I have been experimenting on central fixation of the mind for around three weeks now and been getting really good results,
it is precisely how David said in his example (of the traffic lights) (and Jimboaxeman's journal) I never understood how fixation of the mind properly was before. And this can easily be demonstrated, for example the other day I was playing a game on my tablet pc and purposely thought of something else while playing and the tension for me became clearly apparent, for me I feel a knot behind each eyebrow tighten when I do something wrong. And when I forgot everything and put my whole attention on the game the tension here loosened. It is very similar to imagination but instead of pictures using thoughts or even sounds or anything as long as your whole attention is completely and fully there.
And as holding onto a thought is easier for me than holding onto clarity in the world, the clear vision becomes easier
to hold on to. Another thing I noticed is whenever doing any action I have two choices one to enjoy and engage in it
fully while forgetting about absolutely everything like a normal person does and the attention is now focused and I can see clearer. Or to do the action while analysing the use of the eyes or eyesight being constantly in the back of your mind or how to correctly use the actual eyes, the attention is now split in two and then tension happens for me.
when attention is fully there the eyes automatically shift and correct saccadic movement can be seen when looking
in a mirror closely. So long as the attention is focused, alive and activated, so are the eyes.
I have been also looking into negative thoughts or stressed situations and there effect on vision,
as this is a problem for me at the moment.
I have found when thinking a good thought my mind likes it and therefore easily puts its attention there. but when a negative thought comes it tries to push it away and the mind races through thoughts in attempt to reject the thought. Similar to the behaviour of the eyes when seeing something that is greatly disliked it darts away and attempts to remove what he saw from his mind without actually doing so, I think this must be improved by paring the process of each situation together as one. By completely allowing the attention to focus on that negative thought for a moment fully and accept it, and make it natural. be it positive or negative. like normal people do. Some only have brief moments of 20/25 even in their negative moments of thoughts. this is what I want to be like.
Excellent vision is followed by tension for a while (for me at least anyway) and I found at these times I was subconsciously or even consciously at times analysing what is going on in my head for the blur to come, even when trying my best not to do so, and slowly becoming more and more tense, lately these strains have been reducing somewhat by putting more of my attention into what is going on around me basically outside of me instead of building up something inside of me, or on what I am doing at the time.
Just a few of my thoughts and experiences on the topic of central fixation of the mind.
I am only focusing on being mentally focused (lol that sounded silly) as this is what brings the most powerful relaxation for me at the moment.
I will keep adding my thoughts to this post in the future if I have any, if anyone has got anything on this topic to add or to bring about this focused state please do.
Well said. Engaging in life is what it is all about. It is so easy to get bogged down with being obsessed with how we are seeing we actually miss what we are seeing, feeling, perceiving, and what we are supposed to be experiencing. People with normal vision only experience what is perceived. They do not have a thought for how it is perceived. I think that the fixation with the condition of our eyesight (rather than accepting it and moving on) is a trap many followers of the Bates Method fall into and we can end up going around in the same circles for literally years (like me) because we misunderstand the Bates Method.
It is good that central fixation of the mind as you are practising it is working for you. If at any point it seems to stop working this way, don't get discouraged. You may find that if the exercise of the mind in this way becomes a strain, you may actually find it easier to change your angle of central fixation by practising it visually. This has been my experience and it could be that we need to grasp central fixation of the mind before we can make progress with central fixation of vision. Both practices are really the same thing, I believe, but just perceived from different angles. A cube is a three dimensional object which is just a square when seen face on, but is understood better when the angle of view is changed. Central fixation is like this and it links the eyes and the mind....and maybe everything else in the universe!
