Amblyopia, and Everything it Affects

Amblyopia, or Lazy Eye, is commonly seen as a problem getting to 20/20 eyesight. But did you know that is just ONE of MANY visual skills that are commonly impaired by amblyopia? Watch to learn more, and know that in most cases, each of these skills can be improved through Optometric Vision Therapy!

[@SparkyOne549]

I have amblyopia, had it all my life. Here’s what it’s like for me : I have a new bruise everyday from walking into something I didn’t see, like a door, door frame, kitchen counter, chair, desk etc. I also don’t see things, like when I need to find something that isn’t in its right place, I have to walk around the house multiple times to find what I’m looking for. If there’s too many things on a table or counter, it takes me 10 times as long to find what I need. I can’t drive, because there’s too many things going on, I don’t see what I’m supposed to see, like a road sign, traffic light, person, even the road. What pisses me off more, is people know I have amblyopia, yet, they don’t know what it is. So I get in situations helping people and they say for example “ see the socket next to the hammer? My answer, “where’s the hammer?” their answer “over there” and I can’t find it. I need to wear a t shirt with the words “ If you need me to find something, ask someone else” I know when my brain shuts off the connection with my eye, that’s when I walk into things and can’t find anything , but it seems to be sporadic, I think it is because it doesn’t happen all day every day, maybe I’m more aware of my surroundings now. My dominant eye is my Amblyopic eye, I like photography but it’s really hard to properly focus, I’ve tried my good eye and it’s much harder to do.

[@rahbeeuh]

If idk any better I'd have sworn that I wrote this comment 😮 our experiences are so similar. If you don't mind me asking, are you either Autistic or have ADHD? Some of the things you listed also co-occur with both of those.

[@KristiBranstetter]

What a great explanation! I have had it most of my life. I wish that vision therapy had been offered in the late '60s! I noticed that I no longer enjoy reading like I used to. I started reading early despite the condition.

[@dirtyboy2811]

My mother is in her mid 60s and has had a "lazy eye" since birth. She has been legally blind in that eye my entire life but you would never be able to tell. The eye never wonders or looks out of place, she has always just said that everything in that eye is out of focus and always has been. Even with patch treatments as a child.

[@Thankful305]

My daughters would say the same. But my story... I have a scar in my left eye that created the blindness/lazy eye. I've been blind in that eye since I was a child. But my situation that I'm researching is.... Since 2018, when I pick up new glasses I cannot see out of them, everything is blurry until...I lift the glasses and pull to the right or sometimes the left and only then can I see. Sometimes the store has to go through 4 pairs of lenses until they get it right. Last pair took 2 months to get it right. looking for answers to not have to deal with this.

[@floralbabuitrago1392]

Thanks so much doctor Neil I can not stop crying because my daughter was born with that issue she is now 30 but you give me a hope today, before I was watching your video I found an another doctor in Canada just a few days ago, but cause now I know about you. I'm gonna to contact your office to see when can we get an appointment I hope that we can get soon. I'm so tired and frustrated with out hope for to many years, 30 years. Thank you so much again and again God Bless You

[@yangwang6839]

Did he help you solve the problem？

[@joeburns88]

Good video on having a lazy eye. Yeah, I've had one since birth of course, and I would assume it does affect depth perception...but honestly would not know what "depth perception" is, since I've never had it. With that, guess I've never found it that problematic, and learned to just use one eye. Maybe it's like someone who's been blind from birth - easier to accept if you've never had it. Just me though. Long term possible down side: I'm in advanced age now (67), and find that now my good eye does get tired more easily, esp. when reading. Have glasses (and a heavy prescription for the bad eye), and often cover up my good eye to let my bad eye do some work. I think using one good eye does more work thru your lifetime than using two, and can possibly become more tired more quickly. Otherwise, I've had pretty much a normal life.

