How to Tell if You Have a Lazy Eye

When I was about 7, I remember that my mother complained to my teacher that I seemed to have problems in copying things from the blackboard. I was moved to a seat in front. My mother insisted that every time she would check my notes, there still appeared something wrong. So we went to an eye specialist to check on my eyes. I remember him putting eye drops for several days, and then I was given my first eye glasses. From that time on, I have always known to be the girl in spectacles. Although my glasses became some sort of security blanket, I cannot deny that I could not see clearly without them. However, I did not really know what the conditions of my eyes were, apart from my need to always use my glasses.

Decades later, when I saw another eye doctor, I was told that I have what is called a lazy eye. The bad news is when I was informed about it, I was already 30 years old. Early detection and correction is needed for this condition, which means at 30, it was already quite late to have it corrected. But what actually is a lazy eye?

Lazy eye is known as amblyopia. It is a condition where there is reduced vision caused when a clear image is not available on the retina during significant periods of development of the child. This is from birth to about 6 years of age. Anything that interferes with a normal image on the retina can lead to amblyopia. This is considered a loss of vision that continues even if no problem remains in the eye.

The brain does not fully acknowledge the images seen by an ambylopic eye. Usually only one eye is affected, but may manifest with reduction of vision in both eyes. It usually develops in young children before age 6. The child may squint or completely close on eye to see. An overall poor visual acuity (clearness of vision) could be present, as well as eyestrain and headache.

Amblyopia may be caused by a trauma in the eye or a strong uncorrected refractive error, either nearsightedness or farsightedness, or strabismus (a condition in which the eyes are not properly aligned). When not corrected, the brain learns to entirely ignore vision in the affected eye.