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A Modern Day Guidefor Improving
Eyesight
by
William Fuller and Richard MillerIllustrated by
Mayra Raygoza
Table of Contents Introduction.......................................................................................... 1Blink More............................................................................................ 2Move Your Eyes in a Full Range of Motion.......................................... 3Look Far................................................................................................ 4Enjoy Light and Dark Environments …................................................. 5Keep the Lens Flexible …..................................................................... 6Shift From Detail To Detail.................................................................... 7Tune Into the World Around You........................................................... 8Increase Blood Flow to the Eyes …............ ......................................... 9Rest Your Eyes …................................................................................ 10Use Both Eyes Equally ….................................................................... 11Caveman Dave Would Be Proud! ….................................................... 12Whats Next!? …................................................................................... 13
A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
IntroductionIn modern life our eyes have moved away from their natural way of seeing. Our eyes developed over time to suit the needs of hunter/gatherers making their living in the wild. A great example of this is Caveman Dave, who spent a vast majority of his time in the great outdoors scanning the horizon for prey and looking up into the treetops for ripe fruit or tasty nuts.
Compare this lifestyle to that of Modern Day Mike, who spends most of his waking hours indoors with artificial lighting staring at his computer screen, messaging on his smart phone and reading in his spare time. Mike has the same visual anatomy of Caveman Dave but is using his eyes very differently. Homo Sapiens have been around for about 200,000 years, while literacy became common only 150 years ago. Although it seems like reading has been with us for a long time, this is a very short space of time in comparison to the 200,000 years that our eyes were allowed to function naturally. When you add in the last 30 years of computer use, it’s easy to see why our eyes are becoming strained and why more and more people are looking for a solution to reduce eyestrain and stop the deterioration of their vision. As a solution maybe we can look back at how Caveman Dave lived his life to give us a clue on how to use our eyes differently. This does not mean we have to move back to the cave and give up our modern day lifestyles. It simply means we need to work with the anatomy of our eyes instead of against it. This book takes you on a guided tour of the anatomy of the eye from the very front (eyelid) to very back (optic nerve and brain). We are taking you on this tour as a way of showing you how your eyes were designed to work, how modern day lifestyle is inhibiting the function of your eyes and how you can use your eyes naturally and clearly while still living in a modern day world.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Blink MoreBlinking spreads a tear film across the cornea (the clear front surface of the eyeball) adding an important layer of protection from infection. The tear film lubricates the eyeball so it can move more easily. It also smooths out any imperfections in the surface of the cornea. This smoother surface sends a clearer image to the back of the eye (retina).
If a tiger approached Caveman Dave he would go into “fight or flight” mode, reducing his rate blinking down to a minimum. Once the tiger left, in a state of relaxation, Dave blinked 20 to 25 times a minute.
In his modern work setting Modern Day Mike is under the stress of his contemporary “tigers”: deadline pressure and unreasonable bosses. As a physiological response to this stress he blinks less. Caveman Dave got to relax once his tiger moved on, but in our world we can often be in fight or flight mode for hours if not days, creating a long term pattern of not blinking. Add to this the habit of blinking less while concentrating and you have created an unblinking fixed stare at your computer screen or desk. This leads to dry, strained eyes and blurred vision. Fortunately, you don’t need to return to the jungle or even slay your tiger in order to get back to the natural functioning of your eyes. You just need to make the effort to blink more and take breaks for your eyes. To get this positive visual habit going try the Blinking Eye Exercise.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Move Your Eyes in a Full Range of Motion There are six muscles attached to the external surface of the eyeball called “extraocular muscles” that control the movement of our eyes. These muscles allow us to quickly move our eyes in many different directions. It’s easy to see the importance of this ability in the wild as it allowed Caveman Dave to see prey or predators and make the quick decision to fight or flee. Today, in the age of computers and smart phones, Modern Day Mike spends most of his time looking centrally, staring at information and media. His eyes never get the chance to move through their full range of motion. This creates tension, weakness and unbalanced use of the extraocular muscles. It is easy to overcome this modern problem by performing simple Eye Rotations several times throughout the day. This will increase the range, strength and precise movements of these muscles increasing the overall health and function of the eyes.