Changing Your Emotions

 Help your marriage by changing your emotions and feelings as well as those of your marriage partner.

Emotions and feelings are two sides of the same coin. They’re closely related to each other, but they’re different in that emotions create biochemical reactions in the body, affecting the physical state, while feelings are more mental associations and reactions to emotions.

Harmony and Disharmony

According to the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), we all have qi (氣), which is the internal life-giving energy circulating within each of us, giving us internal balance and harmony. Emotions are energy states, which may either contribute to or deplete our own internal life-giving energy, causing harmony or disharmony, and thus leading to positive or negative emotions and feelings.

Diseases and disorders

The truth of the matter is that any “excessive” emotion or feeling may become the underlying cause of many health issues.

Dr. Caroline B. Thomas, M.D., of John Hopkins School of Medicine, discovered that cancer patients often had a prior poor relationship with their parents, attesting to the pivotal role of emotions in the development of cancer.

In another study by Dr. Richard B. Shekelle of the University of Texas School of Medicine, it was found that depression patients were not only more cancer prone but also more likely to die of cancer than the other patients. If emotions play a pivotal role in cancer, by the same token, negative feelings may also adversely affect the symptoms or the prognosis of any human disease. Thoughts and feelings of anger, despair, discontent, frustration, guilt, or resentment are instrumental in depressing the physiological processes, including the human body’s immune response—a formula for promoting the development of an autoimmune disease.

So, an unhappy marriage may negatively affect your mental and physical health.

The seven emotions

According to the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), there’re seven emotions which are the underlying causes of many internal diseases, and these emotions are: anger, anxiety, fear, fright, joy, sadness, and worry. Because Chinese medicine is all about internal balance and harmony, these seven emotions may even affect different human body organs. For example, excessive anger impairs the liver, causing headaches, while even excessive joy dysfunctions the heart, leading to mania and mental disorders.

Anger

Anger or rage is an ineffective and inefficient way to resolve any issue or to make any problem go away. Anger is a disruptive emotion that may often lead to depression, and worse, the breakup of a marriage or a love relationship, especially if the anger isn’t properly addressed and controlled.

So, how to change your disruptive emotion of anger or rage?

Take a deep diaphragm breath, and just feel your anger as you breathe in.

Look at your anger in your mind. Then review the situation, and ask yourself one simple question: Can your anger change the situation or anything?

Accept that you’re now angry, and then breathe it out. If necessary, use your arm like a sword cutting through your feelings of rage, while saying: “I can see my anger: it is as it was!”

Don’t hold your anger in; instead, let it go, by breathing it out. Don’t let it go as pain; instead, let it go as your acceptance. But your acceptance should be viewed not as a sign of your own weakness but as a statement of your own communication to yourself that getting angry will never solve the problem anyway or right away.

Then, remind yourself that anger is always present to serve a purpose to release some deeper issues, problems, and internal conflicts that you may be carrying in your own bag and baggage all these years. It’s always better to release anger than to turn it around to destroy yourself.

But suppressing your anger is also self-destructive, as the negative energy redirects itself back into your own body. Anger is always a path of destruction. Resolve anger by developing habits that may release internal conflicts in a constructive manner before it can be released as rage.

An illustration

Donna Alexander, the creator of the “Anger Room” in Chicago, first thought of the idea as a teenager living in Chicago. Having witnessed much domestic violence and many conflicts at school as a teenager, Donna Alexander finally decided to create a space where anyone can lash out without serious consequences. While at the “Anger Room,” the guests, after paying a fee, are given a safe space to unleash their anger and rage by smashing and destroying objects, such as glasses or even a TV. In addition, the room can also be set up to look like an office or a kitchen, where anger often becomes totally uncontrollable.

Angry No More: A new book on how to control and eradicate your anger.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Death and Emptiness

 

Death and Emptiness

Death empties anything and everything—that is, the ego and all its attachments to the material world. Emptiness is nothingness in which everything becomes nothing.

For all human efforts, death will come in the end, and this is the way of all flesh.

