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Skeptical after a year of following the Bates method.

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Skeptical after a year of following the Bates method.
#1
I've been following the Bates method almost religiously for the past year, and I haven't had much improvements (only .25 in one eye), and my astigmatism got worse in one eye (which I don't attribute to the Bates method; there are too many variables). I do drive a lot at night, and use the computer often, so I've been forced to use my glasses, although at reduced strength, but I still did expect to see some results. But I was shocked to see after my optometrist appointment that my prescription has not changed by much (it has been fluctuating between -4 and -4.5 for the past 5 years).

I am a strong believer in natural health over conventional medicine, and people believe I'm crazy when they see how many vitamin supplements I use, but I am having difficulties believing that the Bates method has much of an impact, without having to follow it for a decade before seeing improvements. The only thing I've noticed is reduced strain in the eyes whenever I'm not wearing my glasses. I've tried many different things I've read here and elsewhere, as many people have said that different techniques work better than others depending on the person, but to no avail.

I'd really like to see improvements in this regard but so far I've lost hope. Any advice?

Thanks
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#2
Daqwenia Wrote:I do drive a lot at night, and use the computer often, so I've been forced to use my glasses, although at reduced strength, but I still did expect to see some results.
For night driving, you should use full strength glasses. That won't help you improve your eyesight, but it may prevent a bad accident.

I really do believe that in general, people with more than mild nearsightedness are better off not seriously trying to improve their eyesight. You sound motivated, so perhaps you are an exception, but consider your circumstances. All the time you spend wearing glasses is working against improvement. Apparently a few people have at least partially overcome this obstacle, but they seem to have had the live personal help of teachers whose charges probably totaled hundreds or thousands of dollars. The other option is to severely cut down on your use of glasses and probably your computer use as well, if you can.
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#3
Daniel Wrote:For night driving, you should use full strength glasses. That won't help you improve your eyesight, but it may prevent a bad accident.

Interesting. If you examine the requirements of every state in the US, not ONE requires 20/20 for an unrestricted license; majority are 20/40, in the Better eye, some are actually 20/50, 20/60. And an unrestricted license means one can drive at night. These standards have been set by medical advisory boards, made up of optometrists, ophthamologists, physicians, cardiologists, neurologists, psychiatrists, psychologists, public safety officials, etc.

By full strength, it is assumed you mean 20/20 or better. (?) While that level of vision is nice, having less doesn't seem to create any significant safety risk - otherwise those thousands of professionals who set the standards would certainly set the restrictions differently. And these standards have been around for a long time, so they would have lots of data available if it were otherwise.
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#4
Daqwenia, with all due respect, I thought I was following the Bates method 10 years ago when I was reading all the books and wearing a reduced prescription, but it wasn't until I started really paying attention to how I was using my eyes all the time that I started to make significant improvement. I was straining a lot more than I realized. Yes, going without glasses will make you aware of this faster. You say your eyes are more relaxed without them -- that's a big clue to what you should be doing more of.
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#5
arocarty Wrote:
Daniel Wrote:For night driving, you should use full strength glasses. That won't help you improve your eyesight, but it may prevent a bad accident.

Interesting. If you examine the requirements of every state in the US, not ONE requires 20/20 for an unrestricted license; majority are 20/40, in the Better eye, some are actually 20/50, 20/60. And an unrestricted license means one can drive at night. These standards have been set by medical advisory boards, made up of optometrists, ophthamologists, physicians, cardiologists, neurologists, psychiatrists, psychologists, public safety officials, etc.

By full strength, it is assumed you mean 20/20 or better. (?) While that level of vision is nice, having less doesn't seem to create any significant safety risk - otherwise those thousands of professionals who set the standards would certainly set the restrictions differently. And these standards have been around for a long time, so they would have lots of data available if it were otherwise.

I don't want to hijack this thread, so I've started a new one.
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#6
Nancy Wrote:Daqwenia, with all due respect, I thought I was following the Bates method 10 years ago when I was reading all the books and wearing a reduced prescription, but it wasn't until I started really paying attention to how I was using my eyes all the time that I started to make significant improvement. I was straining a lot more than I realized. Yes, going without glasses will make you aware of this faster. You say your eyes are more relaxed without them -- that's a big clue to what you should be doing more of.
How would you propose I go about doing that?

Daniel Wrote:I really do believe that in general, people with more than mild nearsightedness are better off not seriously trying to improve their eyesight. You sound motivated, so perhaps you are an exception, but consider your circumstances. All the time you spend wearing glasses is working against improvement. Apparently a few people have at least partially overcome this obstacle, but they seem to have had the live personal help of teachers whose charges probably totaled hundreds or thousands of dollars. The other option is to severely cut down on your use of glasses and probably your computer use as well, if you can.
Are you suggesting that I abandon trying to improve my vision? I don't understand.