[@amberl4401]

Yes true! Thank you for explaining this more. I’ve had problems with my eyes since I was little and had to wear glasses. I had surgery in 2000 to try help correct the lazy eye and the muscles. It helped for about 10 to 15 years the. I had to do vision therapy. I also have dystonia in neck. My eye doctor at the time noticed it when she was doing vision therapy. It’s also hard to focus and get my eyes to work together when I’m tired. I’ve also had Covid a few years ago. I still have long Covid symptoms and it’s been driving my eyes crazy trying to focus and with brain fog it gets awful. I’ve been doing some of the vision therapy on here hoping I can get my eyes to strengthen. I hope it’s not to late for my vision. The left one is the worse one I just make out an image now can’t see without my glasses. Thank you again for the info and video.🙏🏻

[@allanmckeag1962]

I had cataract surgery a few months ago on my poor eye as it was the worst. As a result ( I think ) this new clarity presented a challenge for my brain because the Amblyotic eye was now the better image. All the issues for this eye seemed to come to the surface. Issues that were pushed to the background previously as the good eye/brain combination did all the work. I have had to return to the patch and pencil exercises of my childhood to improve the balance. Fortunately , these exercises have mitigated the problem, but I am concerned about having the next surgery done. If anyone has gone through this with a positive outcome I would be grateful to hear about. PS A very informative video , thank you

[@annadavis2547]

I recently got new glasses in which the correction for distance acuity was better in the weaker eye but close up is better in my good eye. It made me severely dizzy. While I am no longer dizzy, my vision seems strange.

[@pbro1105]

All of this is so true. I have always always hated lazy eye. I wish I would have had a doctor like you when I was little. It was so stressful even at 3-4 yrs old whenever I’d have to go to get my eyes checked. “Do you see the big E?? What’s the next line. I can’t see it. Do you see the big E? Yes only because I know what it is” and it went on and on like that. And still to this day it is sometimes like that. It is frustrating. They put a patch on and gave me glasses that I couldn’t see out of at all. Finally my parents gave up and never talked about it again and would only occasionally tell me to watch my good eye around things that could hurt the good eye. I was never given special treatment and never told I couldn’t do something because of it so I figured everything out as I went along and was just labeled the kid that is accident prone. Driving was the hardest to learn because of depth perception and after about 12 fender benders I figured that out. I still struggle with pouring liquids and with handing something to someone or them handing me something. The worst thing now is that the older I get the more my left eye is drifting and I’m self conscious and try to remember not to do eye contact unless it’s someone who knows me and my problem. At least now I go get glasses because I’m older and my good eye needs up close glasses so I just tell them I don’t see out of the left eye so just balance the lenses and they do . Thank you for your videos and it reminds me I’m not alone and that helps a lot.

[@loui.e0241]

highly relatable comment have hd the same issues from around same age

[@loui.e0241]

i didnt know the eye could even zoom at all. wow

[@nikitarajpurohit4127]

eye contact... its a big deal for us

[@InJesusName3783]

Jesus Christ died for your sins and rose again, if you believe we have eternal life. We may have physical deformities, health complications, illnesses, and other diseases but it’s temporary. Keep praying.

[@FrilledMayfly_AmberlyFerrule]

I'd say this video changed my life! As a kid I sucked at learning how to read, PE was the worst thing ever, etc. My right eye is basically blind, but I've realized that I can see out of it, but it's like I can't process the image, well now I know why! It's not necessarily an issue with the eye but the BRAIN! I wish my eye doctors where better, this video really gave me hope that I don't just have to be blind through that eye for the rest of my life. I'm not expecting the eyesight to be flawless, but if my brain can actually stop ignoring it that'd be swell! I've recently started trying to type faster. I've realized that my right hand (on the side of my amblyopic eye) makes a significant amount of mistakes compared to the hand on the side of my dominate eye. I've made a sort of "eye separator" (headband with cardboard down the middle) to try to improve get my brain to form an image with both eyes and not just the left one. It really is strange seeing out of both eyes and forming an image with both. Still a very very long way to go, but so thankful that there's solutions!

[@karthikeyannaren]

Could you please tell me how do you curing your right vision

[@sarthakgamer5653]

Same

[@yangwang6839]

@@karthikeyannarenme too

[@Adorirpeaturn]

i have too right lazy eye which sees right side half of eye without closing left eye

[@botsareeverywhere]

4:36 I have Strabismic Amblyopia and chronic one sided headaches, I was always told they aren’t related. Hmmm

[@BryanDavis]

Will you do a video about Streff syndrome. It would really help all of us to know what it is and how it effects daily life.

