Eye movements and visual tracking
How the eyes hold, follow, and shift between targets.
Functional Neurology · Stony Brook, NY
Your Brain and Body Are Constantly Talking.
Functional Neurology looks at how effectively that conversation is taking place—and where function may be struggling. It is a way of evaluating how the nervous system receives, organizes, and responds to information, not a claim that every symptom has a neurological cause.
Every moment, your brain integrates information from the eyes, inner ear and vestibular system, muscles and joints, sensory systems, and the environment to help determine how you move, balance, respond, and adapt.
Dr. Jared Leon, DC, DACNB
Board-Certified Functional Neurologist · Serving families on Long Island since 2003
The Neural Stress Test™ is an educational screening, not a diagnosis or a substitute for an in-person clinical evaluation.
The Nervous System at Work
Your Brain Is an Integration System.
These systems do not operate in isolation. The brain continuously compares their information and organizes a response appropriate to the task and environment.
Eyes / Vision
Vestibular System
Proprioception
Spine & Joints
Sensory Input
Brain
Receives · Compares · Organizes · Responds
Movement
Balance
Stability
Coordination
Adaptation
A simplified educational model. Human nervous-system function is complex and requires appropriate clinical evaluation.
Symptoms & Systems
Why Symptoms Can Be More Complicated Than Where You Feel Them.
A symptom tells us what you feel. It does not always tell us which system—or combination of systems—may be contributing.
That is why evaluation matters. These examples do not mean symptoms are always neurological in origin, and appropriate medical evaluation may be necessary.
Dizziness
May involve more than the inner ear, including how visual, vestibular, and body-position information is integrated.
Headaches
Can have multiple contributing systems and should not be reduced to one assumed source.
Balance
Depends on the integration of visual, vestibular, and proprioceptive information.
Movement
May reflect how the nervous system processes, times, and coordinates information.
A Functional Examination
What Dr. Leon Evaluates.
The goal is to observe and measure how specific systems are functioning together, then determine whether an individualized rehabilitation approach may be appropriate.
Vestibular function
How motion and gravity information contributes to orientation and stability.
Balance and postural stability
How stability changes under different sensory and movement demands.
Coordination and cerebellar function
How timing, accuracy, and sequencing appear during specific tasks.
Sensory integration
How visual, vestibular, and body-position information works together.
Proprioception
How accurately the body senses position and movement.
Movement patterns
How the body organizes movement, control, and compensation.
Brain–body communication
How information is received, processed, and expressed through function.
A functional neurological evaluation examines patterns of function. It does not replace medical diagnosis, emergency care, or evaluation by the appropriate medical specialist.
A Dr. Leon Teaching Moment“Think of your brain less like a light switch and more like an orchestra.”
Vision, balance, movement, sensation, and the vestibular system are different sections of that orchestra. Health isn't simply whether each instrument can play. It's how well they play together.
Neuroplasticity
The Brain Changes Through Experience.
Neuroplasticity is the nervous system's capacity to adapt in response to experience. The brain continually responds to repeated sensory and motor input, practice, challenge, rest, and the environment.
Functional neurological rehabilitation uses appropriately selected and progressively dosed activities to challenge specific functions and encourage adaptation. The activities, sequence, and dose should reflect the individual's findings and tolerance.
Neuroplasticity is a biological capacity, not a guarantee of recovery or a promise of a particular outcome.
Every experience is information to the nervous system.
A Reason to Look Closer
This May Be Relevant If…
01Dizziness or imbalance
02Persistent symptoms following concussion
03Motion or visually busy environment sensitivity
04Headaches or migraines
05Coordination difficulties
06Athletic performance concerns
07Balance changes
08Brain fog or difficulty concentrating
These symptoms can have many causes. Functional Neurology may be one part of understanding the picture, and appropriate medical evaluation or co-management may be necessary.
Continue Your Functional Living™ Journey
Choose the next step that fits your question.
Learn more, begin with a screening, or start a private conversation with the Leon Chiropractic team.
Begin Your Journey with Dr. LeonDizziness, Vertigo & BalanceExplore the brain–balance connectionConcussion RehabilitationSee the post-concussion evaluation pathwayNeural Stress Test™Begin with an educational screeningThe Balance ProjectA proactive path for balance and independenceFunctional Recovery Lab™See individualized recovery supportFunctional Living PodcastContinue learning with Dr. Leon (opens in a new tab)
What should I do next? · The Neural Stress Test™Restore Function. Rediscover Freedom. Live Functionally.™
Find out what's actually going on.
A guided digital evaluation that maps your nervous system in minutes — the same signal we build your care plan around.