Interview with a parent of a young child with a disability.

J. Olmanson

Interview is with the father of a child with Amblyopia or "lazy eye".

According to the father the condition was first detected around age 2 or 3 by the child’s grandmother. For some reason she did not think that it was her place to point out her discovery. A short time later the mother also noticed that one of the child’s eyes seemed to veer in. A trip to the eye doctor yielded a referral to a specialist who diagnosed the brain cell disorder.

Edward’s parents were instructed to patch his dominant eye in order to reestablish the pathways between the eye and vision. Edward was also given thick bifocal glasses to wear. Edward’s father said that it was very frustrating for Edward to have to use his "bad" eye because of many factors. From a purely physical standpoint Edward had to adjust to using a somewhat dormant organ to gain sensory data about his visual surroundings. He also lost any depth perception he had. The glasses were also confusing, as he was not used to a bifocal lens. Most difficult however, was the realization that he looked different from the other children. Not something he noticed on his own, but something others pointed out to him time and again out of innocent curiosity.

Both his cousin "crosses after extended reading (father’s side) and grandfather "one very weak eye- (mother’s side) have similar conditions.

Edward had an operation to correct the muscle in the eye that would pull toward his nose. Vigilant patching and corrective surgery made it possible for him to use both eyes equally.

Edward was placed in kindergarten a year after the surgery, making him about a year older than his peers. He had not been tested for any learning disability, nor has he received any failing end of semester grades. He is currently a junior in high school and no longer needs to wear bifocals. There is a picture of him and three of his siblings in the banner section of the http://www.iteachilearn.com home page. He is my brother.