I have found that there are times when practising one form of central fixation (of the mind, for example) is easy and the other (vision) extremely difficult, and vice versa. Quite often when my mind isn't particularly engaged with anything it is a good time to use the vision to achieve central fixation. The mind feels rested but is attentive to what is seen, so central fixation of the mind is also achieved (like I said, central fixation of the mind and vision are the same thing). There are other times when I am in a situation which requires attention to the whole. For example I may be at work and I need to think about what I am doing and communicate with people and utilise all my senses....basically a lot of shifting of attention from one perception or action to another. Of course I am only doing one thing best at a time (if I am functioning optimally with central fixation) but this shifting of attention is happening extremely rapidly. This is not the time to solely practise central fixation of the vision as this will lead to strain. This is where central fixation of the whole being is being operated as the demands of the situation are made on all of my resources and senses.
It is all about attention. Where do you want to direct your attention at this point in time? What is demanding your attention? When we allow our attention to go there we achieve a level of central fixation. As we do not have an issue (or at least we are not acutely aware of any issues) with how we think, or smell, or hear, or taste, feel, function in certain ways, then central fixation in these areas is easy and natural. That is why, perhaps, central fixation of the mind (for example) works and can translate over to vision. When we try to practise central fixation of the vision it is more challenging because our vision is working much further below it's optimum than our other functions. That maybe why distracting ourselves from our vision stimulates central fixation in other areas which then translates back to our vision. Then you get the clear flash.
Thanks Jimboaxeman for your input, very perfectly put together an stated. I also noticed that fixation through sounds, thoughts and feelings is far easier than fixation visually, as this brings our attention to our eyes, And I found when having longer periods of excellent vision it was due to me forgetting completely about the eyes, and avoiding testing or challenging the eyes on a eye chart too much or anything challenging for my eyes etc.. I can currently though only do fixation visually in the early morning when my mind is fresh, clear and focused, I then use other methods of fixation during the rest of the day like you mentioned. But it should get better hopefully with time. I have had a really good 2-3 weeks doing this and have found these are the most natural and lasting of flashes. It seems though as with most things there is a fine line between using the attention and trying to use the attention. Desire itself for better eyesight leads to strain for me. As desiring something that I don't have is never going to lead anywhere. So once cleared of this. Using the attention now is genuine and more closer to that of a normal person.
eaglevision Wrote:Thanks Jimboaxeman for your input, very perfectly put together an stated. I also noticed that fixation through sounds, thoughts and feelings is far easier than fixation visually, as this brings our attention to our eyes, And I found when having longer periods of excellent vision it was due to me forgetting completely about the eyes, and avoiding testing or challenging the eyes on a eye chart too much or anything challenging for my eyes etc.. I can currently though only do fixation visually in the early morning when my mind is fresh, clear and focused, I then use other methods of fixation during the rest of the day like you mentioned. But it should get better hopefully with time. I have had a really good 2-3 weeks doing this and have found these are the most natural and lasting of flashes. It seems though as with most things there is a fine line between using the attention and trying to use the attention. Desire itself for better eyesight leads to strain for me. As desiring something that I don't have is never going to lead anywhere. So once cleared of this. Using the attention now is genuine and more closer to that of a normal person.
Yes, this is right on target. The first time I got a true clear flash was when daydreaming about something. I find that central fixation combined with conscious lessening of effort to see (doing this by paying direct attention to the feedback your body gives you) is the pattern that gives me better vision for longer periods of time with less strain involved. In fact, for the first time I had 2 different over 1 hour periods of 20/25 or better vision (couldn't measure it outside, but I was able to see stop signs much further away than usual and there wasn't any blur for quite a large distance). I think it may be possible to use imagination as a way of simulation of sorts for vision practice, that's why I think it is so effective "distracting" you from whatever you are doing to "strain" or whatever effort to see you exhibit unconsciously.
@Tsukiomi, I agree completely imagination is probably one of the easiest forms of doing one thing best, And with
imagination much can be learnt of the attention and how to correctly use it.
current vision update,
After having used the attention for around three weeks with many natural strong flashes I had two days of strain which is no big deal, after this I entered into that calm focused long flash state again (20/40ish) which I never experienced for around two months, it stayed for 4 days throughout, the next two days where strain in the morning but excellent for the rest of the day.
