Conner was diagnosed with Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI) in March of 2017. CVI is a form of visual impairment that is caused by a brain problem rather than an eye problem. The eyes are able to see, but the brain is not processing the image as it should. 

Conner's CVI diagnosis was one that I struggled with for a very long time. It took time to understand CVI and how to implement vision therapy into everything we do with him throughout the day. Unfortunately, we weren’t given encouraging information when Conner was diagnosed. After weeks of research, I soon learned that there is HOPE. The best resource I found for CVI is Little Bear Sees. There is a website and a book and both provided valuable information that motivated me forward.  As many special needs parents know, adding one more thing into your day seems nearly impossible. However, we all manage to squeeze something else into the day because we want to do everything possible for our child. 

As soon as Conner received his CVI diagnosis I joined multiple groups on Facebook and kept coming across a doctor named Christine Roman-Lantzy. She is the CVI guru and has dedicated much of her life to studying CVI, developing the CVI range, and an assessment process. In addition to all of this, she does everything possible to spread awareness about CVI. I quickly got on the phone to make an appointment, but her first available was six months out – “I’ll take it, I said!” We were fortunate enough to see Dr. Roman-Lantzy, Ph.D. in Pittsburgh, PA (Conner’s first airplane ride!) in September of 2017. She was everything I had hoped for and so much more. She spent a few hours with us assessing Conner and discussing his medical history. As a parent, you go into specialist's offices preparing yourself for anything negative that could possibly be thrown at you. For the first time, I left a doctor’s office feeling encouraged, empowered and ready to make more changes at home to better fit Conner's current vision needs. 

It is very important for children with CVI to be assessed a few times a year, if possible. As neuro pathways are developed, vision improves. As vision improves, you must make changes to how your child is learning to see. During my hours, days and weeks of research, I found a few resources and toys that made all the difference for me. I've listed them below with links. I hope they are just as helpful, informative and encouraging for you.

For a complete list of resources and CVI-friendly toys that helped Conner, click here.