How to Prevent Astigmatism and Tunnel Vision by Looking From Object to Object with Ease
by Irena Castle
THE NEED FOR SPEED
In today's society, efficiency and speed are everything. We put a destination in our GPS and we want to reach it as quickly as humanly (or inhumanly) possible. We no longer take the scenic routes, we take the freeways, the express ways, or close ourselves in planes and miss everything between where we started and where we are going. We look for the shortcuts, not the D-tours. We commit to the end result, not to the journey. Yet, it is often the journey that matters the most, for it provides the experience that brings richness to our lives, the people we encounter along the way, and new roads to uncover.
The need for speed has penetrated everything from travel to the way we shop (no more window shopping), and for many people it has also influenced the way they look and use their eyes. Take for example a student taking notes in their class, quickly looking from their notebook to their whiteboard and back. Near, far, near, far, quickly, often moving their eyes without even moving their head, making sure all has been copied and recorded before the teacher wipes the board clean and starts over. Or take a driver looking fast from the dashboard to the car in front of them. Near, far, near, far.
Astigmatism appears, tunnel vision knocks on your door, and your world starts to shrink.
So how should you look from object to object to reverse the course?
SWING IT
Find a safe place, a room in your home, or a back yard you love.
Choose an object at a distance. If you have difficulty seeing the distant object clearly, get up, go look at it from closer in, touch the object and remember what it looks like. Then come back, and sit or stand holding a pen at your eye level. Close your eyes.
With your eyes closed, imagine a swing moving between the object in your hand to the object far away. Instead of jumping from one to the other, imagine your eyes and head following that imaginary swing throughout its trajectory. Imagine noticing the space around the trajectory, the space between the two objects. Imagine looking, not trying to see. Then exhale, open your eyes, and let your eyes float from the object in your hand to the far object and back. Move your eyes and your head in that same swinging (not linear) motion. Engage your peripheral vision, and notice every bit of the space in between your two objects. Suddenly your eyes will not jump. They will move from space to space, tracking and repeatedly adjusting focus to the various distances.
ONE BY ONE
To make it easier, less overwhelming at first, let each eye practice this technique on its own. Use mono lenses R or L of the Overbound Clarity Eyesight Trainer, or an occlusion of your own. Ensure your peripheral vision is fully open and unobstructed, so that your balance and spatial awareness remains intact.
MAKE IT A HABIT
Once you have practiced enough in your safe space, take the practice outside. Start implementing this way of looking into your day, no matter where you are. You will notice that you see more of your world, you will feel like you have opened your eyes.
Eyesight has no boundaries. Learn to use it fully and freely and it will reward you with a brand new look of the world.
Wishing you to see well and to feel victorious!
IC
About the author:
Irena Castle is a vision coach and innovator in the field of eyesight development, and the founder of Overbound.
She specializes in delivering better eyesight to athletes and individuals who express a burning desire to overcome boundaries of their visual limitations, and to maximize their potential in sports, career or life. In her practice Irena combines vision teachings of Bates with principles of neuro-psychology, and with specialized sports vision techniques.
In addition to her positive impact on her clients' vision improvement journey, Irena's most valuable contribution to the world of natural vision improvement is the invention and introduction of the Overbound Clarity Eyesight Trainer, a vision obstruction system that helps and simplifies the practice of many natural vision improvement techniques. The device is currently being used by vision students in nearly 30 countries around the world.
Irena can be contacted via overboundeyesight.com (for natural vision improvement), overboundathletics.com (for sports vision development).
