Natural Vision Improvement V1.1

 
[8.0] PASSIVE VISION

[8.1] What is passive vision?

Passive vision is the act of seeing without strain as displayed by
the emmotropic eye. To develop passive vision a series of
non-exercises have been developed to reduce strain and
sensitivity.

Dr. William Bates found that mypoia is in fact always associated with
a strain to see distant objects, and that hypermetropia is always
associated with a strain to see at the near point. Primarily
the strain to see is a strain of the mind.

By straining to see at near or far objects the eye can pass
through various stages from emmetropia, in which the eye is
spherical, to hypermetropia, in which it is flattened, and if
these changes take place unsymmetrically, astigamatism. Bates found
that myopia could be induced in dogs by forcing them to strain to
to see a distant object.

Bates's remedy is not to avoid either near work or distant vision but
to get rid of the mental strain which underlies the imperfect
functioning of the eye at both points. The ways in which people
strain are infinite, and the methods used to relieve strain must be
almost equally varied.


[8.2] Does sleep help reduce strain?

Yes and no. If a person is under mental strain during the day, then
this will carry over into sleep. Even during sleep, eyes can still
be very active during a period know as REM, or Rapid Eye Movement, a
phase of sleep during which dreaming takes place.

Some people find their vision is best in the morning, certainly the
result of sleep -- while others find it markedly worse! The effect
sleep has on your eyesight may be affected by the tension your eyes
are under before you go to sleep, the amount of light in the room while
you're sleeping, what you ate before going to sleep, etc. In
general, though, if you are able to achieve complete relaxation
before you lie down, the effect on your eyes the next morning will be
positive.

Unconscious patterns of muscular tension are however generally not
cured by sleep, nor are muscular weaknesses.


[8.3] What do I do if my sight is worse in the mornings?

A few people strain their eyes during sleep causing poor vision in
the morning. A program of passive vision non-exercises before bed will
help to relieve this condition. Also look into the emotional
side of your lifestyle and how this may relate to your night time
stress.


[8.4] How often should I wear glasses or contacts?

Wear them only when your safety (or the law) requires it. The less
you wear glasses the quicker you can improve.


[8.5] Should I go cold turkey and stop wearing glasses
altogether?

If you can then yes. You still nead to wear glasses were you
_need_ to see perfectly clearly. (Note it is illegal in most
countries to drive without glasses if it is indicated on your
license)

In some situations you can get by with a fitness pair of glasses
correcting to 20/40. In situations were you don't neet glasses dont
wear them.

Remember glasses only compensate for vision problems and dont
improve them. Many people complain that their eyes feels "tight" or
tense and tired when they wear glasses, indicating a possible negative
action on the eyes from the lenses.



[8.6] What are functional or fitness glasses?

Glasses which undercorrect an error of refraction. The lowest an
optometrist is legaly allowed to prescribe for your sight, this
varies from country to country. In most countries it is illegal to
prescribe glasses that correct vision worse than 20/40.


[8.7] How long before I become accustomed to not wearing glasses?

If you have worn corrective lenses for a while then the
transition might not be easy. The first week is usually the
hardest, but you will probably be surprised how quickly you
adjust.

The first problem is a psychological one, most people immediately
exclaim, "I cant see!", when in fact what they mean is "I cant see
clearly". Mental vision now becomes the first priority, that is,
learning to differentiate and become aware of what exactly it is you do
see.

Once you develop this sense of your vision you will be able to
instantly tell the state of your sight. Some people can tell you their
Snellen acuity just by looking at any patch of black. Simply
because they have learned that with blur, blacks become grey, and the
degree of grey indicates the current state of their sight. Become
curious about just what is it your are seeing. How is it different from
what you want to see? Are lines sharper in one orientation? Are
you seeing double or more images? Which part of your visual field is
clearer? How do your eyes compare to each other, is one stronger
than the other, does this change? How does your vision change during
the day?



[8.8] What is palming?

Relief of mental strain is the cornerstone of the Bates method.
Bates found that closing the eyes gives them and the mind a break which
can temporarily restore sight. He futher expanded this principle
with the non-exercise of palming, which actually comes from the Hatha
Yoga tradition.

Do not wear glasses or contacts while palming.

To palm, cover your closed eyes with the cupped palms of the hand with
the fingers overlaping in the center of the forehead. Do not touch or
put any pressure on the eyes. Then meditate over something
pleasant and relax. Some people like to warm up the palms first by
rubing them briskly together.

Palming relaxes the optic nerves, enhances blood circulation, and
relieves muscular rigidity in the eyes.

At first most people find they see a myriad of patterns lights and
colors etc. When a high degree of relaxation is attained these tend
to give way to just black. Bates advised to just imagine black
to encourage this process, however if this proves difficult then to
just rest while palming.

The first thing you will notice when you have finished palming is the
sense of peace, relaxation and warmth in the eyes and the muscles
around the eyes. The second is an increase in clarity, which
slowly reverts back to your abnormal sight. Permanent sight
improvement is based on the cumulative beneficial effects of these
temporary improvements.


[8.9] How often should I palm?

30 minutes a day is a good goal. If you have busy schedule then
break it up into lots of 5 minutes. You can mix palming with a quick
facial massage.


[8.10] Can I do too much palming?

No. Even if you do one or more hours a day, Bates found this still
produced beneficial results.


[8.11] What is sunning?

Bates advocated sunning as an important component of vision
therapy. Sunning simply involves being in the sun, closing the eyes
and just moving the head from the side to side while allowing
the sun to shine on the closed lids. Do NOT wear contacts or
lenses while sunning. As you become accustomed to light you can
stretch out your eyelid and allow more light through the
tranculecent skin.

