Dyslexia affects 1 in 10 people and is also know as specific learning difficulty. People with dyslexia find it difficult to learn to read , write and spell. They also experience other problems such as poor short term memory, difficulty with time and learning sequences. There are several types of dyslexia. All types may experience visual problems but not every dyslexic has visual problems.

Vision in dyslexia

There is a lot of scientific evidence that vision may be affected in dyslexia. It is unlikely that vision alone is responsible for dyslexia but visual problems can add to difficulties with reading. There are various visual problems which are associated with dyslexia. These difficulites may not be picked up in a basic eye test. Specialist testing is required.

Dyslexic readers often have basic problems with eye co-ordination and focusing. They may experience blurring of the print or double vision. Frequent headaches may also be experienced as well as the eyes tiring quickly. These problems can often be treated with some simple exercises. For some, reading glasses may be required as a temporary measure or for some, permanently.

There are many other aspects of vision, which may be affected in dyslexia such as the ability to track, visual search ability, synchronising attention and vision and sensitivity to contrast may also be weak. There has also been suggestion that eye movements may be abnormally executed when reading by dyslexics.

Please note that you do not have to have dyslexia to have any of these difficulties. People who are not dyslexic may have these difficulties too.

Hearing in Dyslexia

Many dyslexics struggle to discriminate sounds. This leads to inaccuracy when decoding words but also affects writing and spelling. They have perfect hearing but the brain does not process the sounds well. Another difficulty may be in blending sounds. If we see the word umbrella this can be broken down into sounds um/ b/ re/ la. Putting the sounds together is called blending and many poor readers will accurately decode the sounds but cannot hear how the mix together to make the correct word.