Visual stress is a perceptual processing condition that causes reading difficulties, headaches, and visual problems from exposure to patterns in text, such as lines of text.

Visual stress is linked to Dyslexia and similar visual learning difficulties. Sufferers experience print distortion and fatigue when reading

Visual Stress is also known as Meares-Irlen syndrome or Scotopic sensitivity syndrome.

The severity of these symptoms can vary from person to person with approximately 20% of the population suffering to some degree.

The causes of Visual Stress are currently unknown; There is no scientific explanation for the symptoms, however, it is commonly agreed to be a visual-perceptual problem. Its perceptual nature means that it cannot be corrected with standard optical lenses as it is believed to stem from the visual cortex of the brain rather than being an eyesight issue.

The good news is Visual Stress symptoms can be helped with the use of coloured filters. When Visual Stress is suspected, a full assessment is recommended.

During this assessment the optician will find the exact hue(colour) and saturation(darkness of colour) that will best relieve your symptoms, this is carried out using the Intuitive Colorimeter, this instrument can prescribe up to 100,000 colour combinations