Bad Eyesight & Glasses:
The Whole (Short) Story

Below, a brief animated video series summarizing the science and biology of eyesight, nearsightedness, and glasses (& endmyopia).

Note that this is meant just as an introductory summary.  There is a whole lot to be said about human eyesight and myopia, especially if you’re set on getting your natural 20/20 vision back.  For much more deep dive nerdy science, studies, and peer reviewed papers, check our science section.

Is Bad Eyesight Genetic?  Why Your Eyesight Sucks

Retail Optometry: Follow The Money

How Glasses Make Your Eyes WORSE

We’re fascinated by all the science and biology, seeking explanation for why and how things work.  Most time we spend on actually reversing our myopia, however.  Check out detailed improvement reports from many thousands of participants over the past decade.

Update from 2025: If you wonder, why is myopia explained with short animations, like children’s level of learning?

Because a huge amount people really struggle with anything beyond that level.  Adult levels of reading studies or doing real research is too much effort.

There was a time in the now ancient past when I was young and idealistic.  I spent time to research and learn about myopia, help people fix their eyes, and then write scripts, narrate them, and then pay animators to make videos.  That I’d then post on Youtube for free.  I spent money to help people, can you imagine?  Silly in hindsight, but that’s the history.

And of course what we learned in the intervening decade is that most people are lazy, stupid, and entitled.  If it’s free they’ll take it.  They’ll still complain and expect to get personal advice for free too, because of course they do.  Unfortunate but true.  What I also found out that the kind of people who are willing to support a useful resource are a much higher caliber of participant in general.  Ask to get paid, find out all sorts of things!

So these days there are no new free dummy animations to spoon feed half wits basic biology insights.   There’s a large audience for the retail optometrist to tell that myopia is some mysterious genetic defect and paying 6,000% markup for $2 lenses is their only option.  Supply and demand, and the dubiously educated retail lens seller and the average consumer are a perfect match.

Ooops.  There it is, a bit of inconvenient truth.  

Use the free resources.  They are great, though definitely outdated.  Or optional spend a bit for the member area and get a lot more of the new stuff.  It’s where I focus on these days!

Cheerios,

-Jake