One of you asked me for more info on The Light Barrier, the new book about
Irlen Syndrome by Rhonda Stone, mother of 2 children with IS. This info was
posted on some other listserves. If you're on other listserves, feel free to
share info. Spread the word. Have a great holiday season, everyone! Julie
Evans

Sensitivity to aspects of light, including brightness and glare reflected
off of whites pages, can cause headaches, reading problems, attention
problems, hyper behavior and/or nausea for some students. These problems can
occur with any bright light, but are common under fluorescent lighting.
An excellent new book, The Light Barrier, by Rhonda Stone (October 2002,
St. Martin's Press) details how Irlen Syndrome, a light sensitivity problem,
caused Stone's two children to experience reading problems, headaches and
other symptoms. Many schools in the U.S., Australia, and U.K. screen problem
readers for Irlen Syndrome (sometimes called Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome
or SSS). Schools provide students who test positive with individualized
colored overlays, which improve comfort and visual perception. Stone notes
that overlays must be prescribed by someone who knows what they are doing;
any color won't do; the wrong color can actually cause headaches, etc. A
more expensive solution for ALL visual tasks, including reading the board
and driving, is Irlen tinted lenses (or contacts), which typically are
bought by parents. (Some service organizations help buy these for poor
families.)

As early as first grade, children with this problem can be observed
rubbing or shading their eyes or yawning and complaining of fatigue. Irlen
Syndrome typically shows up in about third grade when the print gets smaller
and the assignments get longer. A child with 20-20 vision may suddenly start
complaining about blurring or even moving print, headaches, nausea,
agitation, or fatigue after reading for a while. A traditional vision
screening or vision exam will not uncover this problem. Irlen syndrome can
worsen during times of hormonal change (i.e. adolescence and menopause).

The Irlen Institute and some research says 10-12% of the population has
Irlen Syndrome, half of problem readers have it and a third of "attention
deficit" kids have it.

The Light Barrier provides a Chart of Common Traits useful in comparing
the observable differences between Irlen syndrome (light-based reading
difficulties), classic dyslexia, and attention deficit/attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder. Items identified on the list for Irlen syndrome
include most of the following (and more). In spite of 20/20 vision, during
or immediately after reading, the reader experiences a long-term pattern
involving several of these: Eyes that burn, itch, or water; headache,
stomachache, or fatigue; a need to rub the eyes; a need to shade the eyes;
excessive squinting or blinking; tilting or moving the head to read; a
preference for reading in dim light; skips words or whole lines; loses place
easily; slow, labored reading; poor comprehension; print that appears fuzzy
or unstable; artificial movement, shading, colors on the page; avoids
reading; takes frequent breaks; anxiety; depression, frustration, or anger.
Some people also have a depth perce!
ption problem with Irlen Syndrome; some do not. (I do.)

Irlen Syndrome can be misidentified as a learning disability.
Accommodations for school include using colored paper, wearing a hat or
visor with a dark bill, sitting by the window if there is indirect sunlight
(which is better for some children than fluorescent light on the page),
turning out some lights, shading the child's paper, using a light colored
overlay on the overhead projector, using non-white "white boards," and using
overlays. Some of these kids like to read "in the dark" where they actually
see print better! For computer glare, the computer screen can be turned
down, an overlay hung over the screen or the background color changed to the
individual's overlay color.

A thorough conventional vision exam is recommended before consideration
of this list because conventional vision problems can cause some of the same
or similar traits.

For more info: www.irlen.com or www.thelightbarrier.com or contact me.
The www.irlen.com web site had a list of contacts within each state and
country; these folks can refer you to local screeners.

I am one of thousands of people in 30 countries who has been diagnosed
and treated successfully for Irlen Syndrome. Without Irlen lenses, I have
daily headaches; hyper feelings under fluorescent lights; reading problems
including blurring, stress, reduced span or letters seen clearly at one
time; poor comprehension; problems with lights when night-driving; depth
perception problems that showed up as overly cautious driving. I've worn
Irlen lenses since May and am grateful to again be able to scan and
speed-read and read without headaches and stress. Some people are born with
the problem; others of us develop it later in life after a head injury or
surgery. By the way, I didn't label myself as "light sensitive." I thought
the blurred print was from allergies or fatigue. My husband, a
speech-language pathologist, and I are now certified Irlen screeners.

The Light Barrier--A Color Solution to Your Child's Light-based Reading
Difficulties can be ordered through www.thelightbarrier.com, your book store
or amazon.com. Julie Evans, julie@...