Thanks
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#7
Daqwenia Wrote:Are you suggesting that I abandon trying to improve my vision? I don't understand.
Only you can decide that. I simply pointed out things that you should consider.
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#8
Daqwenia, just notice when you're straining and see if you can strain less. Maybe when stopped at a traffic light take your glasses off and look around, see how different it feels. Then of course put them back on to drive, and see if you can keep that relaxed feeling with your glasses on. Rather than give you step by step instructions for every activity, I'll say focus on your awareness: what are your eyes and mind doing when at the computer? When eating? (when you may not need any correction at all, by the way) This is a lifestyle, not a set of exercises you do an hour a day then spend the rest of the day using your usual poor visual habits. Notice yourself and what you're doing with your eyes and attention, and nudge yourself in the direction of more clarity.
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#9
Ditto on what Nancy said. I wasted a LONG time thinking I was practicing the Bates method after reading Bates' book and doing all sorts of "practice." It wasn't until I started really paying attention to ways in which I was using effort that I started making real improvement. All the material that I and others have written before tell you exactly what you need to do to improve. If you're not making improvements, it's because you're subsconsciously doing something extra that involves effort, and because some element of your practice has become mechanical. Once you realize what that something is, you'll see rapid progress. Remember: the one and only purpose of "practicing" is to bring to unconscious effort to full consciousness. If your practice is the mechanical repetition of a particular sequence of movements, you're wasting your time.
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#10
Nancy Wrote:Daqwenia, just notice when you're straining and see if you can strain less. Maybe when stopped at a traffic light take your glasses off and look around, see how different it feels. Then of course put them back on to drive, and see if you can keep that relaxed feeling with your glasses on. Rather than give you step by step instructions for every activity, I'll say focus on your awareness: what are your eyes and mind doing when at the computer? When eating? (when you may not need any correction at all, by the way) This is a lifestyle, not a set of exercises you do an hour a day then spend the rest of the day using your usual poor visual habits. Notice yourself and what you're doing with your eyes and attention, and nudge yourself in the direction of more clarity.
I have been doing this for the past month or two, but I have noticed my eyes feeling a lot more strained when doing so, even when not wearing glasses. I get to the point where I have to palm for 5 to 10 minutes before they feel relaxed again, and it's frustrating. It's especially difficult when driving, because I can't palm for even one minute at a red light in case it turns green. It gives me headaches to be switching back and forth between glasses and no glasses...

Thanks for your help
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#11
I'm not sure what the "this" is in
Quote:I have noticed my eyes feeling a lot more strained when doing so.
If you're talking about focusing on how your eyes feel, and noticing increasing strain, this may not be making your eyes more strained, but instead be making you more aware of strain that has always been there. This is not fun to learn, but is nonetheless good information to have. If this is the case, and if it were me, I'd turn it around and ask, "OK, when do my eyes feel LESS strained?" (like after palming, you say) and see if I could do more of those behaviors and activities more often.
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#12
Nancy Wrote:I'm not sure what the "this" is in
Quote:I have noticed my eyes feeling a lot more strained when doing so.
If you're talking about focusing on how your eyes feel, and noticing increasing strain, this may not be making your eyes more strained, but instead be making you more aware of strain that has always been there. This is not fun to learn, but is nonetheless good information to have. If this is the case, and if it were me, I'd turn it around and ask, "OK, when do my eyes feel LESS strained?" (like after palming, you say) and see if I could do more of those behaviors and activities more often.
That seems to make a lot of sense, thanks a lot.

One other question: How do you deal with not being able to see very well when not wearing glasses? It's frustrating not being able to read something right in front of me, or people talking to me in a group setting and I don't even know they're talking directly to me because I can't see their face. Plus, having unsupportive family and friends who just tell me to put on some glasses is nerve racking.


Thanks a lot
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#13
Have you tried reading fine print? Bates teaches this and it really brings the close vision back to clear. It also helps distant vision. Shift on it, move the eyes visual attention along it even if its blurry. (No glasses) It causes the eyes to use perfect central-fixation and tiny shifting movements and improves the lens function, accommodaiton, convergence. The eyes see fine print clear when the mind, body, eyes are relaxed. Reading it helps activate relaxation.
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#14
Concerning
Quote:How do you deal with not being able to see very well when not wearing glasses?
Every situation is different, and it's always great practice at being present. The first thing I usually do is slow down because often I've been rushing and distracted, my focus scattered among several things at once. Sometimes, if I feel like the person telling me to put on glasses is receptive, I'll mention I'm practicing to improve my vision and occasionally I'll get a "teaching moment" out of this and be able to give them something useful for themselves. If they're actively trying to sabotage me (so they don't have to change their own glasses-wearing habits!) I'll sometimes use humor to deflect the comment, and still do what I want without arguing with them which is waste of time. My priority is to maintain and improve my vision, not to make others comfortable. If I slow down, breathe easily, and shift over the object I want to see, it usually clears up for me.
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#15
clarknight Wrote:Have you tried reading fine print? Bates teaches this and it really brings the close vision back to clear. It also helps distant vision. Shift on it, move the eyes visual attention along it even if its blurry. (No glasses) It causes the eyes to use perfect central-fixation and tiny shifting movements and improves the lens function, accommodaiton, convergence. The eyes see fine print clear when the mind, body, eyes are relaxed. Reading it helps activate relaxation.
Actually, my near sight is really good. I can read the smallest print that no one else I know can. People at work always ask me to read small things to them (I'm an Industrial Mechanic and often have to read tiny labels).

Nancy Wrote:Concerning
Quote:How do you deal with not being able to see very well when not wearing glasses?
Every situation is different, and it's always great practice at being present. The first thing I usually do is slow down because often I've been rushing and distracted, my focus scattered among several things at once. Sometimes, if I feel like the person telling me to put on glasses is receptive, I'll mention I'm practicing to improve my vision and occasionally I'll get a "teaching moment" out of this and be able to give them something useful for themselves. If they're actively trying to sabotage me (so they don't have to change their own glasses-wearing habits!) I'll sometimes use humor to deflect the comment, and still do what I want without arguing with them which is waste of time. My priority is to maintain and improve my vision, not to make others comfortable. If I slow down, breathe easily, and shift over the object I want to see, it usually clears up for me.
Thanks, that really helps. I'll try and focus on one thing at a time and brush aside unhelpful comments.
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