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Look FarAs a natural part of a child’s growth, the outer layer of the eye (the sclera) elongates from 17 mm at birth up to 24 mm at the age of 20. As it grows the eyeball keeps its spherical shape allowing a sharp image to focus on the fovea, the part of the eye responsible for seeing sharp detail at the back of the eye. Our eyes are designed to spend a majority of time looking out into the distance, at the weather, animals and plants. Caveman Dave and his children’s survival was based on looking at the sky and out into the plains. On the other hand, Modern Day Mike’s children spend a lot of their waking hours focusing on nearby things; for example, learning to read, watching TV and now using interactive games and tablets such as IPad. As a consequence the eyeball elongates past its natural spherical shape, preventing the image from focusing onto the fovea, making things seem blurry. This is called nearsightedness or “myopia.” Fortunately, we don’t have to stop our children from learning to prevent this from occurring. Instead, we can teach them positive visual habits such as looking into the distance as a short break from looking close. Adults who already have the elongated eyeball also need to adopt this positive visual habit, taking frequent breaks from near work and going to look out into the distance. Looking into the distance from time to time will also prevent a condition called “pseudo myopia,” a spasm of the muscles that focus the eye’s lens (the ciliary muscles). This cramping of the close focusing muscles of the eye recreates the effects of nearsightedness, preventing the individual from seeing clearly in the distance.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Enjoy Light and Dark Environments The iris; the circular, colored part of the eye with the pupil at its center; has two sets of muscles: one for constriction in bright light and one for dilation in dim light. We use these muscles to regulate the amount of light entering our eyes and, in the case of constriction, to sharpen our vision. During the day Caveman Dave needed to see sharp detailed images of ripening fruit, dangerous insects etc.. The muscles in the Dave’s iris would then naturally constrict, focusing the image sharply onto the fovea at the back of the eye, a caveman’s version of HD TV. The opposite could happen in the sunlight as well. When Caveman Dave was in danger, in a fight or flight moment, the iris would dilate to see more of his surroundings. Another benefit to the expanding pupils occurs in a dark environment. As light is reduced the constricted pupil begins to dilate allowing more and more light to reach the back of the eye, giving better night vision. This allowed Caveman Dave to make his way home through the jungle after sunset. Unfortunately Modern Day Mike has a contemporary fear of sunlight and avoidance of dark places. This lessens the pupil’s ability to fully constrict and to fully dilate. As a consequence we grab for our sunglasses when heading outside and are quick to use artificial lights in the dark. To avoid this we need to regain the strength and flexibility of the iris muscles by performing the “Sunning Eye Exercise” and by only wearing sunglasses in dangerous or extreme circumstances, such as driving directly into the sun or while skiing on a sunny day. We can also resist the reflex to turn on the lights when it gets dark or even go for a walk in a dark environment where it is safe.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Keep the Lens FlexibleThe eye’s flexible crystalline lens, composed of precisely aligned proteins, is made rounder by the contraction of a ring of muscles surrounding the lens called the “ciliary muscles”. The contraction of our ciliary muscles and the rounding of our lens allows the eyes to focus on closer objects, a part of a process called “accommodation.” On the other hand, when we look into the distance these ciliary muscles relax and our lens flattens, allowing us to see clearly far away. Back at the cave Dave’s ciliary muscles would naturally contract while performing close tasks such as eating, making tools and reading the facial expressions of his clan. When Dave looked up from his meal to check the clouds his ciliary muscles would then relax and he could clearly see whether a storm was coming. Its important to remember that Caveman Dave would have spent the majority of his time looking into the distance, hunting and watching out for danger. Modern Day Mike is almost always looking at close objects. This keeps his ciliary muscles contracted and his lens in a rounded shape. This leads to tense and weak ciliary muscles and a stiffened lens. Therefore, we need to relax and strengthen the ciliary muscles and return flexibility to the lens. We can do this by consciously trying to look into the distance whenever we feel ourselves looking close for any lengthy period of time. We can also perform the “Near and Far Eye Exercise” to prevent our ciliary muscles from becoming weak and our lens from stiffening.