One thing I found which is worthy of mentioning, and I feel helped most, for at least this time anyway, was that the only thing that I was aware that I consciously did was carry around with me the belief and knowledge that I had my eyesight and that I KNEW I had it, but with complete solid concrete belief, similar to knowing your own name. Because when I knew with certainty that I had my vision I was far from being overwhelmed with clearer vision, and so when I was looking around it was somehow different, the stronger the belief the more better the vision and the more I could handle the improved vision and keep it. Even when having a shower and water was getting into my eyes and so I was rubbing them, because my belief was firm and my state of mind was unchanged it stayed after me rubbing and washing them.
Whenever my belief in my eyesight weakened I found myself looking at stuff to see how well I could see them (making the image my final goal) which is for me doubt for my ability to see them. This usually follows by heavier blinks for me, so before I got to this state, I consciously avoided testing my eyes on stuff until my belief became stronger and then with this strong belief now I can look confidently with very clear vision and it stays because I KNEW it would.
Firm belief in ones eyesight I believe causes the brain to finally stop seeking the image and making that the end.
And on the two days when it started bad but then went better for the rest of the day, I consciously stayed within myself
and pretended that I had my vision and that everything was ok, this followed by me getting the vision back and keeping it
for the rest of the day.
One fun way to tell if you are central fixating with the mind is by closing the eyes and fixating on sounds or whatever etc.. the eyelids should become still and calm but when not fixating or a sign of diffusion is that the eyelids start to twitch or flicker.
I have been attempting to get it back today but with no luck, but one good thing is, I am not as stressed or upset for not getting it back than I previously used to be.
Hi Eaglevision
That's really great.
I think you are just discovering the way to see without strain, and you are right, imagination has a very important part in it and also your firm belief, your conviction, that you already have everything which is necessary for clear vision. You don't have to acquire it or 'transform' or 'improve' it - you just have to use it confidently.
I think, the main source of strain which increases the errors of refraction is the wrong belief, that we somehow have to "deal with" the blur, to somehow get clear vision out out of it, transform somehow the 'imperfect' into 'perfect'. By focusing our attention on the "problem" (= blur), we get more and more focused on what we want to get rid of.
As David wrote ( <!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="http://www.iblindness.org/community/viewtopic.php?p=18209#p18209">viewtopic.php?p=18209#p18209</a><!-- l --> ):
Quote:When you get stuck in negative thinking, you're actually reinforcing the very thing that you think you're rejecting.
For example, when you tell yourself, "I want to stop doing whatever I'm doing to make my eyes uncomfortable at the computer," what your mind hears is "I want my eyes uncomfortable at the computer."
When you tell yourself, "I want to get rid of this blurry vision," your mind hears, "I want blurry vision."
The part of your mind that drives towards goals is very simple. It takes what you impress upon it, and your actions thereafter will be influenced with that thought or goal in mind. Your goal will remain in the back of your mind and you'll find opportunities to take advantage of situations to make steps in the right direction. But if it's a negative thought that you really don't want, you'll just keep seeing confirmation of that thought everywhere. It's just your limited perception, what you happen to notice.
It can work only the other way round:
Quote:So you have to refocus your mind on what you want instead of what you want to get away from.
And that's where imagination and memory come into play, that is your already acquired knowledge of how the object you look at should appear, if it is seen perfectly. When you have enough self-confidence and belief, you can concentrate the focus of your attention on the perfect image in your mind and from there find the corresponding elements in the blur you actually see. And the more corresponding elements you discover, the clearer the image you actually see, as the eyes follow the mind naturally and correct their error of refraction by simply adjusting themselves according to the feedback (which is their natural function).
That's the way, in which my favorite 'healing story' in Bates' book happened:
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The patient was so convinced of how the correct image of the letter was and had enough self-confidence to believe more in this firm knowledge than in the actual blurry impression he got from his eyes; so his eye could follow the 'instructions' coming from pattern in his mind and adjust their 'setting' accordingly.
