About Sam

I am very excited to be offering group educational programs utilizing the process I developed in ten years of teaching at the Esalen Institute.

• Seminars sharing my methods with other doctors and health practitioners
• Groups for people of all ages with vision problems

See the Events page for more information.

Dr. Sam Berne is a pioneer in vision science, integrative health, and subtle energy therapies. A leader in the fields of Behavioral/Neurodevelopmental Optometry and Vision Therapy for over thirty years, he is known internationally as a researcher, facilitator, and teacher.

Dr. Berne is a warm, compassionate problem-solver who always strives for creative answers. Working tirelessly to understand the specific conditions and needs of each patient, he offers honest and reassuring answers to their questions. For the last thirty years, Dr. Berne’s genuine care and personal interest in helping others have driven him to find ways of healing the mind-body-spirit through the eyes.

Dr. Berne teaches workshops and retreats in the Bahamas, Hawaii, the mainland U.S., Mexico, Canada, Denmark, Austria, Greece, the UK, and Russia. He is on the faculty at The Esalen Institute in Big Sur, CA, where he leads retreats on healing the eyes and vision.
He has developed innovative methods for healing the mind-body-spirit through eye therapy. His revolutionary approach provides individuals with natural alternatives for improving vision and overall health. Dr. Berne offers a holistic method that helps children with a variety of developmental delays from autism to Attention Deficit Disorder. DLP uses primitive reflex therapy, movement therapy, vision therapy, light/color therapy, craniosacral therapy and nutritional counseling to aid patients with neurological problems.

Background

After earning his Bachelor of Science from Pennsylvania State University, Dr. Berne attended the Pennsylvania College of Optometry.  In his fourth year he explored his interest in vision therapy by interning at a prestigious San Diego practice. By shedding light on the momentous impact that vision therapy could have on people’s lives, that eye-opening experience set Dr. Berne on the path to a new passion and career pursuit. 

During a post-doctoral fellowship in Infant/Child Development at the Gesell Institute in New Haven, Connecticut, Dr. Berne studied multi-disciplinary approaches to help adults and children with learning, behavioral, and developmental problems.

 After years of research, personal experience, and observing and interacting with patients, Dr. Berne found holistic vision therapy to be his calling after meeting behavioral optometrist Dr. Albert Shankman. Using Dr. Shankman’s holistic approach, Dr. Berne completely reversed his own nearsightedness, and with Dr. Shankman as his mentor, discovered how much more effective mind-body-spirit processes of healing were than mechanical eye exercises.