An illustration

Ernest Hemingway’s famous novel A Farewell to Arms may show you one perspective of death and emptiness:

“Once in camp I put a log on top of the fire and it was full of ants. As it commenced to burn, the ants swarmed out and went first toward the center where the fire was; then turned back and ran toward the end. When there were enough on the end they fell off into the fire. Some got out, their bodies burnt and flattened, and went off not knowing where they were going. But most of them went toward the fire and then back toward the end and swarmed on the cool end and finally fell off into the fire. I remember thinking at the time that it was the end of the world and a splendid chance to be a messiah and lift the log off the fire and throw it out where the ants could get off onto the ground. But I did not do anything but threw a tin cup of water on the log, so that I would have the cup empty to put whiskey in before I added water to it. I think the cup of water on the burning log only steamed the ants.”

The hero in the story was observing how the ants were swarming back and forth on a log on top of a fire in a futile attempt at survival—just like God watching over mankind’s stubborn struggle to refuse letting go of the impermanent in the material world. Instead of acting as a messiah to help the ants, the hero simply emptied a tin cup of water so that he could have his own whiskey.

The hero’s attitude to death is also a reflection of the author’s own perspective of man’s ultimate fate: death happens no matter how hard one strives to avoid it, and anything and everything then simply become nothing.

Sadly and tragically, author Ernest Hemingway—essentially an atheist, although initially a Catholic—shot himself with a gun when he realized that anything and everything in his life were really nothing after all in spite of all his accomplishments. With his perspective of nothingness, he had lost hope of human existence, including his own. 

Another illustration

Francis of Assisi, the Italian Saint who chose a life of poverty in spite of his family’s wealth, said on his deathbed: “Death will open the door of life.”  He died gracefully, while singing.

To Francis, death or emptiness is everything. Maybe for a believer, death is, indeed, a triumph, a meaningful exodus from this mundane world to the eternal world beyond. The emptiness is just a rite of passage to everything.

Revelation

For a non-believer, life may have little meaning at all, when the end is near, because everything will become nothingness when death strikes in the end. Without God, Hemmingway viewed life as everything is nothing, despite all his fame and accomplishments, and he thus killed himself.

For a believer, the nothingness brought by death may then become everything in the life to come, and that explains why Francis of Assisi was singing on his deathbed.

So, there're only two options. If you're a believer, you could sing with joy while lying on your deathbed, just like St. Francis of Assisi. If you are an unbeliever, you would just pass away and become nothingness, just like Ernest Hemingway.

So, now that the end is near it may also be the right time to be spiritual, and to become a true believer. But how to become a believer?

Angry No More: A new book on how to control and eradicate your anger.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

 

The TAO in Everything

 

The TAO is the profound wisdom of Lao Tzu, the ancient sage from China more than 2,600 years ago. as 

The TAO has thrived and survived thousands of years for a good reason: what was applicable in the past is still applicable in the present; what was true in the past is still true today. Another testament to this universal truth is that "Tao Te Ching"-- the only book written by Lao Tzu -- is one of the most translated books in world literature -- probably only after the Bible.

The TAO is easy to understand but most controversial. The explanation is that there is no absolute truth about human wisdom, which is all about self-intuition and self-enlightenment. That is to say, your mind is uniquely yours, and your thinking is your own thinking.

The TAO plays a pivotal role in every aspect of your life. With wisdom, you will see the TAO in everything, including the following:

Don't Die     Letting Go    Immune System    Golden Years    Cancer Cure   Yin Yang

No Depression   Healthier Younger   Miracle Living   Money Wisdom    Living Life

Prayers Unanswered   Happiness Wisdom  Nothing Everything   Healthy Pregnancy

Aging Revelation   Marriage Divorce   Deadly Sins   See Better  Biblical Wisdom

No Ego

Go to: TAO in Everyday Life.

Thyroid and Vision Health

Eye diseases are not the only conditions that can have a negative effect on our eyes. Sometimes other diseases and disorders in the body can cause problems for our vision.

A thyroid problem may cause involuntary weight fluctuation as well as vision problems.

The thyroid uses iodine that has been consumed by you to store hormones, which are then released into the bloodstream as necessary to various parts and cells in the body.

