ZmsyuDBghnrPvQ

Proven methods for teaching the readers who struggle most have been known for decades. Why do we often fail to use them?

11/28/2025

We wish our wonderful patients and their families a healthy and happy Thanksgiving! ❤️🦃💕

Regular appointment hours will resume on Monday, December 1st.

11/20/2025

"Theory here would say that prescribing the cylinder would be counter-productive, and feed into visual stress, even if it were borne out on manifest refraction to make distance acuity slightly sharper. Even without doing cycloplegia, many behavioral optometrists empirically drop mild AtR [against-the-rule] cylinder from prescriptions."

It’s one of the oldest rules in the book, and relates to so-called stress cylinder. Javal’s Rule tells us that the amount of cylinder expected in refraction relative to keratometry is a…

10/22/2025

"We are excited to share that Dr. Bryce Appelbaum, a distinguished member of the VisionHelp Group, recently delivered an inspiring and eye-opening TEDx Talk titled 'Why Everything You Know About Vision Is Wrong.'

In this powerful presentation, Dr. Appelbaum challenges one of the most common misconceptions in eye care—that '20/20 vision' means perfect vision. He reveals how true vision goes far beyond eyesight, encompassing complex brain processes that allow us to understand, interact with, and navigate the world around us. As he compellingly describes, vision is not just what the eyes see—it’s what the brain does with what the eyes see."

🌟 Click on the picture of Dr. Appelbaum to watch the TEDx Talk! 🎬

A New TEDx Talk by Dr. Bryce Appelbaum We are excited to share that Dr. Bryce Appelbaum, a distinguished member of the VisionHelp Group, recently delivered an inspiring and eye-opening TEDx Talk t…