THE MORNING SHOW
with
Patrick Timpone

Helen Irlen

Founder of The Irlen Method

What is Irlen Syndrome?
Irlen Syndrome (also referred to at times as Meares-Irlen Syndrome, Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome, and Visual Stress) is a perceptual processing disorder. It is not an optical problem. It is a problem with the brain’s ability to process visual information. This problem tends to run in families and is not currently identified by other standardized educational or medical tests.

Helen L. Irlen is an internationally recognized educator, researcher, therapist, scholar, and expert in the area of visual-perceptual problems. She is a graduate of Cornell University.

Over 20 years ago, research directed by Helen Irlen under a federal research grant studied methods of helping children and adults with reading and learning disabilities. One important discovery was that a subgroup of individuals showed a marked improvement in their reading ability when reading material was covered by colored acetate sheets. For the next five years, Ms. Irlen worked on refining her discovery, developing diagnostic testing instruments, and patenting a set of colored filters.

Because of this breakthrough, the Irlen Method has been the subject of two segments of 60 Minutes, Good Morning America, The Home Show, 60 Minutes Australia, a BBC Special, ABC Worldwide News with Peter Jennings, NBC News, and numerous TV shows around the world. She is the author of Reading By The Colors. Her work has been reported in textbooks on learning disabilities in Australia and England, and the Irlen Method has received international exposure through National Geographic, newspaper articles, magazine articles, and television documentaries.

Show Highlights:

-What is Irlen Syndrome?

-Helen Irlen explains how learning disabilities, ADD, headaches, anxiety, reading problems, etc are often caused by the need to filter out a certain color.

-Testing for Irlen Syndrome

-Take an Irlen Self Test

-Individuals who have any of the following types of problems can be helped by the Irlen Method:

PROBLEMS READING ON WHITE PAPER. Individuals who can be helped with the Irlen Method cannot read for long periods and take breaks or prefer to read newspapers and magazines. Reading on white paper is uncomfortable and often requires rereading for comprehension. The white page may be glary or compete with the black print, making the letters less readable. The same problems can occur with numbers and musical notes.

INEFFICIENT READING. Individuals with Irlen Syndrome have difficulty reading print, numbers or musical notes because the print is not clear or stable. Problems may include print that shifts, shakes, blurs, moves, runs together, disappears or becomes difficult to perceive. Many individuals have never seen print correctly and are not aware that the way they see the printed page is not clear or stable. They think everyone sees the page the way that they do.

SLOW READING RATE. Individuals who can be helped may have problems tracking, a slow reading rate, word-by-word reading, or have an inability to speed-read. Individuals often use their finger or a marker when reading.

PROBLEMS WITH ATTENTION & CONCENTRATION. Problems in concentration when reading, writing, or working on the computer may be due to Irlen Syndrome. The individual may have difficulty staying on task, take frequent breaks, and become restless, fidgety or tired when doing reading, studying, or doing other visual tasks.

STRAIN OR FATIGUE. Individuals who are helped with Irlen Spectral Filters often experience discomfort. Individuals may become tired; others experience headaches, dizzy, sleepy, anxious, irritable, and fidgety or have an inability to stay focused. Discomfort can interfere with the length of time and ease of reading, studying, or doing homework making breaks necessary.

LIGHT SENSITIVITY. Individuals who can be helped by the Irlen Method do not like florescent lighting and prefer dim lighting. Staying focused with listening or reading under florescent lights is more difficult and can even cause strain and discomfort. Most individuals with Irlen Syndrome prefer to read in dim lighting; although some need bright lights to read.

-and more!!

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helen irlen and processing information with colors in the brain, august 29, 2016