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Shift from Detail to Detail The macula is a small area near the center of the retina containing six million cones; red, green and blue sensitive neurons. These cones are designed to see color and fine detail. Caveman Dave used his cones to see the color and details on ripening fruit, to watch out for poisonous insects and to count the zebras in a herd. Modern Day Mike rarely looks at fine detail, most of the food in his nearby grocery store is picked for him and unless he is on a safari holiday he will not need to count zebra or look out for dangerous insects (unless you class the house spider as a dangerous!). As a consequence the macula becomes underused. Like any other part of the body: when we don’t use it, we lose it. A simple remedy for this is to start using our macula. It is not necessary to pick our own fruit or go camping in Africa; we can simply start looking at smaller and smaller details. For example. as you look at this e-book notice the detail in the words and letters, then notice the space between the letters. Another example of shifting would be moving from detail to detail on a person’s face. Whilst looking at them move from one point of detail on their face to another, from their mouth to their nose to their ears to their eyes. Instead of taking in one large image, create many smaller ones. You can also retrain the brain into seeing smaller details by performing the “Shifting Eye Exercise”.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Tune in to the World Around YouSurrounding the macula, in our peripheral vision, there are 120 million photoreceptive neurons called “rods.” Our rods which make up a very large part of our visual field are highly sensitive to movement and become more active in dim light. This was essential for our Caveman’s survival. It would not have taken long for a predator to move in from the side and attack Caveman Dave if he only used his central vision. Modern Day Mike’s world is filled with computers, smart phones, books, etc. In our modern world we are overusing our central vision and underusing our peripheral vision by staring straight ahead at written information instead of paying attention to the world around us. We also spend the majority of our time in artificial light, especially when it is dark outside. This prevents our rods from fully activating. Therefore, to counteract these modern tendencies we first need to pay more attention to our periphery. When sitting at the computer from time to time try tuning into your surroundings, noticing the people moving around you in your office. You can also do this whilst walking. Look ahead and use your peripheral vision to notice the ground in front of you and the world around you going by. You will also want to try and spend more time in dim light or in the dark by waiting as long as possible before turning on lights and by going for night walks where it is safe to do so. Another way is to perform the “Peripheral Vision Eye Exercise” which leads you through stimulating the periphery in both light and dark environments.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Increase Blood Flow to Your Eyes The carotid arteries on either side of the neck carry oxygenated blood to the brain and eyes. These vital arteries are covered over by the large sternocleidomastoid muscles that run diagonally down from behind the ears to the collarbones. Stiffness in these particular muscles and in the shoulders, neck and head in general restricts blood flow to the eyes. Blood flow brings nourishment to the eyes, drains away waste and keeps the fluid in the eye flowing freely. So you can see how restricting that flow of blood could easily lead to poor eye function. Caveman Dave life was very active since he spent most of his time out hunting and gathering. This way of living demanded that his head be turned in many different directions. His arms were also used in a very active way: throwing objects, climbing etc.. Dave’s lifestyle kept his shoulders, neck and head loose and kept the blood flowing freely to his eyes. Compare this to Modern Day Mike who spends a vast majority of his time sitting at a desk or computer, head facing forward for a large portion of the day. His arms are also generally moving in a single plane of motion, i.e. forwards and backwards. If you throw in the added bonus of stress and muscle tension, you can see the modern recipe for tight neck and shoulders. To overcome this you could either go on a survival holiday where you get dropped off in the middle of nowhere and have to make it home on your survival skills, or you could simply incorporate light exercise into your life. This does not have to be vigorous, just active, with plenty of movement. You can also perform simple head and shoulder rotations to mimic those that would have been performed naturally. To help relieve any built up muscle tension in the neck you can perform some simple Self -Massage Techniques on the Neck, Head and Face to get the blood flowing freely again.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Rest Your EyesThe optic nerve carries visual information from the retina at the back of our eyes to the visual centers of our brains. Out on the plains, Caveman Dave used his optic nerve to send images of antelope to his brain for identification and to coordinate his movements. He also used his other senses: feeling the wind to make sure he was downwind and listening for the hoof beats of the herd.
After a long day hunting, using his eyes and all of his senses in a natural, active way, Caveman Dave would return home to his cave, family and a fire. Once the fire was out he would rest his eyes and then sleep in complete darkness. His optic nerve could then get the rest it needed to be ready for another hard day’s work.