[@lisamanning8334]

I wish my doctor was like you. I had it at birth and my first surgery was at 4 second was at 10 and now I have the strongest glasses but I'm looking for a second opinion because no one has got my prescription right in a while and it has made me have migraines that are brutal on me.

[@scarlettblack6878]

Thank you so much. What about when it occurs in both eyes? Is it treated differently when it occurs in both eyes?

[@barcaman1013]

I got diagnosed last week. My right eye isn't aligned & weak. Started patching & do eyes exercises via app

[@raylogicsystem1486]

And how i can get it ?

[@user-nk2ub1hd2p]

Thank you and cheers from Norway 🇳🇴 wondering if people in poverty like many Central American countries who do not have access to this are dojng more damage by patching? XIs it better for them to patch or not to patch if they are unable to afford or access new therapies for vision.

[@ZazzyZain777]

Dr, Is it possible that brain process information from lazy eye more than other hense, cause learning disabilities, inspite his brain tricking the person that his vision is fine by allowing him to see through his normal eye?

[@gaylecheung3087]

I was really and still am good at baseball first base never struck out up to corporate teams retired 61 this year

[@gunther2555]

I've had amblyopia as far back as I can remember, it's been with me since kindergarten. My peers and older children used to make fun of me, like "look at me as if you were mentally retarded". Adults took my explanations for childish fantasies, as I used expressions like "I can see through my hand" and "I see like a robot". So I soon gave it up as it didn't really affect my life in any way, it didn't until I graduated from high school. Then I noticed that the vision in one eye had dropped, my parents would say to my complaints "it's because you play computer games non-stop etc". Then I graduated from uni and noticed that my eyesight continued to fall, so I even bought glasses, but for a long time I did not understand why and did not even know that there was such a disease

[@VAIDYA1]

Sir my right is suffering from amploypia and left eye is astigmatism it is possible to cure it. I am 23 year old

[@InvestwithKhan]

is lasik recommended before surgery? great video

[@SparkyOne549]

No, amblyopia is nothing to do with the eye, it’s the lack of visual development in the brain at birth that causes amblyopia.

[@InvestwithKhan]

@@SparkyOne549 interesting thanks! really is no cure for it aside surgery

[@michaelmereday6791]

I was born with my lazy eye never could see then my retina detached in my good eye could see so my lazy eye became dominant i was useing it and it got stronger now im getting a lens on it to see better this is a 7year process but waiting on my glasses

[@kayleighbull8033]

Id love to understand the 3d part more. I sobbed a few times as a kid and sometimes was angry because they would tell my mom i cant see in 3D and at that age i felt like a failure. But i didnt understand it either, because I could tell which ones were 3D until maybe when it got a little harder to tell. But 3D movies look 3D, and i even saw an imax 4D movie on fish and that shit was scary! Its like the fish were directly in front of your face and youd watch their slow approach and then snap up their prey. Do we see 3D/4D differently somehow? My bad eye is like 20/145 with lenses and 20/400 without. What is it supposed to look like to me??

[@shubhamtiwari7108]

Nobody tells me about if your amblyopic eye have no vision expectations…. Can it be straightened

[@shawnpaul2141]

hey, i have a lazy eye, if i put a virtual reality headset. will i be able to see like everyone else and realy see or not? thank you!

[@ordinarybread]

yes! I use an oculus, it works well but my lazy eye has retained peripheral vision, as a heads up maybe try onebefore you commit to buying

[@chrisbrode7099]

I was born with lazy eye in both eyes. Surgery on one eye then a year later the other eye. Now I’m 69 and the eye doctor says insurance won’t pay for lazy eye in left eye. Is this true?

[@shivharisharma9719]

Hii Sir I'm Shivhari Sharma, 24 years of age, suffering from amblyopic eye. My left eye is lazy eye and right eye is also deteriorating day by day. Due to it i was never good in sports and academics even doing lot of hard work. Currently suffering from depression. My right eye is of power -1D spherical with -3.5D cylindrical component and left eye is of -12D spherical with -2D cylindrical component Please please please Sir help me out.