The thyroid releases two types of hormones (T3 and T4). When the body is in need of more or less of these two hormones, the brain will send out another hormone to alert the thyroid that there is an imbalance in the T3 and T4 hormones.

When the two thyroid hormones are not balanced, they can cause lots of trouble for your body.

Often these imbalances stem from poor communication between the brain and the thyroid. This is when weight gain begins. Thyroid problems are often associated with weight gain, but can be linked to numerous other hormone related issues.

When the eye muscles are attacked, it causes the tissue around the eyes to swell and become inflamed. This can lead to several other symptoms: redness; eye and eyelid pain; puffiness around the eyes; extreme dry eye; bulging eyes.

At least 30 million Americans have a thyroid disorder and half—15 million—are silent sufferers who are undiagnosed, according to The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists. Are you one of those?

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Healthy Pregnancy

 

All About . . . .

Pregnancy is a nine-month period during which a baby develops and becomes a human being. The mother-to-be and the father-to-be have many dos and don'ts in order to ensure a safe and healthy pregnancy. This book provides not only a list of all the dos and don'ts, but also all the whys and why nots because as a mother you would like to know why there are certain things you should do and why there are things you should not do to guarantee a safe and healthy pregnancy.

This book is concise with a holistic approach to a safe and healthy pregnancy through the mind, the body, and the spirit.

Click here to get your copy.

An Excerpt from the Book . . . .

THE PRE-PREGNANCY

Pregnancy is more than just nine months; it is a lifelong project that requires adequate preparation to ensure better results.
   
The Dos

Do physical checkup first for both you and your partner. (why: to resolve all health issues and problems, e.g. chronic diseases, such as asthma, diabetes, epilepsy, etc.).

Do blood tests to check your immunity to German measles (why: it can cause malformations in the baby) and chicken pox (why: immunization before conception if you have not had it before); to check your antibodies from toxoplasmosis (why: an infection that may affect conception and pregnancy).

Do discuss medical conditions with your doctor: previous pregnancy problems, such as miscarriage, stillbirth, premature baby; genetic disorders in family; current prescribed medications.

Do dental checkup (why: gum diseases may lead to premature birth), and dental work (why: avoiding filling or extraction during pregnancy).

Do weight management (why: overweight may lead to diabetes and high blood pressure during pregnancy; underweight may result in a small baby, problems during labor, and after birth).

Do find out your ideal weight: to determine that, you need to know your height, and weight, as well as your waist size (i.e. your waist circumference between your rib cage and above your belly button). A waistline of 35 inches or more for most women may indicate overweight.

Do find out your Body Mass Index (BMI), which is a measure of your body fat based on your weight and height. Your BMI is determined by this formula: BMI = (body weight in pounds) divided by (body height in inches x body height in inches) multiplied by (703). To illustrate, if you are 5’11” tall and you weigh 165 pounds, your BMI will be: (165/71x71) x 703 = 23   The BMI numbers have the following implications:

Any BMI that falls between 19 and 24.9 is considered ideal and healthy.

Any BMI that is below 18.5 is considered underweight.

Any BMI that ranges from 25 to 29.9 is considered overweight; any BMI that is above 30 is considered obese.

You should be within 15 pounds of your ideal weight before pregnancy, and that also applies to your partner (why: an overweight partner may have decreased testosterone leading to depressed libido).

Do birth control until you are ready for pregnancy. Hormonal contraception may take months for fertility to return to normal. Natural family planning is the way to go.

Do boost nutrients for a healthy pregnancy. Important nutrients include the following:

Calcium (why: avoiding back and leg pain, insomnia, and irritability)-eat figs and raw leeks.

Folic acid (why: avoiding structural defects) -- eat chives. Chives are a nutrient-dense food low in calories but high in nutrients. Always use a sharp knife to cut chives (why: avoid bruising the herb), and add chives to any dish near the end of cooking (why: avoid losing its flavor).

Iron (why: healthy growth of baby) -- eat chives.

Magnesium (why: cellular development; over-coming early pregnancy discomfort, such as constipation) -- eat chives.

Manganese (why: baby’s normal skeletal development) -- eat raw leeks.

