The Secret of Perfect Vision

[Steven]

Is this the full book ?

http://books.google.ro/books?id=CgC8ZKTA3Y4C&lpg=PP1&pg=PP1&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false

If yes, enjoy !

[OtisBrown]

Hi Steve,

I totally support that book - and your efforts.  There is a massive amount of information on this subject - so be prepared!  Here are two sites that discuss the concept of prevention in some detail.

http://myopiafree.i-see.org/


http://myopiafree.wordpress.com/

My PERSONAL interest was to help my sister's three children, were the plus when necessary.  Knowing that most people (probably) don't have the long-term motivation, I devote my interest to pilots - who do have the interest.  Todd is here to help you, and the rest of us will support you, and will answer your questions if we can.

Is this the full book ?

http://books.google.ro/books?id=CgC8ZKTA3Y4C&lpg=PP1&pg=PP1&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false

If yes, enjoy !

[OtisBrown]

Stephen,

Since you are at -4 diopters - here is the recommendation of an ophthalmologist.
++++++

Better vision exercise, for those with -4.00 or higher prescriptions:

1. Buy an Amazon Kindle, get some books you really enjoy to read.

2. Change the font size to one you can hold at about 20" from your face and just barely see some blur in the text.

3. Read an hour a day (ideally before your first meal if possible), no glasses, keeping the text at the edge of blurriness.

Don't wear any sort of prescription. If necessary in the beginning (till you develop a habit), set yourself a five minute timer to remind yourself about keeping the text at the edge of blur. Keep moving the Kindle, just fractions of an inch as you read, just where sharp meets blurry.

This all by itself could cut 0.50 to 1.00 diopters off your prescription in about a year and a half, done consistently (diet, an extended regimen including computer work, peripheral vision exercise, and prescription adjustments may greatly improve results, but the above exercise alone will help at the very least maintain your current vision, and quite possibly improve it).

http://www.facebook.com/FrauenfeldClinic

[Steven]

Hi Otis.

My current prescription is -3 left eye -3.75 right eye (which i feel is over prescription now).
I no longer have -4 in both eyes.

Right now i am reading this forum and the book.

You said i should go for a -2 to start with for long distance. I was thinking more of a -1.5.
I will order the next week at my local glass technician a pair of -1.5 for both eyes, since i am in Europe and the lenses i get from him are good quality from a Japanese firm.

Yes it will cost me more then the site you suggested but i can try everything here.

So:
1. I should use the -1.5 or -2 only for long distance and i must try to focus on things that are just outside my visual range ( a little blurry ). Correct ?

2. When using "push print" i use no glasses and when the image becomes too clear and my arm too short for the book i should use a +1, then +1.5, +2, +2.5 etc. as my vision improves.

3. Will using a very strong plus all day, no matter the activity, reverse my myopia much faster or will the eye just ignore the effort and stay the same ?

4. Will using a -1.5 or -2 while looking in the distance make my eyes more myopic or will my vision improve as long as i focus on semi-blurry spots ?

Thank you.

[OtisBrown]

Steven,

Let me answer your question in parts.  OF TOTAL IMPORTANCE - Get a GOOD Snellen, put it up permanently at 20 feet and read it.  Put a bright light on it.  All success will be judged by you from this "starting point".  You have a long way to go.

You said i should go for a -2 to start with for long distance. I was thinking more of a -1.5.

1)  If a -1.5 gives you 20/40 - then that is the correct choice.  Check yourself.

I will order the next week at my local glass technician a pair of -1.5 for both eyes, since i am in Europe and the lenses i get from him are good quality from a Japanese firm.

2)  Then find out which line you read through a -1.5.

Yes it will cost me more then the site you suggested but i can try everything here.

3. If you see 20/60 through the -1.5, you will need a strong minus to drive a car.

So:
1. I should use the -1.5 or -2 only for long distance and i must try to focus on things that are just outside my visual range ( a little blurry ). Correct ?

