My son was born with a severe strabismus. After three surgeries, his eyes are now looking perfect. His glasses just make him a charming little man. However, we would need still to patch his right eye 3 hours a day and overcome his coordination challenges.The strabismus left my son without a 3D perception, made him walking late and certainly didn’t help his motoricity development. While we knew that we couldn't do much about the loss of the 3D perception, we've put our focus on helping him improving his coordination.
The fact that he started walking late affected the other steps of his development. When he was 3, me and my wife noticed that he was having hard time running fast and straight. We were also wondering why he was not liking coloring and art work.
At the kinder garden, his teacher brought to our attention his difficulties to hold a pen, scissors and simply finishing his shores on time. His pediatrician advised us to consult an ergotherapist and a physiotherapist.
The ergotherapy worked well. His handwriting improved as well as his art skills. We discovered through the therapy, that muscles like abs and neck are essential in the process of writing, drawing and cutting with scissors.
While the ergotherapy was just a 12 sessions therapy, the physiotherapy is a long process that can take several years. The main objective of this physiotherapy is to correct his movements, help his balance and flexibility. He achieved a good progress since he started the sessions. Now, he runs better and improved in all the sports he is practicing.
Sports and physical activities are certainly what will make the difference regardless of any therapy. Up to now we tried swimming, soccer, skating, skiing and hockey. The idea was to involve him in activities requiring different skills.
As I did, I would invite you to share your own experience and help others benefiting from it.