Unfortunately, Modern Day Mike has become heavily dependent on his eyes’ ability to deliver information (both written and visual media) to his brain. Under increasing pressure to perform and produce good work, Mike has pushed his eyes to the point of irritation. As a way of concentrating, Mike has also shut off his other senses, ignoring the pain in his back so he can finish one more job. When he gets home, as a way to relax, he spends even more time on the computer, watching television, reading books etc. With this lifestyle Modern Day Mike is overwhelming his visual system and not giving it enough time to fully rest. You don’t need to build a campfire in your living room and wait for it to go out before your eyes can rest. Performing the Palming Eye Exercise (ideally in a darkened room) any time of day gives your eyes and your optic nerve the time it needs to rest. Palming in darkness totally relaxes the optic nerve and the whole visual system, relieving the strain of our busy modern lives. As an added bonus, since eyestrain leads to overall fatigue, you will also feel less tired and be more productive.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Use Both Eyes EquallyHaving two eyes allows us to see our world in three dimensions and gives us a clearer image than we would have with only one eye. Our brain fuses the slightly different perspectives of our two eyes into a single image with a sense of depth. The two overlapping images also give us sharper detail. Caveman Dave probably wouldn’t have survived without using both of his eyes. Dave used both of his eyes to create a sharp fused image so that he could clearly see that fat fish at the bottom of the stream. With both eyes functioning he knew exactly where and how far to throw his spear. However, for Modern Day Mike (even on a fishing holiday) it is quite common that he overuses one of his eyes and suppresses the other. Under stress his visual system tends to get unbalanced. Reacting to an overwhelming visual load, his brain begins to depend more and more on his stronger eye, using his weaker eye less and less. This unbalanced use of the eyes gets even worse if there is some sort of defect in the weaker eye. To make matters worse, unbalanced use often leads to eyestrain in the stronger or dominant eye. Practicing equal use of our eyes and performing eye exercises such as the Eye Obstruction Exercise, alleviates the strain in the dominant eye and strengthens the weaker eye. Along with relieving the strain in the dominant eye, balanced use of our eyes brings back clearer vision and a greater feeling of depth.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Caveman Dave Would Be Proud!!It would be easy for Modern Day Mike to simply blame his eyestrain and poor eyesight on his busy, modern day lifestyle and do nothing about it. However, through our own self-healing experience and from working with our clients, we feel it is essential to find ways to allow both good eye health and modern day life to co-exist. Yes, people could simply spend less time on the computer, watching TV and reading. However, we cannot foresee any future generations spending less time with technology for the sake of their eyesight. Instead, the answer lies with educating ourselves and others on creating better visual habits in order to maintain and improve our eyesight. We hope that after reading “A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight” and going through the structures of the eye you now understand a bit better how your eyes were designed to function. We also hope that Caveman Dave has motivated you to incorporate a little bit of the jungle into your modern day life.
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A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight
Whats Next!?Choose one structure of the eye and focus on it for either a day or a week. Remember how Caveman Dave used his eyes in his lifestyle and explore how you can mimic that in yours. We gave suggestions on how to work this into your lifestyle, but only you can figure out exactly how to do this. The trick is to gradually integrate these positive visual habits into your lifestyle. It will not take long before you notice new visual habits emerging, eyestrain reducing and your eyesight improving. The second thing we hope you take from this book is the suggested eye exercises. By performing the eye exercises mentioned here you are helping to further cement positive visual habits into your daily life. Those of you wanting to improve your eyesight will find this process accelerated as you work through the exercises. Following “A Modern Day Guide for Improving Eyesight” provides you with the fundamentals for good eyesight and good eye health. In addition, we have created self-healing, eye exercise programs for those of you with specific eye conditions such as Macular Degeneration or Glaucoma. You can find these programs at our Envision Self-Healing website or you can click on one of the following eye conditions below. AmblyopiaAstigmatism CataractsDouble Vision and StrabismusFarsightedness GlaucomaMacular Degeneration Nearsightedness Presbyopia Retinitis Pigmentosa If you do not see your condition here, feel free to contact us at: [email protected] Good luck with your eye exercises! We wish you all the best success!! Richard and Will www.envisionselfhealing.comwww.facebook.com/envisionselfhealing [email protected]
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