4.  Check your Snellen.

2. When using "push print" i use no glasses and when the image becomes too clear and my arm too short for the book i should use a +1, then +1.5, +2, +2.5 etc. as my vision improves.

5.  Also, check how far you can read WITH NO GLASSES.  My guess would be 13 inches.  But check yourself - and let us know.  Have a bright light on the book.

++++

If you are a true -4, you could only read at 10 inches. 

[OtisBrown]

Part 2.


3. Will using a very strong plus all day, no matter the activity, reverse my myopia much faster or will the eye just ignore the effort and stay the same ?

Otis> If you can read at 15 inches - then that is a start.  If at 20 inches, it is too blurry to read, then you can't wear any plus.

4. Will using a -1.5 or -2 while looking in the distance make my eyes more myopic or will my vision improve as long as i focus on semi-blurry spots ?

Otis>  The idea is to avoid wearing a minus lens - if you can.  At -4 diopters - that is indeed difficult.  If you get the -1.5, then you will probably wear that most of the time.

Let us know when the you get the -1.5 - and your Snellen with the -1.5

Thanks!


Thank you.

[888]

I'm about a -2.50 and a -1.50 is too blurry. I wear a -2.00 for daily use, just low enough to be able to drive safely. It's better to go down 0.25-1.00 from your regular prescription. You don't want to go too low or else your eyes will simply give up on focusing. You want to challenge your eye to focus. To get a better idea of what under-prescriptions to order, simply wear a pair of low power plus lenses over your regular prescription glasses and use the snellen.

I actually made a -1.50 by popping out lenses out of a pair of dollar store +2.00 reading glasses and taped them over my original RX -3.50 glasses. Though they hurt my eyes and I can't drive with them.

Check out some of the blog entries and thread on this site. They call the idea of under-corrections a "normalized" prescription.
http://www.myopiachallenge.com/29-differential-prescription-part-i/

[Steven]

My feeling is that under corrective lenses do not improve myopia by their own. Under corrective lenses only help myopia stop progressing if used for long distance only and for limited amounts of time. But if under corrective lenses are used for close work then myopia will increase (less then it does with full prescription but more then without glasses.)

After using +2.5 around the house, even if everything is blurry my eyes are significantly improved. This means the plus lens even if everything is blurry is reshaping the eye.

Using a very strong plus (+5 or more) for extended periods of time would cure myopia. Even if the eye is forced to do incredible "weightlifting" it has no escape.

I found out that using a strong plus increases my visual acuity much more then print pushing or seeing at the edge of blur.

I think that is why Otis says ( ideally ) to avoid the minus lens.

If i use the -1.5 only for outdoor activity (no driving), and i use the +2.5 or more inside home for extended periods of time, my eyes should go in time to -1.5. (20/20)

Ideally (for fastest curing) would be to wear strong + all the time outdoor & indoor and no minus lens at all.

[jansen]

Hey Steven,

Thats a very interesting point, wearing strong plus throughout the day. I always thought that my forcing your eyes beyond the limit and beyond the blur point, the eyes will "give up." I have heard of cases where people put on +7.00 lenses and looked into the distance. The person reported sudden improvement in visual acuity, but only for a short period of time I believe.

[OtisBrown]

Hi Jansen and Group,

Subject:  Medical people who totally support the plus.

Re: But it does take systematic, long-term wearing of a plus - just to be effective AT PREVENTION.

We often want a medical person to 'tell us what to do".

Please read:




http://frauenfeldclinic.com/three-tricks-to-keep-your-2020-eyesight/

[Steven]

Right now i can read at 20 inches at the edge of blur. That means my dominant eye is somewhere below -3. I can't wear any plus or else i won't see a thing at 20 inches with normal sized text.

Now lets recapitulate all this.
I went from -0.5 as a child, to -0.75, -1, -1.75, -2.50, -3, -4 diopters.

Now i am 24 years old. After 1 month of simply not wearing glasses. i went to the same doctor that gave me all this minus hell and the prescription went from -4 in both eyes, to :

-3 for the dominant left eye and -3.75 for the non dominant right eye.
Also a -2 cylindrical in both eyes, despite the fact that another doctor said -1 cylindrical.

