Eye Color and Pain Tolerance

What would you think if I said your eye color can tell me how well you can handle pain? You might be a little skeptical. But, hold on, because preliminary research suggests it could be the case.

As pain management specialists, we strive to understand why some of our patients tolerate pain better than others, as well as the factors that influence which pain management therapies are most appropriate to the individual.

Eye color may soon become another biomarker we can use. Already, we know that people with red hair are resistant to anesthesia and require more of it during dental procedures.

In the new study of eye color, researchers compared pain tolerance and the effect of an epidural during childbirth among a group of 58 white pregnant women—24 with dark-colored eyes (brown or hazel) and 34 with light-colored eyes (blue or green).

The women with light-colored eyes:

Tolerated pain better during childbirth

Had less post-partum anxiety and depression

The women with dark-colored eyes:

Had a greater reduction in pain with an epidural, suggesting higher sensitivity to pain

Experienced a 60% reduction in pain at rest with the epidural and a 55% reduction during movement; it was 45% and 40% among the women with light-colored eyes, respectively

While these early results are fascinating, we must be cautious about drawing definitive conclusions. The results showed a trend in pain reduction, but were not statistically or clinically significant. Further studies are needed to explore the potential link between pain and eye color among women who are not pregnant, men and children.

If eye color is shown to be a genetic biomarker, it would offer a practical approach to assessing a patient’s pain sensitivity. Clinicians can recognize biomarkers instantly and can use them to tailor their approach to pain management to the individual. Patients ultimately would benefit, as they may experience greater pain relief and improved quality of life.

No matter what level of pain tolerance you may have, learn how to manage your pain effectively.

Stephen Lau

Copyright©2018 by Stephen Lau

Cataract Surgery?

Cataract surgeries are commonly practiced in people who are 65 or older; approximately 3 million Americans undergo cataract surgeries each year.

Are cataract surgeries necessary? When do they become necessary?

Cataract surgeries are performed on people whose lenses have become blurred or cloudy due to mainly aging. As a deterioration of the lenses, vision has become considerably compromised. So whether cataract surgeries are necessary or not depends on the individual.

If your work requires detailed vision, then a cataract surgery may become necessary. If you have problems driving at night or worries about road safety, then a cataract surgery may be an option. On the other hand, if you think that taking off your glasses while reading a book or a newspaper, then it may only be a nuisance that you can live with, then you may have second thoughts about taking a cataract surgery. In other words, it all depends on how bad your vision has become an interference with your daily activities.

A cataract surgery is no more than a procedure to remove a cloudy eye lens with an artificial one, and that's all there is to it. Just like any other aging process, you have to deal with it or to live with it. My book Your Golden Years and Santa Claus explains in detail the importance of living a life of meaning and purpose despite your aging, which is an inevitable as your demise. It is important to have the mental capability to cope with you physical incapacity.

As for when you need to opt for a cataract surgery, it is your decision: nobody can make it for you, not even your doctor.

Remember, taking vitamins, herbs, and eye drops may delay or slow down the aging process of your eyes, but they may never cure your cataracts. There is another myth: you need to wait until your cataracts become "ripen" before surgeries can be performed. Nothing is further from the truth. Life is full of choices, and taking or not taking a cataract surgery is one of those choices.

All in all, make your eyes healthy, and taking care of your vision is wisdom in living if you wish to 100 and beyond.

Stephen Lau

Copyright©2018 by Stephen Lau

Heal Your Vision

Vision is a matter of the mind, not just the eye.

Vision self-healing, like any other healing, begins with the mind first, and not the body or the eye for that matter.

The intention to heal comes from within, specifically, the mind. With intention, comes concentration and then focus to empower yourself with the knowledge to heal your eyes of any vision problem you may have. The manifestation of the mind is reflected throughout the healing process.

Healing begins with the mind, and mind healing is always mind over matter.

Changing for the Better

The mind can either heal or harm. Your mind can help you improve your vision because vision healing is all in the mind, but it can also increase your subconscious internal resistance to following new patterns requisite for self-healing.

All vision begins with thoughts. Seeing is a matter of the mind. To see better, you need to change not only the way you “think” about seeing but also the way you “go about” seeing. It is all in the mind—your thinking mind!

Changing your vision habits, most of which may be incorrect or even damaging to your vision health, is not an easy task. Once these visual patterns are deeply ingrained in your mind, they have become your long-term memories, and to change them or to eradicate them becomes a new challenge. But you can and you must overcome that challenge through your mind power.

Harness your mind power to do two things for you:

To restore your memories of clear, sharp visual images

To visualize familiar images of clear vision, such as imagining total darkness in order to totally relax your optic nerve (total relaxation occurring only in total darkness) connected to your brain.

Memory and imagination are powerful tools for you to improve your vision, because your mind has a deep connection with your eyes. Effectively using your mind can successfully stimulate clearer and better vision. It is always mind over matter.

Changing vision habits

How do you change your bad vision habits? There is a saying: “It is difficult to teach an old dog new tricks.” The conscious mind is often reluctant and resistant to any change. Believe it or not, most of us are stubborn creatures—more like an old dog—who do not want to get out of own comfort zones. The only way to overcome this obstacle is through changing the subconscious mind.

Basically, your mind is made up of your conscious mind and your subconscious mind. Your conscious mind makes decisions and you act accordingly, but it is your subconscious mind that directs your conscious mind. That is to say, in your conscious mind, you are fully aware of your actions and their respective consequences; in your subconscious mind, where you store your emotions and memories, you only respond spontaneously to repetitions of words and images in the form of affirmations and visualization. In other words, if you keep on repeating positive self-suggestions or visualizing positive images in your mind’s eye, you can effectively change the thoughts in your conscious mind through your subconscious mind.

 Stephen Lau

Copyright©2018 by Stephen Lau