The World Becomes Clearer

“I wrote this letter to help you understand that what Dr. Zelinsky does is not just research, but truly a path for people to change their lives for the better. When you're able to fully understand what you see, this enables you to be a better person.

I'm a 48-year-old mom who will stop at nothing for her children. My younger daughter is now 11 years old, but she didn't walk or talk until 4 years of age. She has had 11 hours of private therapy every week of her life since she was 5 months old. That includes: occupational therapy, speech therapy, horseback riding therapy, food-eating therapy, speech therapy, developmental therapy and swimming. She was seen by every specialist out there, each trying to find a diagnosis without success. However, I also knew that since there was no defined diagnosis, that meant that every door was open and every stone available to be turned over.

At 3 years of age, my daughter's OT took a class about the impact of the vestibular system on development. The OT returned and said I needed to take my daughter to this amazing specialist in Bethesda, Maryland. The specialist was an ophthalmologist and he identified something in Danielle nobody else recognized–her brain couldn't understand what her 20/20 vision saw. And then he gave me the best news, ‘You don't need me. The female version of me is in your neighborhood and it's Dr. Deborah Zelinsky.' So, off to Dr. Z I went.

Dr. Zelinsky has been seeing my daughter for the last 8 years. My daughter, who continues all of her private therapies, utilizes vision therapy, vestibular therapy and has two pairs of glasses she alternates daily. Dr. Zelinsky has suggested this plan and it truly works. My daughter has done phenomenally well with her 4th grade work in reading and comprehension. The glasses help her make sense of her world, despite her visual and auditory processing challenges. The glasses enable her to keep her eyes focused on a task or a worksheet. Dr. Zelinsky identified one of Danielle's greatest challenges–that her brain didn't understand what she saw. I'm not saying my daughter is ready for general education, but I will say, even though she spends the majority of her day in a self-contained special education class, the constant work with the different lenses and tints have enabled my daughter to join her peers in general education for an hour of academics each day. The glasses changed her life in so many ways! All in all, my daughter is a different person.

My older daughter, a very successful, highly performing academic sophomore, has been wearing various tints in her glasses for the last 5 years. As she has grown up and her eyes changed, the tints were altered. As recently as two days ago, my daughter received new lenses in her glasses with different tints and it has made a HUGE difference already. She is relieved that with final exams only two weeks away, she will be able to focus better and be so much more effective with her studying.

What everyone needs to realize is that the research Dr. Zelinsky has done literally changes lives. I have recommended her practice to numerous people all with incredibly positive results. One 15 year old freshmen boy was about to be put on medication for his lack of focus. Thankfully, his parents, who are very close friends, shared their concern with me and I immediately told them about Dr. Zelinsky. Sure enough, he started with his new glasses and vision therapy and his life has changed for the better–without ever taking medication. His grades improved and his stress drastically reduced.

I always watch how Dr. Zelinsky examines my daughter's eyes and am amazed at what she unveils with her bells, tints and lights. I can't say enough wonderful things about what she does and who she is as a person.”

~Dena C, Illinois