These are my current glasses that i do not wear right now except for driving a car.
I recently managed to test a -1.25 spherical with no cylindrical for both eyes and they had a very nice feeling (they didn't stressed my eyes).

Now i want to point some things out.
My vision is mostly made up by the dominant eye. Because of that, the image to the brain is made up mostly by the -3 eye.

A diopter is a unit of measurement of the refractive error. It may be a negative number (myopia, nearsightedness), or a positive number (hyperopia, farsightedness). A -1.00 diopter myope is able to see objects at 1 meter clearly. A -2.00 diopter myope is able to see objects at a ½ meter clearly. The greater the myopia, the strength of the lens in diopters needed to correct the refractive error, and the closer an object must be to be viewed clearly.

This means that if i want to get an under corrective pair of glasses, taking into account that i am -3, i must decide first at which distance i need to see perfect.

For example if i buy a -1.25 pair of glasses then my eye/s that are -3 will still have -1.75.
Now, -1.75 means that i see perfectly at 1/1.75 = 57 centimeters. Is that enough for my daily distance needs or my workplace ? If yes then i should buy a pair of -1.25.

Lets take another example:
If i buy a -1.50 pair of glasses then my eye/s that are -3 will still have -1.50.
Now, -1.50 means that i see perfectly at 1/1.50 = 66 centimeters. Is that enough for my daily distance needs or my workplace ? If yes then i should buy a pair of -1.50.

My impression is that the curing of myopia is faster for those who get an under corrective lens that is more then 1 diopter from their current prescription. Why is that ?

Well take my example. If i go to work and i need 57 centimeters of clear vision this is what happens :

I use the glasses to distinguish my colleagues. But if i focus my eyes on anything that is closer then 57 centimeters then my eyes become more myopic. The time spent focusing at over 57 centimeters is annulled by the time spent at focusing on anything under 57 centimeters.

The conclusion is : If you get more then 1 diopter below your current prescription you will spend less time focusing on objects that are within your eye's reach. But, if your work demands more power, then adapt you glasses to that, according to the example i gave above.

*****

Otis i still didn't managed to test a pair of 1.5 but with the -1.25 squinting only i could read 20/50.
Right now since i am looking for a job, i am still deciding what glasses i would need for the potential job.

If it's a job where i will only use the computer then i would get a very low prescription like -1.25 or -1.5.
If the job demand more i could get something around -2.

A person without glasses and with myopia of :
0 = clear image at infinity ?

0.25 = clear image at 4 meters.
0.5 = clear image at 2 meters.
0.75 = clear image at 1.3 meters.
1 = clear image at 1 meter.
1.25 = clear image at 80 centimeters
1.5 = clear image at 66 centimeters
1.75 = clear image at 57 centimeters
2 = clear image at 50 centimeters
2.25 = clear image at 44 centimeters
2.5 = clear image at 40 centimeters
2.75 = clear image at 36.36 centimeters
3 = clear image at 33 centimeters
3.25 = clear image at 30.7 centimeters
3.5 = clear image at 28.57 centimeters
3.75 = clear image at 26.66 centimeters
4 = clear image at 25 centimeters

[OtisBrown]

Dear Steve,

Let me state that I greatly appreciate Todd's success.  I will not attempt to "explain" it - except to say that I am pleased he personally verified his vision as passing the State required DMV test.  I will also state that I have seen profound over-prescription of from -1 to -4 diopters (that I documented with Todd - by mailing him the information).

The chart you develop assumes that OD make ACCURATE MEASUREMENTS.  I found that totally wrong.  What they do is to "crank up" on their Phoropters - as hard a possible - and give you a very strong minus.  That FIRST over-prescribed minus - (in my opinion) kills you distant vision.  When *I* argue to get out of it, I assume the person can read the 20/60 line with no minus lens on his face.  In that range, there is evidence that the person can get to 20/40 in about six to eight months.  For another six months of wearing a plus, he could "make" 20/20, and positive status.

