This experience has changed my life. I will be forever grateful.

I've struggled with my vision my whole life and I didn't even know it. I used to get debilitating dizzy spells which would take me out for the entire day. These spells would occur at least once a week. Looking at LED Christmas lights, a brightly lit room or a sunny day would cause me sharp pain. I couldn't watch most movies in a movie theater and the ones I could watch required a center back row seat and a ginger pill. I was a hard-working student and I sensed I was smart, yet I struggled with reading, comprehension, and completing tests within the time allotted. I loved stories and I loved to learn yet I NEVER chose to read extracurricularly. That's because I used to see rivers of movement between words in a page of text. The words also appeared to move. I could see colors bleed out from the edges of every letter. My reading speed and comprehension were low because I had to spend so much effort simply trying to see the text, that I missed out on the meaning. My eyes also used to get very tired very quickly. A rough day, a lot of exposure to bright light, or a moderate amount of reading would exhaust my eyes and, in turn, leave me feeling exhausted. It has taken a lot of work and about a year and a half of my time, but it is no exaggeration to say that my time at Boulder Valley Vision Therapy has been transformative and life-changing. Dr. Simonson and Becca (my Vision Therapist) took the time and effort to understand my problems. Together, they designed a schedule of incremental goals and exercises to help me achieve those goals. Almost all of my vision-related symptoms have disappeared completely. The few symptoms which remain have decreased in severity and I've been taught proper vision care so I can mitigate them. I've also been taught a few small, quick, simple things I can do to ensure that I maintain the progress I've achieved. My entry reading speed was around 70 words per minute. I'm now clocking in around 400 words per minute on average, with a top speed of around 600 words per minute. What's more is, my reading speed is still improving! Better yet, my comprehension and ease of reading have also greatly improved even at faster speeds. I don't feel tired anymore. I don't feel dizzy anymore. Best of all, my self confidence has begun to soar as a result of these improvements. I realize now that I've never been stupid, as I once feared. I was just struggling to get the mechanics of my eyes to work properly. I feel happier, more confident and ready to take on dreams that I've always had but was previously too scared to attempt. This experience has changed my life. I will be forever grateful.