#visual processing disorder

[rambles-of-mental-illness]

Neurodiversity

Neurodivergence refers to variations in neurological functioning that diverge from what is considered typical or "neurotypical." While there is no single, universally agreed-upon list, neurodivergent disorders generally include conditions that affect cognition, behavior, perception, or social functioning.

1. Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) (controversial as a separate diagnosis)

Asperger’s Syndrome (outdated term, now part of ASD)

2. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

ADHD (Predominantly Inattentive Type)

ADHD (Predominantly Hyperactive-Impulsive Type)

ADHD (Combined Type)

3. Learning Disabilities & Processing Disorders

Dyslexia (difficulty with reading and language processing)

Dyscalculia (difficulty with math and numerical processing)

Dysgraphia (difficulty with writing and fine motor skills)

Auditory Processing Disorder (APD)

Visual Processing Disorder (VPD)

Nonverbal Learning Disability (NVLD)

4. Intellectual Disabilities

Global Developmental Delay

Down Syndrome

Fragile X Syndrome

Williams Syndrome

Prader-Willi Syndrome

5. Communication Disorders

Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder

Speech Sound Disorder

Childhood Apraxia of Speech

Selective Mutism

6. Tic Disorders

Tourette Syndrome

Chronic Motor or Vocal Tic Disorder

Provisional Tic Disorder

7. Mental Health Conditions Often Considered Neurodivergent

Schizophrenia Spectrum & Other Psychotic Disorders

Schizophrenia

Schizoaffective Disorder

Schizotypal Personality Disorder

Delusional Disorder

Mood Disorders with Neurological Features

Bipolar Disorder

Major Depressive Disorder (long-term cases cause atrophy in brain regions like the hippocampus)

Dysthymia (Persistent Depressive Disorder)

Anxiety & Related Conditions

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) (sometimes considered)

Panic Disorder (sometimes considered)

Trauma-Related Disorders (sometimes included)

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (when it significantly alters cognition and sensory processing)

Complex PTSD (CPTSD)

Dissociative Disorders

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

Depersonalization/Derealization Disorder

Personality Disorders (Not all PDs)

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)

Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD)

Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD)

Schizotypal Personality Disorder (StPD)

8. Sensory Processing Differences

Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) (not formally recognized in DSM-5 but widely acknowledged in neurodivergent communities)

9. Epilepsy & Neurological Conditions (sometimes considered)

Epilepsy

Migraines with Aura

Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE)

10. Other Conditions Sometimes Considered Neurodivergent

Hyperlexia (advanced reading ability with comprehension difficulties)

Synesthesia (cross-wiring of sensory experiences)

Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) (due to high comorbidity with neurodivergence)

Autoimmune Encephalitis (when it affects cognitive function)

Neurodivergence is a broad and evolving concept, with some conditions more widely accepted as neurodivergent than others. The core idea is that neurodivergent individuals experience the world in ways that differ from neurotypical standards, often due to innate neurological differences.

[perplexingluciddreams]

I am so so so frustrated about my shitty visual processing. Especially how I can't scan my AAC screen.

I try and try and try to search my AAC screen for the button. But even when I know it is definitely on that page, I struggle hard to find it.

The only time I can immediately find the right button is through memorise the exact "motor plan" of where on the grid to tap in what order. Which doesn't involve looking at the actual buttons at all.

I use Super Core 50 (on Grid 3) right now. Which is grid size 6x9. That is already considered smallish grid size with not many buttons.

I am considering trying Super Core 30. Which is similar with all same vocabulary but just less buttons on a screen. It is 4x7 grid size.

But then with any smaller grid size, get frustrated about struggle with navigation and can't remember which folder a word is in. And have to search for it. And takes more clicks to get to a word, so more mental and physical work to get words out.

Also don't want to give up on Super Core 50. Because I already customised a lot, put own words and rearrange and completely change colours (for better visual process and less sensory overload and headaches).

My grid set feels like mine now. Just upset that it is so hard still to use it at all. It makes me less likely to try communicate more complex things.