I do not enjoy being the "bearer of bad news" - but I try to be as fair minded as possible.  I don't make "claims" beyond the above statements.

If you are taking about self-measured CHANGE, then, given this statement, you would have to get a positive change of +1.5 diopters - and that would take about one year - in my judgment.
++++++

Otis i still didn't managed to test a pair of 1.5 but with the -1.25 squinting only i could read 20/50.

Otis> Using a Snellen and a "test minus" is the only accurate measurement system you have. 

++++++

Right now since i am looking for a job, i am still deciding what glasses i would need for the potential job.

Otis> I GAVE UP DEALING WITH ODS.  They are just not "worth it".  If you want a "correct" lens, then, if you are an engineer, and prepared to do everything yourself - the this is what I would do.

1)  Get about four "test lenses", of  -1/2, -1, -2 and -3, from Zennioptical.com
2)  Look at your Snellen, and hold each one up.  Find one that clears the 20/30 to 20/25 line.  Then order that lens strength from Zenn.
3)  I am tired of paying ODs $250 and $150 for glasses.  This is what I would do.
4) In my  judgment this is NOT MEDICINE, it what I DO.


If it's a job where i will only use the computer then i would get a very low prescription like -1.25 or -1.5.
If the job demand more i could get something around -2.

Otis> Getting these test-lenses is the key.  They cost about $4 each. But it takes a wise determined person to do it.

Otis>  I -2 D would probably meed most of your needs.  For driving a car, you choose a lens that gives you 20/30 to 20/20 vision.  (Always meet the legal requirement.

Otis> Here is a video on how to order lenses from Zenni.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_u39cB27bg

Otis> Here is how I use a lens to measure my refractive state.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7cU-0onSvI

Otis> In your case, you would find the WEAKEST minus to give you "just" 20/40 to 20/30.

Otis> I "draw the line" and insist that this is NOT MEDICINE, and NOT A MEDICAL MEASUREMENT.  It is science and self-measurement of my refractive STATE.

Otis> If you decide to continue - let us know.

Otis> I "arm twisted" my nephew (when he was 14 years old) to BEGIN the use of a plus 2 - when he was SLIGHTLY nearsighed.  I had no desire to see him have his vision DESTROYED WITH A MINUS.

Otis>  He knew I told the truth.  So he would the plus through college, always passing the DMV, and never had to "deal" with an OD in an office.  He is now over 40 years old - and kept it that way.  He KNOWS how difficult it is to "keep motivated". 

Otis> If you decide to go "down this path" - let me know.


A person without glasses and with myopia of :
0 = clear image at infinity ?

Otis> Correct.

[Steven]

Dear Otis Brown, i have two additional questions.

1. If i use a +2.5 or more all day long, and avoid the minus lens completely, would that cure my myopia the fastest way possible ?

2. The higher the plus on the glasses the faster my myopia will be reversed ?

Thank you in advance.

[OtisBrown]

Hi Steven,

From what you have told me, I do not see how you could wear a +2.5 diopter.  Have I missed something?

What is a reasonable suggestion is to wear no lens for computer work - at this time.

Otis

Dear Otis Brown, i have two additional questions.

1. If i use a +2.5 or more all day long, and avoid the minus lens completely, would that cure my myopia the fastest way possible ?

2. The higher the plus on the glasses the faster my myopia will be reversed ?

Thank you in advance.

[Steven]

Hi Steven,

From what you have told me, I do not see how you could wear a +2.5 diopter.  Have I missed something?

What is a reasonable suggestion is to wear no lens for computer work - at this time.

Otis

Dear Otis Brown, i have two additional questions.

1. If i use a +2.5 or more all day long, and avoid the minus lens completely, would that cure my myopia the fastest way possible ?

2. The higher the plus on the glasses the faster my myopia will be reversed ?

Thank you in advance.

You are absolutely right. You didn't missed anything.
I was asking hypothetically.
In principle, if i use a strong plus, every day, while doing nothing at all (since i would not see anything), would that cure myopia the fastest way possible ?