Vitamin B6 (why: avoiding nausea and morning sickness; metabolizing proteins, carbohydrates, and fats) -- eat raw leeks.

Vitamin C (why: proper absorption of iron) -- eat fresh fruits and vegetables.

Vitamin K (why: healthy bone growth and proper blood-clot formation) -- eat raw leeks.

All the above nutrients and vitamins are especially important not only for pre-pregnancy but also for the first trimester of pregnancy.

Do get sufficient sleep (why: research has shown that the more sleep you get,  the less time of labor may ensue; getting less than 5 hours of sleep may even increase the chance of having a C-section for delivery. Do set a schedule for your sleeping hours to help your body get on a set schedule of sleep. Do go to bed earlier.

Do take herbs to increase fertility (why: drink clover flower tea and nettle tea to increase female fertility).

Do avoid unpasteurized milk and blue-veined cheeses.

Do cook all your food thoroughly.

Do help your partner to enhance his fertility. According to a Danish study, overweight men have fewer sperms. According to State University of New York, placing laptop computers on laps may decrease sperms (why: due to accumulation of heat). Certain drugs on men’s hair loss, high blood pressure, and ulcers may also affect the quality of sperms. Do increase his intake of folic acid, vitamin C, and zinc to enhance the quality of sperms.
   
The Don’ts

Don’t start a teenage pregnancy (why not: pregnancy between age 15 and 19 may result in many emotional traumas, such as difficulty in keeping up with peers, financial problems, and health and life challenges).

Don’t contact mold (why not: harmful to fetus, leading to birth defects, such as paralysis, developmental problems, and even miscarriage).

Don’t eat bacteria-harboring foods (why not: increasing the chance of developing food-borne infections during preconception stage and in a developing embryo).

Don’t stress out, develop anxiety or depression in pre-pregnancy stage.

Don’t eat raw, such as sushi, raw clams, and oysters.

Don’t eat undercooked meat and eggs (why not: avoiding bacteria growth; do refrigerate food below 40°F/4°C).

Don’t take certain herbs (why not: some herbs, such as echinacea, ginkgo biloba, and Saint-John’s wort may prevent conception).


THE DOS AND DON'TS DURING PREGNANCY

Overcome the Computer Stress

Using computers is a way of life, and only few of us can do without a computer in our daily lives.

Using video display terminals (VDTs) on a regular basis will inevitably lead to computer visual stress. Prolonged VDT use causes two common eye problems: focusing and eye coordination. Other side effects may include: headaches, blurring of images, and eyestrain.

Computer visual stress takes a great toll on the eye with respect to the following:

·       Binocularity (using both eyes together)

·       Convergence (bringing the eyes together at close range)

·       Eye accommodation (focusing)

·       Shifting (eye movement skill)

Computer-induced visual stress is a common workplace problem, which is manifested in nearsightedness, eyestrain, eye focusing difficulties, changes in color perception, double vision, and general stress.

Optimizing the Computer System

Be aware of how information appears on your computer screen, and adjust your tracking and scanning visual skills accordingly.

The characters on your computer screen should be 10 times brighter than the screen background.

The lighting of the room should be three times brighter than the computer screen background.

The character size should be appropriate: approximately 80 characters per line with 25 lines per screen.

The VDT viewing distance (18 – 25 inches) should be greater than the normal reading distance (12 – 16 inches). The recommended viewing distance is 20 inches between the eye and the computer screen.

The line of sight to the top of the computer should be 20 degrees below horizontal, and the line of sight to the bottom of the screen should be 20 degrees lower.

Overcoming Computer-Induced Visual Stress

The following are some of the tips to reduce or overcome computer-induced visual stress:

Use a screen filter to help eliminate the glare, static, and radiation problems related with VDT viewing.

Every now and then, rotate your head forward and backward, and sideways to relieve tension in the neck, which may adversely affect the functioning of the eye.

Do the palming exercise to relax the eye; even a 2-minute session will significantly relieve eyestrain.

Do the thumb rotation exercise:

Sit in a relaxed posture.

Cover your right eye with your right hand.

