My Experience with Vertigo and Binocular Vision Dysfunction (BVD)

I am 43 years old, and I've never had an eye exam that resulted in anything less than 20/20 vision. Er, I mean eyesight.

Up until recently, I never knew there was a difference between "eyesight" and "vision." Did you know they are NOT the same?

The only reason I found out is when I started having extreme vertigo while driving on the freeway. Just imagine, suddenly overnight, having the feeling of severe anxiety, tunnel vision, and severely disorienting vertigo while driving at high speeds (arguably the WORST time to have vertigo) to the point I thought I was either going to have a full-blown panic or heart attack, or even get into a crash and die.

I used to enjoy driving.

But it became an anxiety-inducing activity that I dreaded and really tried to avoid when I could.

When I went to the eye doctor to see what was wrong (no pun intended), I was told my eyesight was 20/20, and there wasn't anything wrong. They did suggest, however, I consider anti-anxiety medications for the anxiety symptoms I mentioned.

Even when I pushed them that something wasn't right, they told me all was well, and they would see me next year.

I, being the type of person to keep pushing and advocating for myself, decided to do some research, and I found out there was such a thing called BVD (binocular vision dysfunction) and it is treatable with something called vision therapy. I found a place in my city with good reviews, made an appointment, and began treatment.

This was about a year and a half ago, and while I still have symptoms occasionally, I am much better. I do my exercises daily (like PT for the eyes and brain), and my symptoms are mostly resolved.

I'm sharing this for two reasons.

One, always advocate for yourself. YOU know your body best, and only YOU know when something just isn't right.

Two, vision issues are surprisingly common (especially among dental workers), and we need to take preventive action to protect our vision.

We spend our days in intense close-up focus, working in millimeters, under bright lights, often shifting between patients, screens, charts, and loupes without ever giving our visual system a break. Eye strain, headaches, trouble refocusing, dry eyes, anxiety, fatigue—we normalize all of it.

I did too.

What I didn’t realize was that these symptoms aren’t always “just part of the job.” They can be signs that the visual system isn’t functioning efficiently.

After a recent podcast interview with Dr Bryce Appelbaum, I learned issues such as ADHD, dyslexia, learning difficulties, anxiety, fatigue, and even disorganization and clumsiness can be attributed to vision problems.

Whether you're in dentistry or not, we are starting at screens in some capacity for many hours during the day, and our human brains simply aren't designed for them. I learned from my podcast episode that yes, screens are damaging our visual system, but there are plenty of ways we can mitigate the risks.

Our eyes and brains are crucial to our quality of life, so we need to protect them.

Start by listening to this interview to learn more about all of this and how to prevent vision issues. You're worth it!