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Visual Dyslexia: Symptoms, Causes, and Support

Amanda Unrau
M.A. CCC-SLP
06/30/26 | Last modified: 06/30/26
Student wearing a forbrain headset writes notes at a desk while studying with a laptop.

A common misconception about dyslexia is that an individual sees letters and words backwards, such as flipping b and d or saw and was. However, in truth, dyslexia is a language-based reading difficulty that affects how the brain connects letters to sounds. 

Visual dyslexia is a term used for visual difficulties that can accompany or be mistaken for dyslexia, where a person struggles to process or remember what they see on a page. 

This article will dig deeper into what visual dyslexia is and isn’t, its signs and symptoms, and treatment options. 

What Is Visual Dyslexia?

Visual dyslexia is a term sometimes used when visual processing difficulties make it hard for the brain to fully interpret what is seen. This makes it difficult for individuals with visual dyslexia to remember or discriminate what they see. Because the brain doesn’t remember correct letter shapes or sequences, the ability to form letters or spell is impacted. 

Visual Dyslexia vs. Dyslexia vs. Vision Problems

It is important to understand the difference between visual dyslexia, dyslexia, and vision problems. 

Dyslexia is a language-based difficulty in how the brain processes language. It comes down to an underlying phonological deficit, causing an individual with dyslexia to have difficulty mapping sounds to letters, or decoding. 

Visual dyslexia is a type of dyslexia that impacts visual processing. It involves difficulty translating written language into meaning due to an inability to transfer a complete picture of what is seen to the brain in order to remember it. Many individuals with visual dyslexia score in the normal range on vision tests. 

Vision problems are eye or optical issues that will show up on a vision exam. Common visual problems, such as farsightedness or nearsightedness, are often mistaken for dyslexia because they also impact reading. A child with vision problems may need to wear glasses or contact lenses, and that alone can make it easier for children to read. Children with dyslexia do not have a higher incidence of vision problems than the general population.

Signs and Symptoms of Visual Dyslexia

Visual dyslexia symptoms can vary from child to child, and they can be hard to identify. We have compiled a list of visual dyslexia examples and signs that may present in children. 

Reading-Related Signs

  • Difficulty tracking across lines of text: Children with visual dyslexia may skip between different lines of text instead of staying on the same line. They may often lose their place while reading.
  • Difficulty keeping place in text: Besides just tracking across a line of text, individuals with visual dyslexia have difficulty following along during their reading. They may jump ahead several words or reread what they have already read.
  • Letter reversals (b/d, p/q): Some children mix up similar-looking letters when reading. This is the trait most people associate with dyslexia, though it’s worth remembering that occasional reversals are normal in all early readers and aren’t caused by a vision problem. 
  • Transposing the order of letters in a word: Transposing the order of letters in a word: A child may mix up the sequence of letters within a word — reading “felt” as “left,” for example, or “saw” as “was.” 
  • Difficulty spelling: When the brain struggles to store and recall the visual sequence of letters in a word, spelling becomes inconsistent. A child may spell the same word differently each time. 
  • Poor fluency and comprehension: With visual dyslexia, decoding is difficult, and reading is slow and laborious. Because it takes so much effort to read, reading comprehension suffers since the reader is unable to focus on the content of the text.

Visual Perception Signs

Parents often ask how dyslexic people see words. Dyslexia itself isn’t a vision problem, but some individuals do report visual sensations like these: 

  • Text appears blurry, moving, or in and out of focus: A type of dyslexic vision that individuals with visual dyslexia may experience is the sensation of moving text. The text may also look blurry or unfocused. 
  • Text appears double or alternating between single and double: With dyslexia, children may see more than one set of the words they are reading at times.
  • Poor visual memory: Difficulty visualizing letters and words makes it seem like a child sees each word as though it is the first time. This makes it difficult to recognize sight words. 
  • Sensitivity to font or style: Small or script fonts and minimal space between letters, words, or lines can make reading especially tricky for those with visual dyslexia. 