Looking directly at the sun is of course NEVER recomended. If you have
a high sensitivity, work mostly indoors under fluorescents or wear
sunglasses often, then you might find that normal daylight hurts
your eyes. Sunning is an excellent way of reducing any light
sensitivity.

Once you are used to light sunning will give a soft, warm,
pleasant and very relaxed feeling to the eyes.

If direct sunlight isn't availlable, artifical full-spectrum
lights can be used.


[8.12] What is skying?

Skying is milder form of sunning when the sensitivity to light is
great or no sun is availlable. Instead of looking at the sun use a
poriton of the sky with no sun. Once this has been mastered then
graduate to sunning.


[8.13] How much sunning should I do?

As much as you can. Start of with a few minutes per day and build up
to half an hour, or break sunning up into smaller chunks if time is
pressing. Eating lunch outdoors is a good time for sunning
provided you dont live under the hole in the ozone layer or in the
tropics.

[8.14] Is sunning safe?

There are contra indications to sunning. If you are albino or have
certain skin diseases or any problems in or around your eyes, then
consult your doctor. But if your healthy then the answer is
yes. As it is, many people don't get enough sun, which can be a
factor in causing depression, vitamin D deficiency, and calcium
absorption problems.

If you are concerned about exposing yourself to too much UV
light, there are things you can do. First, always sun with your eyes
closed. Also, keep in mind: all frequencies of light are less
intense in late afternoon or early morning -- you can do your
sunning then. And, if you feel you need to, you can always wear a sun
block on your face (don't forget your eyelids!).

Always start with as brief a period that you are comfortabale with
and slowly extend this to the desired time. Remember in controled
short periods of exposure the sun can only do good, and its only
when you haven't built up exposure or haven't spent extended time in
the sun that problems can occur as a result of sun-hypersensitivity.

Do however take extra care if you live under the holes in the
ozone layer or in the tropics.



[8.15] Should I stop wearing sunglasses?

Yes. The lens of the eye filters out UV light on its own accord.
Sunglasses are really only useful in high glare situations. If you
need sunglasses use top-quality full-spectrum neutral gray as
manufactured by Keystone Optical Laboratory or Enviromental
Lighting Concepts. If you find daylight or strong light
painful this may be an aspect of your vision dysfunction.


[8.16] How much blinking should I be doing?

Remember to blink and blink often. People with refractive errors tend
to blink much less than the average 20 blinks a minute. Reduced
blinking leads to staring or squinting, so remember to blink
often. Deliberate blinking momentarily rests the eyes, stretches
the extra occular muscles, massages the eye balls and forces the
pupil to contract and expand.

Working with computer video displays tends to dry out the eyes and
blinking is even more important in these situations to help return
much needed moisture to the eye. Some people like to put up a small
note to remind themselves to blink frequently.


[8.17] Should I be yawning?

Yes. Deliberate or exagerated yawning relaxes all the facial
muscles, encouraging fuller breathing and oxygenates the blood. Yawn
frequently, especially when tired. Many people report greatly
enhanced clarity while deep yawning.


[8.18] How should I be breathing?

The eyes use one third as much oxygen as the heart. If your
breathing is shallow or weak than you should look into aerobic
exercises.

John Selby devised an exercise that combines breathing, mental
imagery, relaxation and awareness of your eyes in a single
practice called Eye Breathing. Sit comfortably in a chair close your
eyes, back straight, body relaxed. Breathe calmly through the nose
and imagine that your eye is inhaling and exhaling air as part of
this same rhythmic cycle of the breath, as if your eyes have become
lungs. Also imagine that health, vitality, healing, relaxtion
flow into your eyes with every breath.

[8.19] What are some breathing exercesise?

John Selby devised an exercise that combines breathing,
mental imagery, relaxation and awareness of your eyes in a single
practice called Eye Breathing. Sit comfortably in a chair close your
eyes, back straight, body relaxed. Breathe calmly through the nose
and imagine that your eye are inhaling and exhaling air as part
of this same rhythmic cycle of the breath, as if your eyes have
become lungs. Also imagine that health, vitality, healing,
relaxtion flow into your eyes with every breath.

Yoga breathing exrecise.

Cool breathing. Open oyur mouth to make an 'O' shape with your
lips, and stick your tongue out over your teeth and past your lips.
Inhale over the tongue, then after a full inhale. close your mouth
and block your right nostril and breath out as slowly you can through
your left. repeat alternating nostrils.

Subtle Energy breathing. Close your eyes. start with your left eye.
Become aware of tis sensation, and try to bring it alive with
feeling. Imagine your left eye is capable of breathing in
prana/energy as you breath in through your nose. As you breath out,
imagine the energy being transfered into your right out. Aternate
for five minutes.

Breathing with the grain. stimulates the parasympathietic system and
calms the sympathetic system. Hold your breath for 10 seconds.
Block the left nostril with your left index finger and partially
block the right with your right index finger. Exhale long and slwoly
through the right nostril. Inhale long and deeply through both
nostrils, and reapeat the above but swap nostrils. Practice 8-10
cycles.



[8.20] What am I seeing?

This is your starting point. Become aware of what you see,
without judging its relative merits. Simply note the degree of
bluriness, whether you see a single image, or double or more
images. How uniform is your field of vision? What happens if you stare
at point too long? Are lines clearer in any one direction? Is one
eye clearer then the other? Do you see the same colour through your
eyes? How does your vision change during the day? How is your
vision related to mood and general health?

Become really curious about your sight.


-----------------------------------------------------------------