Hold out the left hand directly in front of your nose, with your elbow straight. Slightly clench your fingers, leaving the thumb erect.

Now, look at your thumbnail, and begin moving your left arm up, then outward and downward to a point that is level with your nose (like in a quarter circle).

Follow your thumbnail with your left eye. Move only your arm and your eyeball.

Repeat the above with your right hand

The objective of this thumb rotation exercise is to improve your eye movement and to organize your visual space. You can easily practice this exercise even at your workplace

Given that computer-induced visual stress may have long-term impact on your vision health, be aware of the time you spend on the computer. It is very important to give yourself breaks and during those breaks, give yourself time to practice eye palming exercise to relax your eyes. Remember, even a five-minute palming will do wonders to relax your eyes.

Stephen Lau
Copyright©2018 by Stephen Lau

How Does the Eye "See"?

HOW DOES THE EYE “SEE”

The eye with good vision and the eye with weak vision do not “see” in the same way. Understanding how normal eyes “see” may help you make your eyes “see” in a totally different way.

Look at a simple illustration of the difference in the process of “seeing” by the eye with good vision and by the eye with weak vision. Here is how and what the healthy eye will “see” when it looks at the following:

A  B  C  D  E

The eye with good vision will be able to “absorb” or “see” A, B, C, D, and E all at the same time, irrespective of the closeness or distance.

Then, the eye with good vision will subconsciously “select” the one (e.g. E) that it wants to see, and immediately shifting its focus to E. Remember, the healthy eye can “select” its own vision.

In other words, the healthy eye has “soft vision”—it sees everything immediately but without gazing. “Soft vision” is practiced by all martial arts practitioners because they need to know where the attack of the enemy may be coming from—which could be from any or all directions. Therefore, it is important to train your eyes to have “soft vision” so that you can see everything all at once.

Soft Focus

Train your eyes to “see” and “look” at the same time.

Look at a printed page with a lot of details.

Become “aware” of what you are looking at, without blinking your eyes for five to thirty seconds.

Practice soft focus for five minutes at least once a day.

AWARENESS: Look without blinking (soft vision) for 10 seconds or so.

When you gaze, you use mostly your central vision, with little or no peripheral vision (which is side vision); accordingly, you weaken your macula, which is responsible for seeing visual details. Over time, you begin to lose much of your peripheral vision (use it or lose it). Because you cannot see what you want to see, you form the bad habit of “staring” or “frozen gaze,” and thus further weakening your macula. This is how the vicious circle of poor vision is formed. To improve your vision, you must break that vicious circle.

The eye with weak vision will do the following when looking at the above:

The eye with weak vision will probably look consciously at C first, without seeing the other alphabets (probably due to constant use of central vision).

Then, the eye with weak vision may probably shift its gaze to B and D, and then to A and E, back and forth, in order to “select” what it wants to see. Finally, the eye may decide that E is what it wants to see, and begins to focus on E (all these happen subconsciously and within only a fraction of a split second).

The above illustration demonstrates how the eye with weak vision may “see.” One of the characteristics of the eye with weak vision is its “frozen gaze,” which allows it to focus on only one object one at a time. To improve your vision, you must overcome the bad habit of “staring.”

AWARENESS: Do not stare!. Blink frequently to stop frozen gaze!

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Don't Let Your Vision Deteriorate

Conventional curative eye-care is damaging to the eye because it focuses on prescribing corrective eyeglasses or contacts for artificially clear sight. Unfortunately, at worst, eyeglasses or contacts do more harm to the eye; at best, they never improve vision to normal.

The explanation is that constantly wearing corrective lenses will constantly maintain the eye’s refractive error, and thus leading to the steady increase of the strength of the corrective lenses in order to maintain the same visual acuity. In other words, wearing eyeglasses or contacts only makes vision worse, and not better, because it makes you subconsciously crave for clear vision. In order to see better, you strain your eyes, and eyestrain only leads to further vision deterioration. Before long, you need another pair of corrective eyeglasses with a stronger prescription. This is how your vision goes from bad to worse. Ask yourself how many pairs of eyeglasses you have obtained for yourself over the years, with each pair having a stronger prescription than the previous one.

