In the years it took me to reverse my own myopia, I hit many roadblocks. If you get stuck and your eyes just aren’t getting better, this article is for you.
—
Back when I had started, I had no guide or reassurance that improving eyesight was actually possible. I did a whole lot of things wrong, and missed a whole lot of things I should have tried. It wasn’t until hindsight, after years of talking to different therapists and reading ophthalmology books, that I figured out what I could have done better.
Here is one thing to keep in mind: Stimulus always works.
If you get active focus, if you have blur horizon, you are creating stimulus. The problem is the huge gap between theories and principles, and applying a successful strategy.
You might get good stimulus, but then all that positive effort could be negated by close-up strain. Or you might get stimulus, but you just go back and forth as your eyes regress back to the previous state once you stop applying it.
Alex’ course is really very good, since it is structured to prevent most of those things from happening to you.
But if it does, in particular if you come from experimenting elsewhere, just a little bit of assessment and tweaking of your process can help get you back on track. To wit, Trace writes in the forum:
I’ve been trying to improve my eyesight for about the last 3 years, following your site (and advice) for about a year, and joined the official program in August. I’ve learned a lot, but I feel like most of my “gains” were just from eliminating overprescription. I’ve been struggling to make actual gains in the centimeter and snellen since I started. I haven’t really gained any centimeters; my readings are usually the same, with some minor fluctuations.
I guess I’m just tired and worn out. I’ve made the habit changes, always use a differential for close up, take lots of breaks, always use normalized instead of a fully corrected lens, and spend as much time outdoors (or at least distance focused) as I reasonably can. I’ve definitely learned a lot about strain management and reduction, but I just don’t seem to be making any progress.”
—
Side note, I really like the open nature of the forum. Positive or negative, it’s all out there for you to see. A courageous move on Alex’ part, especially considering that he set it up this way from the start.
From Trace’s original post some discussion ensues, which you can find here.
Most recently, Trace posts an encouraging update:
Quick update: For a week I did Snellen work 3 times a day, for 10 minutes each time. I also worked without glasses on the computer for most of the time (wore differential a little bit). In the first couple days I went from 34.3 to 36.8 centimeters, where I hovered around for the rest of the week. I can tell I’m reading the 20/10 line (from 10 feet away) on the Snellen easier each day, and think it’s still improving. I’m going to keep on doing this and keep tracking changes. Hopefully a new reduction is in store for me!
Thanks for the encouragement and gentle nudge in the right direction.”
—
And that’s how things should go. Of course rehab isn’t successful for everyone, all the time. But stimulus always works. When you find what is holding you back from having a net gain in centimeter or Snellen, things usually get back on track.
This has also been my own experience. You may also run into scenarios where you just stop to improve, for months at a time. Plateaus happen as well. Important is to realize when it does, and take steps to prevent yourself from getting burned out.
The forum support is quite important. Alex asked me to contribute here for two years, and I always refused. My opinion had been that each case is unique, and I wasn’t comfortable entrusting you to words on a screen, and your own assessment and timing to ask questions. Clearly though, as Trace shows us, it does work. As long as you mention when you run into a problem you can’t sort, Neha, or Alex, or I can talk you through it.
Take it easy on your eyes, every so often. When you hit that plateau, just enjoy the gains you made previously. Give it a month or two and then jump back in and really make sure that you are all the way at the most challenging distances. You will make progress!
Cheers,
– Jake