Physical or Behavioral Signs

  • Headaches or eye strain: The focus and attention required to read and the visual difficulties associated with visual dyslexia can lead to eye strain and headaches. 
  • Sensitivity to light: Different types of light sources can cause visual stress in children with visual dyslexia, resulting in headaches, migraines, and fatigue.
  • Poor depth perception: Some individuals report difficulty judging the spacing between words on a page.

Causes of Visual Dyslexia

Causes of visual dyslexia can vary, and more than one factor may be present in some people. We have compiled the most common causes of visual dyslexia below.

Vision Problems Often Mistaken for Visual Dyslexia 

These eye conditions can affect reading and are sometimes confused with visual dyslexia, but they’re separate issues. Correcting them doesn’t resolve a reading difficulty rooted in how the brain processes what it sees. 

  • Nearsightedness: With nearsightedness, or myopia, close objects are clear, but objects in the distance appear blurry. 
  • Farsightedness: With farsightedness, or hyperopia, distant objects are clear, but nearby objects appear blurry.
  • Convergence insufficiency: CI is a vision disorder in which the eyes have difficulty working together to focus on nearby objects. The eyes are unable to turn inward, or converge, in order to see a single image.

Visual Processing Causes

  • Poor spatial relations and visual-spatial perception: A poor sense of where objects sit in space can make tracking and aligning text challenging. 
  • Weak form discrimination: Also called visual discrimination, this is the ability to identify, differentiate, and interpret symbols and shapes. Those with dyslexia often cannot process this visual information or distinguish between different letters. 
  • Weak visual memory: Visual memory is the ability to identify, store, and retrieve symbols such as letter shapes and word sequences. Visual dyslexia means that the brain is unable to interpret and sequence visual input.  
  • Poor Rapid Automatized Naming (RAN): RAN is the speed with which an individual can retrieve the names of symbols from long-term memory. Those with visual dyslexia often score lower on assessments of RAN than typical readers. 

Visual Stress or Related Factors

  • Meares-Irlen syndrome (visual stress): Some people report visual distortions, such as moving, blurry, or shimmering print, that they link to sensitivity to light, glare, or patterns in text. It’s worth noting that this is a debated phenomenon, and researchers disagree about whether it’s a distinct condition or a true cause of reading difficulty. 

How Visual Dyslexia Affects Reading and Learning

Visual dyslexia has a significant impact on reading and academic performance. Over time, students can fall behind in school without proper intervention. The effects of all types of visual dyslexia are listed below.

Reading Implications

  • Poor reading fluency: Children with visual dyslexia have difficulty decoding text and recognizing words. Reading fluency consists of accuracy and appropriate volume, pitch, and prosody. When reading is effortful, fluency suffers. 
  • Poor comprehension: When readers are not fluent, comprehension suffers. Children with visual dyslexia have to work so hard to read the words that they can’t focus on the meaning of what they’re reading.  

Academic Implications

  • Weak literacy skills: Reading, writing, and spelling go hand-in-hand. Poor readers will often struggle to spell and write with accuracy. 
  • Low grades: Since literacy encompasses so much of the academic curriculum, children may struggle across subject areas. They may miss out on much of the content that requires reading.

Social Emotional Implications

  • Lack of confidence: When children perform poorly in school, their confidence suffers. They may develop a negative attitude about school and lack motivation to try. 
  • Emotional distress: Many children with visual dyslexia experience anxiety, low self-esteem, and even depression. They may feel like the only one experiencing these difficulties.
  • Social isolation: Difficulty with reading can cause children to isolate themselves out of frustration. They may experience bullying and become withdrawn, avoiding developing relationships. 

How Is Visual Dyslexia Diagnosed?

It is important to diagnose visual dyslexia in order to distinguish it from other conditions. A proper diagnosis is the first step in determining the support an individual with visual dyslexia needs. 

