Be The Change You Want To See
Be The Change You Want To See
By Shane Sauer
My most recent birthday was my 40th. Heading into this birthday, many people warned me of the changes they experienced at this milestone birthday. The most common comment was about how their vision changed.
Fortunately for me, I had learned enough about the vision system to know that this “fate” was by no means guaranteed to pass.
There are 3 key components for clarity in the vision system:
Eye Movements
The Lens
The Visual Cortex
Eye Movements have to be very precise. If you don’t fixate on a target within approximately ½ of a degree, it will be blurry. This is because you have a very small window for detailed (or foveal) vision. The rest of what you see is called peripheral vision and is much less clear. The precision to fixate for clear vision is achieved via the six external eye muscles that control your eyes’ movements.
Once you are able to aim your eyes at the appropriate target, the lens is used to focus the image. The shape of the lens is controlled by muscles within the eye.
An interesting fact about vision is that your eyes don’t actually see anything. They are simply the sensors that transmit information to your brain. It’s within your brain that this visual information is interpreted into what you see. In fact, many people’s brains only choose to use the image coming from one eye. When trained to use both, people can improve their depth perception.
Are you noticing the possibility here? All 3 key components of the visual system can be trained! The muscles that move the eyes and control the lens work just like other muscles in your body. They can be strengthened and coordination can be improved. And do I really have to describe neuroplasticity again? ;-)
Knowing all of this, I made the choice to do vision training rather than just allow my vision to deteriorate. Since I started this training, my prescription has changed from a -2.25 D (diopter) to -1.0 D. In other words, my nearsightedness has improved!
You too can make this change in your body! Like any training, it does take some time and effort. But considering how important vision is to every part of your life, it’s a minimal investment for an amazing return!