@ Home

At Home: Extra accommodations

Here are some tips for home if you're sensitive to light. Also see school accommodations.

Wallpaper

Striped wallpaper or wallpaper with repetitive patterns and designs can cause a lot of visual distortion or other symptoms. Wallpaper covers so much surface area that it can be overwhelming. Think twice before you go with purple and orange stripes or that stylish checkerboard design.

Homework and fluorescent light

Don't do your homework in the kitchen under fluorescent light. Most people's Irlen symptoms are worse under fluorescent light than any other kind of light. If you usually have reading problems or headaches, they'll probably be worse under fluorescent. Reading problems never seem to help you get your homework done faster, so you'll want to check that out. Also, if you're always waking up with your nose in your history book, it might not be the book's fault; some people get sleepier under fluorescent lights. If you're using fluorescent light, try switching to incandescent light.

Dim light is good

One of those ancient bits of wisdom that no one ever bothers to verify: dim light ruins your eyes. Everybody says something like, "It's as dark as a cave in here! How can you see?! You're gonna go blind!" If turning the light down helps you, it's highly recommended.