A comprehensive approach will involve multiple professionals. An ophthalmologist or developmental optometrist should complete a full clinical eye exam to rule out common treatable vision problems. A psychologist will complete a psychoeducational examination that evaluates cognitive processing, academic achievement, and specifically phonological awareness, rapid naming, and decoding. 

Treatment and Support Options

Once a diagnosis of visual dyslexia is obtained, a targeted intervention plan can be created. This plan may include several of the following support options.

Addressing Vision Problems

  • Glasses or vision correction: Corrective lenses may solve vision problems. Special glasses can help with convergence insufficiency. 

Reading and Learning Support

  • Structured literacy approaches: Structured literacy programs such as Orton-Gillingham provide the necessary support that learners with visual dyslexia need. Instruction is systematic, explicit, and sequential. 
  • Multisensory teaching: Engaging multiple senses in the learning process can be effective when teaching children with visual dyslexia. Instruction can essentially bypass the visual component and instead utilize auditory and tactile materials to activate different parts of the brain, which strengthens understanding.

Assistive Technology

  • Text-to-Speech: This software lets readers hear text read aloud, bypassing the visual processing mechanism altogether. 
  • Optical Character Recognition (OCR): This technology converts printed text into a digital format that can be adjusted in order to assist in readability. 

Practical Tips for Parents and Educators

It is essential for parents and educators to help children with visual dyslexia improve their reading skills. Here are some tips for providing support.

  • Reduce visual clutter: Since visual processing is difficult for children with visual dyslexia, reduce the amount of visual input the child sees. Avoid elaborate fonts, declutter workspaces, and simplify decorations.
  • Provide modified reading materials: This can include providing texts with large fonts or high-contrast backgrounds to reduce visual strain.
  • Adjust lighting: Avoid using harsh fluorescent lighting that can cause glare. Instead, opt for soft lighting, such as lamps with adjustable warm light, so children can adjust the brightness.
  • Encourage reading breaks: Reading is hard work for children with visual dyslexia. To avoid frustration and a negative attitude, stick to short reading sessions with frequent breaks.
  • Provide visual aids: Utilize pictures, charts, diagrams, and graphs to supplement written information. This eases some of the burden, since it lets children with visual dyslexia take in the information even when reading is hard.
  • Use reading guides: Offer rulers or a specific tracking guide to block out surrounding texts so that the child can only focus on one line of text at a time.

When to Seek Professional Help

If your child avoids reading tasks and easily becomes frustrated, pay attention. If you notice your child rubbing their eyes or complaining of headaches, contact an optometrist or ophthalmologist for an eye exam. If your child loses their place while reading, mixes up letters in words, or says that the text looks like it’s moving or blurry, seek out a learning assessment with a clinical or educational psychologist. 

The Benefits of Using Forbrain for Reading Support

Forbrain is a tool that can complement reading instruction for individuals with visual dyslexia. Forbrain is an auditory stimulation headset that enhances the volume and clarity of the user’s speech when worn. 

This auditory feedback supports attention during reading tasks and emphasizes the auditory side of reading rather than the visual. When worn during reading or phonics practice, Forbrain is designed to boost engagement, which may help reading feel more fluent and build confidence over time. 

Bottom Line

Visual dyslexia makes it difficult for individuals to process and recall visual information. While this reading disorder may present itself as a vision problem, even those with normal vision can have visual processing deficits. These visual factors impact reading and lead to poor reading fluency and comprehension. 

Assessment and diagnosis by licensed professionals can start these children on the right track. A proper support plan combining reading accommodations with evidence-based, structured literacy instruction can ease strain, improve reading skills, and support motivation and self-esteem. 

Author

  • Amanda Unrau speech language pathologist

    Amanda is a speech language pathologist by day, and a freelance writer during the in between times. She has worked with children of all ages in a variety of private practice and school settings, as well as telepractice. She enjoys research and tries to make her speech therapy and writing as functional as possible.

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