The truth of the matter is that corrective lenses only perpetuate the eye’s refractive errors.

They are only “crutches” for artificially clear eyesight; they do not correct poor vision.

They do not accurately reflect your eye conditions, which change constantly, from moment to moment,  according to the physical environment and your mental conditions.

They do not let your eyes adapt naturally to the mind; in other words, they disconnect the eye from the mind.

They perpetuate the refractive error of your eyes, leading to more eyestrain and ultimately stronger prescriptions.

AWARENESS: No need to go for perfect vision! Never strain your eyes in order to see better!

Poor vision leads to further vision loss and impairment, resulting in legal blindness (20 percent or less vision), which is defined as 20/200, that is, the capability of seeing within 20 feet what a person with normal vision can see within 200 feet. Legal blindness occurs to more than 10 percent of population aged between 50 to 69, and more than 70 percent aged 70 and over.

Wearing contact lenses is not any better than wearing eyeglasses. As a matter of fact, wearing contacts may have many other less-than-desirable side effects: 

• Distortion of the cornea
• Drying out of the eye
• Eye infection and inflammation
• Irritation of the eye and eyelids
• Oxygen deprivation
• Pain and dizziness
• Vision Loss

Laser eye clinics are touting the risks of laser eye surgery as minimal, and testimonials of those who have undergone such a surgery attest to the success of this virtually risk-free procedure. The fact of the matter is that 10 percent of laser eye surgeries have complications, and, more importantly, the long-term consequences of the surgery still remain relatively unknown because it is a fairly new procedure on the eye.

The good news is that poor vision loss does not have to be an inevitable consequence of aging. You can successfully improve your vision at any age.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Computer Vision Syndrome

Computer Vision Syndrome

According to CNN 11/12/13, working on the computer for too long and too close may result in computer vision syndrome (CVS), which is a vision disorder due to spending too much time on the computer.

"We definitely see a lot of people who complain of eyestrain," says opthalmologist Dr. Brian Boxer Wachler. "Hours upon hours of close focusing without taking a break is usually the main culprit." Sitting too close and too long to the computer is the main cause of eyestrain. "This forces your eyes to work harder than usual as you strain to focus on tiny font sizes," Dr. Wachler warns.

Common symptoms of eyestrain and CVS include: sore eyes, dry eyes, teary eyes, blurry vision, double vision, light sensitivity, difficulty focusing on images, neck pain, headache or a combination of all of the above. Given that vision is one of the most important assets in your life, protect your vision health.

To protect your eyes while working on the computer, you must sit with the right posture (that is erect) , at the right distance (20" - 40'), and at the right level (eyes level with top monitor screen). After every half hour or so, blink your eyes. The blink should be soft, not hard, and it should be complete. Do this a couple of times. Look at a distant object. and blink again. Form the habit of blinking, and consciously blink when you scan words on the computer screen. Wherever possible, do a eye-palming exercise, which is covering your eyes with both hands but without touching them with your eyes gently closed. Eye exercise are particularly important not only for relaxing your eyes but also for improving your vision naturally. Read my book VisionSelf-Healing Self-Help.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Conventional and Unconventional Treatment of Weak Vision

The Conventional Treatment of Weak Vision

To correct weak vision or refractive error (light not properly refracted on the retina of the eye), the conventional treatment by ophthalmologists and opticians is to make use of corrective lenses (eyeglasses or contacts) with proper prescriptions to enable the light from a close or distant object to refract accurately on the retina.

The conventional treatment serves two purposes:

To make the eye see more clearly

To prevent further eyestrain through clearer vision

These are the sole reasons for the professionals to provide eyeglasses and contacts: to provide better vision, and to prevent more eyestrain.

The conventional treatment is based on the belief that weak vision is due to incorrect refraction on the retina because of the distorted eye lens; therefore, to correct the impaired vision, corrective lenses are used to correct the refraction from the distorted lens.