I don't know what to do 🤷🏻‍♂️☹️

[averagecshlistener83]

I have visual snow syndrome and this is what it looks like irl if anyones interested

It gets worse in times of stress and in the dark, i also see light images? (Not sure how to describe this) like if im looking at something and look away i still see it, kind of like if you stare at a light and look away you still see it. (This is called Palinospia and can come with Virtual snow syndrome) Virtual snow syndrome is more common in males and is also more common in people with Anxiety, ADHD, Autism spectrum disorder, Depression, Dyslexia, Fibromyalgia, a history of hallucinogenic drug use, Migraine with aura, Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome, Tinnitus, or a traumatic brain injury (TBI) It also can cause light sensitivity, kaleidoscope vision, and photopsia. The nerve cells in the brains of people with visual snow syndrome may be too responsive to visual stimuli. These very sensitive nerve cells mistakenly send signals to the brain. The brain interprets them as real images. I have asd and visual snow syndrome, if you have visual snow syndrome im curious do you have any of the things its common in, and which symptoms do you have?

I have all these things with it

[sapphicautistic]

fighting for my life with this captcha

[joe-the]

my brain is annoying when it comes to processing visual information

like???? Even slightly bright colors burn my eyes, I cannot track things visually, reading black letters on white paper for longer than 5 minutes makes me nauseous and dizzy, I can hardly see on a sunny day, and my brain cannot handle complex patterns especially with sharp contrast like what??? goofy ahh experience. I would have anxiety attacks as a kid because I couldn't find anything, ever. Now I remember where all of my belongings are at all times because I just HATE looking for things.

I hated having a teacher sit next to me in elementary school who had to tell me what to write down because it took forever to copy things from the board. (although it was nice of my speech therapist to do that for me)

I watched across the spiderverse and my eyes were watering the entire time and I left with a huge headache,, great movie though (it just needs an epilepsy friendly, eyestrain-free version)

I hate playing super smash bros

OH AND I CANT FUCKING READ SHEET MUSIC NO MATTER WHAT NO MATTER WHAT I DO I JUST CANT, I PUT MY ENTIRE PUSSY INTO IT PLEASE

it's like,,,, not being able to identify things in my peripheral if I'm looking at something even slightly visually complex

Jigsaw puzzles are UYGHH >:( (as well as word searches)

[drakkensystem]

Ok there's something I need to get off my chest.

Caveat that I assume the assholes I'm about to complain about are just a vocal minority, but when that vocal minority reduces my enjoyment of some kind of media and worsens my mental health so they can feel smug, I think I'm justified in complaining about it.

So I saw a Tumblr post recently where someone (derisively) told someone else to "just pick up a comic" if they wanted to know more about DC canon and while there was a brilliant reply mentioning how convoluted DC canon is, I want to highlight my perspective.

Hi, I have aphantasia and a visual processing disorder (also ADHD and autism). This means that my visual perception of my surroundings is absolute dog shit, even when I am actively trying. I went to the same restaurant one to two times a week for years before noticing that one of their major pieces of decor even existed. I have a hoodie that, if I didn't know better, I would think my sibling was gaslighting me about it being green and not blue (yes, I have taken colorblindness tests, both online and officially in an appointment- no, I'm not colorblind). I always watch shows with captions bc my special interest in language means my eyes will automatically track the words, making it more likely that I'll actually see what's happening on the screen. Even so, I often pause and rewind (when I can) so that I can actually see what happened. For a few months, I had migraines so bad that I spent the majority of my time awake blindfolded, but I found that I used my vision so little when navigating around my own house, it wasn't very much more difficult while blindfolded- basically only things that moved gave me trouble.

One of the other consequences is that I find reading comics very difficult. I often compare me reading comics to someone with dyslexia reading regular books: yes, I can do it, but it takes me so much more effort that it's hard for me to enjoy it. (I just happened to be lucky enough that no one pins my academic success on my ability to read comics, unlike dyslexics and traditional books).

There are exactly four comics which I have managed to finish a major chunk of, all of them were franchises I was already hyperfixated on before reading, and the one that isn't also a long term special interest happened in a time in my life that I was incredibly lonely and bored. They were all also manga- aka, significantly easier for me to read bc they are in black and white (and thus there is less visual detail to take in).

So when I say that reading comics is hard for me, I mean it is hard.

And to hear comics fans say things like "just pick up a comic, bruh" (a vocal minority, but they do exist)- it disheartens me so much. I would love to experience those stories for myself. But when I have to re-read each page 3-5 times in order to actually process anything beyond the words on the page, it's too exhausting (note: manga normally only takes me 1-3 re-reads per page).

It is so extremely frustrating for people to act like reading comics is so easy when it's something that I legitimately struggle with. Reading a traditional book? I can read a 650 page novel in less than 3 days. But comic books? I struggled to get through the first 20 pages of a compendium a friend let me borrow once before giving up and returning it.

So next time you feel like deriding someone for engaging more with an adaptation than the original, remember that there is no kind of media that is universally equally accessible. They might just find it significantly easier (and therefore more enjoyable) to engage with the adaptation.

[pebbles-and-snakes]

Dark mode my beloved <3

Having light text in a black/dark background makes processing and reading sm easier (for me)

Black text on white screen is evil (joke)

Visual processing issues my behated </3

[willtheweirdrat]

Autism experience where you have VPN and struggle with auditory processing so your senses depend on eachother to make sense of everything. If you give me a book to read I struggle a LOT. If you just tell me everything I'll also struggle. I need both + caffeine to do that shit

[neurodivergentbraingoblins]

Not sure if other ND experience this at the same intensity, but my sensory issues are off the charts right now.

I haven't been on ADHD meds in almost 2 months. My sound and visual sensitivity is so wild that I feel like I can see and hear the entire universe, and it hurts my brain 😭

[ifiwereafish]

CURSE MY VPD. I THOUGHT IT SAID PERCY JACKSON AND THEN I THOUGHT IT SAID PETER JOHNSON BUT NO IT SAYS PETER JACKSON. I HAVE MET THE FINAL BOSS OF THE PJO FANDOM. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.

Peter Jackson on casting Frodo

“Frodo was a very, very important character in the movies. But he’s also a very difficult character to play and to cast. […] We were convinced that Frodo is gonna be an English actor, ’cause we wanted the Hobbits to basically be English as Tolkien really wrote them. So, we went to London and we started auditioning.

We couldn’t think of any actor to play Frodo. We had nobody in mind. We thought it would be unknown English actor, a young kid. We were in London auditioning for about a month and we’ve probably seen three hundred Frodos. There were two or three that were okay, but nothing magical, you know. ’Cause Frodo had to be magical. Every time the casting room door opened and some nervous young actor would come in, we were saying, ‘is this gonna be Frodo?’ And you sort of know within ten seconds that it wasn’t really Frodo. It was a worry, but we were plugging on.

And then our casting director said to us one day, ‘A package’s just come in the mail. It’s from Elijah Wood’. It was a video tape, a VHS tape. I had heard Elijah’s name, but I’ve never seen a film he’d done. I actually had no face for Elijah, I didn’t know how he looked like.

So, we put the video tape in. Elijah was in LA and heard that we were in London and we’re not gonna come to LA. He really wanted to get this role. So, he hired a dialect coach to teach him accent, he’d gone to the local costume-hire, got some cheesy kind of Hobbit costume on. He’d gone into the trees somewhere behind his house with a friend, and he just videotaped his own audition. He didn’t have our script, so he was reading from the book, he was doing Frodo parts from the book.

I just put this video tape in, and literally, not having known who Elijah Wood was really, I just thought, ‘he’s wonderful, he’s absolutely great’. And so, Elijah cast himself”.

(x)

[perplexingluciddreams]

I struggle watching/looking at screen when I "watch" things. Usually I mostly end up listening.

My auditory processing is much better than my visual processing. Especially because I listen through headphones, makes auditory process easier.

In the past I say I have auditory processing issues... however I think I mix up words/meaning here. Because what I was previously called "auditory processing issues" is for me actually majority due to receptive language difficulties.

I do have severe sensory issues with sounds. But it only impacts my ability to process speech sounds into words a small tiny bit. (Changes depending on how familiar is the voice/accent). Majority of my issue is with understanding/comprehending what people actually mean.

Visual process can't be fixed/helped much by anything. It is much much worse than my problems processing sounds. I can't get my brain to recognise what I look at. It is so much harder with moving video images, compared to still images. I also really struggle to focus my eyes and make them look where I want.

And changing lighting/moving camera means almost all what my brain can notice is that certain parts of the screen get brighter or darker. I often can't process enough to even know what the characters are doing with their actions.

I rewind and rewatch tiny sections over and over and over often for this reason. I try memorise where I need to put my eyes at different points by keeping in my head when the camera changes angle - I remember what word/line is being said at that point. Then I use all my effort and control of my eyes to make them look at the right spot.

Then do that over and over with different points of the screen where there is movement/a person, until I know enough of what is visually happening. It is exhausting!!

So, I decide, I will try watch Stranger Things with audio description! I hope to be more aware of what happens on screen. And this means I can better avoid bad flashing/flickering lights. And bright colours and camera movements that makes my eyes and head Bad. And it tells me what their expressions are and what their physical actions are and if a moment is supposed to be "awkward" or "comfortable", etc. etc. etc.

It is brilliant so far and I will keep going with this! I might use audio description more in future.

[bncclinic]

Understanding Visual Processing Disorder: Symptoms, Causes & Support | ADHD Australia

Visual processing disorder affects how the brain interprets visual information, leading to challenges in reading, spatial awareness, and daily tasks. Learn about the symptoms, causes, and effective strategies for managing visual processing disorder. Visit ADHD Australia to understand the condition better and explore ways to support those affected.

[my-autism-adhd-blog]

The 8 Senses

The Autistic Teacher

[therapyshoppe]

Seasons Sensory Fidget Tubes

[himmurf]

I remember telling my dad about the static I saw when I was toddler. And the floaters. Omfg... Those came later. From what I understand you get more with age because it's molecules inside your eye bumping into each other and combining into longer chains.

The starbursts on lights, from my understanding it could also be astigmatism. I used to think they looked like angels.

What’s Visual Snow Syndrome (VSS), and why do so many autistic people have it?

I learned about this the other day, when I posted about palinopsia (visual trailing/afterimages) being common in autistic people, and a couple of our followers told me about their VSS. I did some more research, and discovered that I also have it.

Visual Snow Syndrome is a neurological condition that interferes with visual processing. It’s caused by hyperactivity and hyper-excitability of nerves in certain areas of the brain that process visual information.

The core feature of VSS is constantly seeing tiny, fuzzy “feedback” in the environment. It’s kind of like seeing the world through a staticky TV screen. Some people’s visual static is larger than others. Mine is relatively fine-grained, but it gets bigger and more obvious in low lighting.

Some of the other symptoms of VSS include:

Palinopsia (visual trailing/afterimages)

Photophobia (sensitivity to light)

Increased and enhanced ectopic phenomenon, such as floaters, phosphenes, and Scheerer’s phenomenon

Seeing glare, starbursts, and halos around lights

Difficulty seeing at night/in the dark

Seeing random flashes of light and/or color, without cause from the environment

It’s common for people with VSS to experience comorbid migraines, but VSS is not the same thing as migraine aura.

So, why do autistic people often have VSS?

It comes down to the fact that VSS is caused by the hyper-excitability of neurons in areas of the brain that process visual information. A core feature of autism is hyper-excitable neurons, especially in areas of the brain that have to do with sensory processing. So it makes sense that autism would often inadvertently cause VSS.

Here are some illustrations of visual phenomenon that VSS causes, in case you want a better understanding of what the world looks like for me and many other autistic people.

Visual snow/static:

Palinopsia/image trailing:

Scheerer’s Phenomenon (tiny bright moving dots):

Starbursts around lights:

Floaters:

I hope y’all have learned something :)

I’ve found it very intriguing to realize that the way I see the world is more unique than I once knew!

~Eden🐢

[ebonytails]

Hey everyone! this is where the zebra is currently with the design.

It has knee braces!! I will most probably be drawing the zebra usually with them on, but it’s no requirement, for example if anyone else wants to draw the zebra :-]. I always like to make sure an animal design has official colors underneath any clothing and accessory anyway. I think this will be final! thank you everyone for your feedback!

As a reminder, aside from why the zebra was requested for this flag, this is also just a zebra with the disability pride flag on it. It’s just a deisgn to fit the flag, with input from other disabled people in our community. It doesn’t mean other animals can’t have designs with these colors, too! I don’t mean this design to be the only mascot for all disabled people. It’s just a silly series i do of pride animals, and at the time, during disability pride month, I wanted to see what everyone wanted me to start off with for this flag!

the goal with my pride animals is to take requests and make people feel happy and seen.. that’s all <:-)