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• Who are the 2025 ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø?
• What is a Behavioural Optometrist?
• Do I need to see a Behavioural Optometrist?
• What does a Behavioural Optometry Assessment involve?
• What treatment might I be offered?
• Is Behavioural Optometry available on the NHS?

Who are the 2025 ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø?

The 2025 ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø or ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø a not-for-profit association that promotes the benefits of Behavioural Optometry and educates Optometrists in the UK and abroad in the assessment,  management and treatment of patients who would benefit from Behavioural Optometry. 

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What is a Behavioural Optometrist

A Behavioural Optometrist is a fully qualified, GOC registered optometrist who has obtained additional post-graduate training and acceditation. . 

Behavioural Optometrists have a special interest in how vision affects human performance. 

Do I need to see a Behavioural Optometrist?

If you have any unexplained visual symptoms you would benefit from seeing a Behavioural Optometrist.

Common signs of vision difficulties:

• Regular headaches. Particularly just above or around the eyes
• Blurred or double vision
• Easily fatigued when reading or writing
• Tilts or moves head while reading or writing
• Covers or squeezes/squints one or both eyes when reading or writing
• Loses place or leaves out words when reading or writing 
• Complains of tired eyes, watery eyes or rubs their eyes when reading or writing
• Easily distracted and shows poor concentration due to the effort it takes to maintain visual focus during work
• Eye strain, including computer eye strain
• Poor co-ordination and spatial awareness with near activities (but may be good at sports)
• Light sensitivity
• Needs to use a finger or marker to keep their place
• Misses out words or re-reads the same words
• Has difficulty processing what they are reading and may have to re-read something several times to understand it
• Complains of words “moving and jumping about”
• Reads very slowly, with a great deal of effort
• Poor handwriting that is irregular and/or untidy
• Has difficulty copying what is on the board down on to paper
• Extreme lack of orientation
• Bumping into things
• Motion sickness
• Reading avoidance (Reading and writing should be enjoyable tasks. If it causes tiredness, pain and discomfort you may start to avoid these activities)

Often children do not complain if visual symptoms, if they have always seen that way, they might not have realised that it is unusual or different to anyone else. So if you know a child who is struggling at school an in-depth vision assessment by an behavioural optometrist is recommended to rule out any visuals cause. 

You do not need to have a diagnosis to have an assessment by a Behavioural Optometrist.

Commonly we see patients diagnosed with:

• Specific learning difficulties; Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Dyscalculia or ADHD.
• Traumatic brain or spine injuries.
• Eye turns (squints) and lazy eyes (amblyopia).
• Autism Spectrum
• Developmental delays
• Cerebral palsy
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Stroke

It is important to note that Behavioural Optometrists cannot treat any of the conditions listed above. People with these diagnoses are more likely to have co-existing deficits with their visual system. These co-occurring visual difficulties can easily be identified by a Behavioural Optometrist who will work with you to improve visual skills and improve your quality of life. 

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What does a Behavioural Optometry Assessment involve?

The starting point for most patients is a Behavioural Optometry Assessment. This usually takes 1-2 hours to complete and will be tailored to the needs of the patient.

You will often be asked to complete a questionnaire prior to your appointment so that the Optometrist has your health history and understands the reason for your visit.

At your assessment as well as having your eyes examined, you will be asked to carry out a number of tasks that involve reading and writing, balance and co-ordination. You will be asked to answer questions verbally by your Optometrist so that they can understand how you see the world around you and interpret it. These tests are to check your:

• Eye health
• Visual acuity
• Eye movements and Tracking
• Focusing skills
• Eye teaming ability
• Peripheral awareness
• Visual perception
• Visual integration with movement
• Left-right awareness and directionality
• Handwriting and pen grip

Your Behavioural Optometrist will provide initial findings during your visit and in most cases, a detailed written report showing findings and recommendations will be provided soon after your visit.  
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What treatment might I be offered?

The Behavioural Optometrist may use one or a combination of the following in a vision care programme.

Advice

There may be nothing more that needs to be done at this stage and appropriate advice will be given.

Lens Therapy

This could include;

• spectacles or contact lenses specific to a certain task
• prism lenses. 
• boost lenses, bifocals, progressive or degressive 
• special filters or specific tints. 

Coloured Overlays and Precision Tinted Lenses

A coloured overlay or specific may be beneficial in speeding up your rate of reading or making the text clearer.

 In some cases, a coloured overlay can be tried for a few months to gauge the effectiveness. In other cases, it may be suitable to prescribe glasses with a specific tint. The tint can be made with or without a spectacle prescription.

Vision Training/Vision Therapy (VT)

Vision therapy is a non-surgical, non-invasive program of activities and exercises designed to improve the efficiency of the visual system.

Despite its name, exercises don’t just involve the eyes and can involve, moving, speaking, writing, playing games, balancing, throwing, as well as the use of specialist computer software to improve and retrain the eye-brain connections.  

Your programme is individually tailored for you based on the results of your Behavioural Optometry Assessment, therefore a full assessment must have taken place first.
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Is Behavioural Optometry available on the NHS?

Unfortunately it is not, therefore you will have to pay for an assessment and any subsequent appointments.

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