Thanks Dee and others for sharing your stories.
Eliminating my reading glasses and how it happened came as a complete surprise to me. I had recovered rapidly from pain in my back, neck, legs, knees, arms, hands, and total disability and had improved so much that I was taking karate classes when I went for an eye exam. Here's what I wrote in my log in Ch. 4 of
Rapid Recovery from Back and Neck Pain:
Friday, May 7
I was examined by an ophthalmologist for my first eye exam since I had moved. For fourteen years I had been diagnosed as slightly farsighted with astigmatism in the left eye and needing glasses for reading. Now the ophthalmologist diagnosed me as slightly nearsighted and not needing any glasses. Because I felt that he had hurried through the examination and because his diagnosis contradicted those of five other optometrists and an ophthalmologist, I called the clinic for another examination. This time another ophthalmologist examined me and gave the same diagnosis. “You are young and there is no reason why you should need glasses,” the doctor said. I was glad, but puzzled!
Could it be that at some point in my life, as a result of tension, my eyes had not been at their best on the day they were examined, so that the optometrist prescribed glasses for me, which I then became conditioned to require? I usually could read for a few minutes before my eyes felt strained, and once, when my glasses were lost for three weeks, I developed headaches and eyestrain when I had to read. But now, armed with my newly gained knowledge about tension's effects and assurances from two doctors, I began to read without glasses and experienced no problems. In fact, I have not needed eyeglasses since.
[72]
Later I remembered the circumstances under which I had to get my first glasses. When I finished my course in psychology, I had tried to resolve my parents' conflicts and bring some peace and harmony to our lives. However, my efforts were not appreciated and caused even more problems. During this very tense period I began to experience eyestrain and headaches while studying, which resulted in a visit to the optometrist and my reading glasses.
[72]Later I discovered Dr. William Bates's book
Better Eyesight Without Glasses (New York: Henry Holt, 1971), in which he explains the incorrect diagnosis and approach by the medical establishment to eye refractions. Using simultaneous retinoscopy, he was able to demonstrate in thousands of patients that tension can cause an error in refraction (e.g., nearsightedness). In fact, he points out that the lens has very little to do with the refraction error. It is the eye muscles that shorten or lengthen the eye for better vision. I found Dr. Bates’ arguments to be almost exactly the same as Dr. Sarno's, except that Dr. Bates' apply to the eye instead of the back. He says to ignore all the dos and don'ts, such as the advice not to read in dim light, and with a relaxed mind, an active imagination, and a number of eye exercises, one can get rid of the need for glasses. Of course, I would add that ordering one's mind to relax the eyes for better vision helps too. I highly recommend Dr. Bates’ book; I also recommend
The Art of Seeing by Aldous Huxley, a man who suffered from near-blindness and, using Dr. Bates' methods, recovered completely.
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More than 20 years has past. I am 54 now and still do not wear reading glasses or any kind of glasses. When I notice any blurriness in my vision I know that it is from tension and I apply some of my strategies to improve it. Will I need glasses at some point? I tend to focus on what is possible. So my focus is on never needing glasses. I have a friend who is 65 and still does not wear glasses. So it is possible.
If you have to wear something to see more clearly, try
pinhole glasses. They work by focusing rays of light on the retina and work for nearsightedness as well as farsightedness. They are very inexpensive and unlike lenses you do not have to keep changing to higher magnifications. DO NOT DRIVE with pinhole glasses. Hard to have full view of the road.
Join me next month to design your own Rapid Recovery plan and see how it can help you conquer TMS and its many manifestations.
