Children with Learning Disabilities is such a hot topic today, and so there are naturally many cautious parents who are concerned that the therapies we offer in Learning @ Lightspeed are akin to snake oil cures. I am not a university, nor am I a researcher, but I was recently I was asked…

"Have well-controlled studies been published in masked, peer reviewed journals? Have meta-analyses been published in such journals? If so, can you send me the references?"

Unusual question from a concerned parent (who clearly has academic links), but never the less a legitimate one, because if you are going to work with children with learning disabilities, you really want to know that the treatment is worth the effort of doing 20 minutes a day over some months. If you are truly concerned if "well-controlled studies (have) been published in masked, peer reviewed journals", then I suggest going to google and typing in "vision therapy research". There are endless reviews, arguments for and against, studies and the like, so if research is your thing, then knock yourself out. This is what the academic world is about, and they argue back and forth to establish the credibility of certain treatments (and for this type of treatment, there is thousands of studies).

For myself, children with learning disabilities is far more personal. I have worked with such children for over 2 decades. I have tried things, searched for new techniques and done everything in my power to aid these wonderful kids who struggle with learning disabilities. Some things worked, some did not. I am not a researcher, I will not run a study with placebos, because that means some of the kids in the study miss out. I want ALL these children with learning disabilities to improve, not sacrifice some for the sake of research results. I’m a clinician, a practitioner dealing with learning disabilities every day of my life, and I want to see results in my children, nothing more and certainly nothing less!

Now please, don’t get me wrong I am not attacking academics (having learned so much from them through University and beyond). I do not have some sneaky, made up, ineffective snake oil treatment for children with learning disabilities, where I fear that if you research properly you will find me out! All I am saying is, in my therapy program, I have placed on the web things that have worked in my office for my children with learning disabilities for years: techniques that I know will help if you do them.

So, concerned parents, while I appreciate your checking this whole thing out, please don’t sacrifice your precious child on the altar of academic research. By all means research, but if I told you there was a 50% chance that a magic pill would improve your child’s learning disability, would you be prepared to take a chance? Of course you would, and so would I as a parent, regardless of any research for and against. When all the research is said and done, there will always be a leap of faith in trying something new.

The great news is that, unlike a pill, there are no possible side effects, no possible damage and every possibility of improvement. Let’s look an unrelated example; If your child is, say, very uncoordinated, do you thing that enrolling them in dancing or gymnastics would help? Absolutely! Would they go on to compete in "Dancing With The Stars" or the Olympics? Most likely not, but they will improve to a greater of lesser degree because they are learning essential gross motor skills for balance and coordination.

For parents who genuinely ask the question, "is this for real, and is there research to back up this mode of treatment for children with learning disabilities?", the answer is yes (and well done to you for checking it out!). However, I don’t have it at my fingertips and I don’t pursue it. I just use therapies I know will work in improving children with learning disabilities. If you want to research more, please knock yourself out, but as I said before, don’t let this opportunity go by without taking the chance. Children with learning disabilities are far too precious for that!

Learning @ Lightspeed is simply about improving essential visual skills necessary for overcoming learning disabilities. There are no colored lenses, no medications and no outrageous claims like, "from learning disabilities to genius in 14 days!" Is is simple, proven, easy to apply games and therapies that really work in the real world of learning disabilities. Click the link to check it out!