[@fijeoche1652]

What do we do?😩

[@farahshah2971]

I cn help u bro

[@BrookeYoder]

I thought I had amblyopia but none of these describe me. My vision in my left eye isn't blurry and I think my depth perception is fine, but there's just a chunk of things missing and in it's place is just blackness - as if the blackness from my closed or covered right eye is interfering with everything. Like there's a hole in my vision.

[@cathycrofts2298]

Hi, you need to get an eye test at an opticians and have a field of vision test. It sounds more like you have a visual field loss than amblyopia. There are many reasons why chunks of vision can be missing but it needs investigating.

[@BrookeYoder]

@@cathycrofts2298 thank you for commenting because the more I look into it, the more I have felt like amblyopia doesn't fit the description of what I experience. I did have a lazy eye as a child and had it surgically corrected, and I do still occasionally experience some double vision now with that eye as well, but visual field loss sounds much more accurate. It's crazy to me that it would have been misdiagnosed all this time (by multiple eye doctors).. I'm going to look for a new one to schedule an appointment with today. Thank you for that!

[@Soup2Nuts]

I can see fine 20/20 but the eye doesnt go the same direction if i look without turning my head ??

[@tonystorcke]

It affects a lot of things. A truly brutal and incurable condition. Unless caught very very early, it is unlikely to be fixed.

[@flytristan24]

My lazy eye doesn’t struggle to follow think its just all blurred

[@terryblaze1839]

I got hit in my right eye when I wos 14 with a brick ...and developed ptosis and it turned in ...this wos in 1969 and just bandaged up in an hour and sent home from hospital in England....it got worse in years ...I've been surgeons to take it out and they won't even though I pay them...now my left eye is turning and constantly achaes....I need a prosthetic eye but they don't listen and fob you off with shit.....

[@noctsickversus9632]

The problem of ambliopia is neuroplasticity not the eye

[@villianaire]

I didn't have this issue as a child but developed it in my late 20s. Perhaps I wasn't taking care of myself and updating my contact lens prescription frequently enough. Recently, I had Lasik surgery, and it exacerbated the issue. My far and nearsightedness in the bad eye is great but cosmetically, it's a mess, and during patching, has terrible depth perception and many of the other issues you discussed. It's awesome to feel like I understand this better now and that I can take control! Thank you so much for your help!

[@bankys_apparels6120]

My left eye was injured when I was little and now it’s now as clear as the right what can I do

[@mustaphahouam7019]

What did you do to get healed ?

[@UnderTheBlueFlagCFC]

I still have the issue and it sucks

[@quijonathan127]

I'm 48 years old I'm still struggling my left eye amblyopia..

[@Natalitza81]

Hi, what are your symptoms, please? I'm 43 and I think I have it too.

[@emineylmaz5904]

Neden Türkçe ye çevirisi yok

[@Heiwnelndal]

senin annan

[@DREAMTEFO]

change sitting

[@maxweels]

can Amblyopia give nausea?

[@noctsickversus9632]

Mh maybe with some extra degree of phisical activity

[@VernonRhem]

I had stroke.now i double to right left is not sturdy🎉

[@abdelrazaggaith9831]

In 39 I think it's over for me broh

[@ikzalgraag2046]

Im thinking to see and when I "look" at things they almost feel remembered but not quite there in the present. Hbu

[@gregorykillen4564]

I now know why I wasn't very good at graphic arts at school ..........My Teachers didn't care ..........School wasn't easy !!!

[@Natalitza81]

OMG, this was my problem too!!! Straight A student in all subjects except graphic arts being the worse, I still remember the frustration.

[@CYRAMUN]

hello Doc, I am 63 and have been with amblyopia since the day of my birth ...There is simply no solution and no way to resolve this since my brain just ignores my right eye and just switched everything to the left eye. Not talking about the limitations and vision handicap...if not my left eye I would be simply disabled. all these exercises and plan and stuff proposed are just a joke to me...there is no way that the brain would just in a magic way start using an eye which he ignored for decades ... video games exercises ? not worth it and results are just soooo disappoiting Stem cells treatment ? too early and no real scientific proofs. So only God really knows.

[@mohamedshalabi5733]

I have 1 myself and 1 doctor recommended I do femto lazik and I feel like now both eyes got worse. i wish I could travel and have proper treatment but cant afford it ;d