Dr. William Bates’ Unconventional Treatment of Weak Vision

Dr. Bates completely disagreed with the conventional theory of distorted lens. According to Dr. Bates, the conventional treatment is WRONG because the eye is constantly changing, so much so that the eye prescriptions (which are constant) in corrective lenses may not help the patients in certain conditions; quite the contrary, they unduly increase their eyestrain. That is to say, if the eye is forced to see in different eye conditions with the same corrective lenses, the eye will have to strain itself to see in different conditions, and thus causing further eyestrain that damages vision.

Dr. Bates’ explanation was that what might fit the eye (i.e. the prescriptions) at one moment might not be appropriate at another moment, given that the conditions of the eye are constantly changing. In addition, because the eye is capable of adapting and adjusting to different conditions (eye accommodation), wearing corrective lenses will deprive the eye of such accommodation, and thus leading to further vision deterioration. That was the reason for his objection to wearing corrective lenses.

Dr. Bates’ treatment was based on the belief that the incorrect refraction on the retina is due to weak and unrelaxed eye muscles, which cause distorted shape in the eyeball, resulting in the refraction falling in front of or behind the retina, instead of directly on the retina.

In nearsightedness, the lens become flattened; in farsightedness, the lens become thicker.

Accordingly, eye relaxation holds the key to correcting vision problems.

The normal eyeball is round. According to Dr. Bates, if you strain to see, your eyeball becomes distorted. As a result, you cannot see clearly. Because you cannot see, you strain your eyes more. The more you strain your eyes, the less you will be able to see, and thus forming a vicious circle of poor vision. The Bates Method is to break that vicious circle of eyestrain.

Unfortunately, you cannot consciously control your eye muscles. That is to say, you cannot tell your eye muscles not to squeeze your eyes out of shape. What you can do is to control them unconsciously through awareness, which is what this book is all about.

Below is a brief comparison between Dr. Bates’ method and the conventional method of vision treatment:

Fact: Weak vision is due to incorrect refraction—either in front of or behind, but not directly on the retina.

Bates' Treatment Theory: Distorted shape of the eyeball, due to weak and un-relaxed eye muscles, causes the incorrect refraction on the eye’s retina.

Solution: Strengthen and relax eye muscles to prevent them from squeezing the eye out of shape when focusing.

Recommendation: Corrective lenses only create the desire for clear vision but deprives the eye from naturally adjusting to the constant changing conditions of the eye, and thus causing eyestrain as a result. Stop wearing your corrective lenses. Instead, relax your eye muscles to improve your vision such that you can ultimately do without your glasses.

Conventional Treatment Theory: Distorted eye lens causes the incorrect refraction on the eye’s retina.

Solution: Use corrective lens to re-adjust the refraction on the retina in order to give clearer vision and to prevent further eyestrain.

Recommendation: Just continue to wear your corrective lenses. If vision changes, get a new pair.

The Bates Method focuses on the following basic principles of good vision:

(1) Central fixation: Train the eye to focus on only one point one at a time. To illustrate, let your eyes look at a printed page:

Focus on only one word on the printed page, allowing other words in its vicinity to become blurred.

Then, try to see one letter of that word better than the other letters of that word.

Then, look at the other letters, one by one.

Now, look at the blank space between that word and the next.

Focus on the next word, and repeat the process.

The objective of this training is to help you focus on only a very small area because the macula (responsible for detailed vision) can see only a very small area. Stimulate the macula to enhance vision improvement.

(2) Shifting: Train the eye to look from one object to another frequently, from a close object to a distant one, and then back again in order to relieve tension and eyestrain, which impair good vision. Reinforce shifting with constant blinking to clean and to rest the eye.

(3) Sunning: Train the eye to adapt and adjust to bright light to avoid squinting, which causes eyestrain. Close your eyes and look up at the sun. Then, turn away from the sun, opening your eyes, and look at some clouds. Close your eyes for a moment, and then open your eyes at look at a point a little nearer the sun, but without looking directly at the sun. Sunning sharpens your vision, as well as prevents squinting.

(4) Relaxation: Visualizing “black” induces complete relaxation of the eye. A completely relaxed eye will see only black when it is closed; seeing the field of vision grayish or light-golden in color means that the eye is not totally relaxed. Eye palming is the most effective exercise for complete eye relaxation.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau