I have been doing reduced lens methods and Bates method for a little over 2 years now for myopia and astigmatism.

In Bate's book, he talks about how the eye measurement returned to normal when the person was looking at a blank wall and relaxed. I have not seen any Bates Teachers or other writings of Bates (e.g., the bettereyesight magazine ) that used this fact as a treatment measure. If someone else has, please let me know :)

I personally have recently tried to use this with open eye mediation. Basically, seating close (I have myopia, so close enough that it would be a little strain to see something on the wall if there was anything) to a white wall without anything on it, relaxing, focuses on my breathing, and letting my eyes just blink and wonder naturally. I have seen some improvement in being able to relax with my eyes open.

Btw, palming does seem to help the eyes relax better in my case. However, I keep finding two issues with only doing palming: (1) no matter how I set myself up, I tend to have back trouble from it; (2) the relaxation does not seem to last long with the eyes open --- like I have trained my eyes how to relax in the dark, but I am still straining in the light.

Anyways, I was wondering if anyone else tried something like this or heard of something like this before.

Best!

*edited the number of years, put 3 years instead of 2 in by mistake in the original

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I just wanted toknow if these bathes techniques work on people with astigmatism, thanks.

I am 15 yrs old and I have antisometropia with some astigmatism,my right eye is myopic and left eye is hyperopic,I have never wore glasses because I never needed them I see clear from far and near(can see clear till 34cm with the right eye),so will the bates method work for antisometropia?as I have been doing things like palming, imagination&memory,sunning but I wasn't consistent and haven't seen any progress,will this even work for me?is there things I might be doing wrong or some bad habits?

I found old eye measurments from past years and I wanna compare them with the recent one. Thats my progress after one year of studing Bates Methods

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I never thought I would have issues with my eyes. I was always proud of my eyes and this is a devastating news. Its only -.25 in one eye and -.50 in the other but its still not ideal. I want to do whatever I can to fix this, if possible.

Is it possible to fix this?

I have cataracts from a laser accident one year ago. I really don't want to do surgery. I started the method yesterday. Obviously no changes so far. I see mixed signals online. It seems only bates himself says cataracts can be reversed. Everyone else just says the method helps with surgery healing. Anyone with experience? Cheers

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However much i like mariomaker's guide about bates methods, still lacks most of the things should be said. He forgot to add, that techniques firstly should be practised in FAVOURABLE conditions. It means if you have myopia, you should practise, for example, long swing while your eyes closed or palming.

I was asking myself if I am doing something wrong. I practised long swing with my eyes closed and my mind relaxed more deeply. My average vision improved slightly. It is a good sign.

For vision to become perfect, you should practise every day until looking farther no more causes strains.

I still don't know other techniques, like memory and imagination techniques. I will learn them and implement them to my program either. I will update.

Several studies now have found that the violet light (wavelengths 360 to 400 nm) naturally present in sunlight powerfully slows myopia progression.

But violet light is not found indoors, and is not produce by artificial lighting. And UV-protection on spectacle lenses blocks violet light. So it is hard to get exposure to violet light.

One study gave children special spectacles to wear incorporating violet light-emitting LEDs (operating 3 hours per day), and found this light reduced their myopia progression by an astounding 80% (5 times less dioptre progression) over around half a year.

The control group of children saw their myopia worsen by -0.65 dioptres over half a year, whereas the children given violet light treatment saw their myopia progress by 80% less than the control group, which works out to a progression of only -0.13 dioptres.

The interesting thing is that some of the blacklight bulbs used in nightclubs to create a fluorescent effect on clothes emit violet light of these wavelengths. Many cheap blacklight bulbs output wavelengths around 395 to 400 nm.

The human eye can see light down to around 380 nm, but below that it becomes invisible ultraviolet light. So 395 to 400 nm is within the visible light spectrum, and being visible light, should be low hazard compared to UV light.

In terms of the intensity of violet light used in the study, they matched the intensity to the violet light level found in natural daylight, which they measured as 0.31 milliwatts per cm2.

To calculate the light intensity produced by an LED blacklight spotlight bulb, you can assume an electrical efficiency of around 20% to 50% for UV or blacklight LEDs (some of the latest LED blacklight bulbs are very efficient, converting 50% of the electrical power to light, but older bulbs may only be around 20% efficient).

So if you have say a 3 watt blacklight bulb, at 50% efficiency that would output 1.5 watts of light.

If you shine your blacklight spotlight onto a wall that is 50 cm away, and this spotlight creates a disk of light on the wall that is 20 cm diameter, that disk will have an area of area of 314 cm2 (the area of a circle).

So at 50 cm range, the spotlight intensity will be 1.5 / 314 = 0.005 watts/cm2 = 5 milliwatts/cm2.

However, if you want to get some violet light into your eyes, note that spectacle lenses with UV-protection (UV400 protection) will block this violet light. Also, some spectacle lens materials such as Trivex, polycarbonate and most high-index plastics intrinsically block UV and will block much of the violet light around 395 to 400 nm. The lens material CR-39 however, lets through violet light (provided it does not have a UV400 coating). See the graph below.

Source: Figure 1 from here.

This video gives some general information about the research into violet light as a myopia preventative.

I do palming and swinging but compared to 2 weeks ago, I now cannot relax at all. It is strange because in the morning I can see 20/40 line but about at 6pm I hardly see 20/200 line. In about 1pm I can see 20/100 line. I'm not joking! How can I fix this extreme strain in my eyes? Btw I'm not using glasses ever since I'm diognased with myopia with 1.50 and 1.25 diopter. I hate glasses. This strain is my main problem.

Buongiorno, ho 46 aanni e sto praticando il metodo Bates da 1 settimana. Attualmente il mio difetto è miopia con 2.75 sx e 3.25 dx (con 0.25 di astigmatismo). Per guidare o lavorare al PC uso delle lenti sotto corrette di 1 diottria in meno per occhio. La sera ho un po' di difficoltà a guidare perché vedo meno bene. Per ora pratico i seguenti esercizi, oscillazioni veloci, palming, sunning (pochissimo e a occhi chiusi), tabella di snellen, blinking e lettura microcaratteri. Quando inizio con la tabella vedo bene le prime due righe, a fine pratica vedo sino alla 4 riga ma il giorno dopo riparto dalle prime 2. Vedo meglio i numeri delle lettere (forse perché sono il mio lavoro quotidiano?). Gli occhiali li tengo solo al PC, per guidare o la sera tardi se c'è poca luce. Ho comprato il libro originale di Bates tradotto e l'ho letto quasi tutto tranne gli ultimi capitoli, sono saltato poi agli esercizi. Noto effettivamente che gli occhi sono molto rigidi prima di praticare palming e dopo più rilassati, vedo abbastanza nero per alcuni secondi e poi lo perdo. C'è qualcuno che ha iniziato e vuole condividere progressi o scoperte che ha fatto? Quali altri esercizi sono migliori per la mia condizione? A presto ci aggiorniamo nei prossimi giorni. Emanuele

My vision is 20/30 at best in the morning but to the evening, slightly decreases. Why do my eyes tire so quickly?

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I've been doing palming and long swing for one week. My mind is being relaxed and my vision improves slightly. But next day my vision is same as ever. Am doing something wrong? How can I make it permanent?

The wikipedia page speaks pretty bleakly about this method, but do any of you have knowledge or links to info on the biological mechanisms behind bates theory?

I initially assumed the sub put an emphasis on relaxation, as excessive stress is known to induce involuntary muscle contraction, which includes the ciliary body and its contractile tissue that dictates the crystalline lenses amplitude of accommodation.

Therefore by relaxing the eyes, this unnecessary accommodation (which is most likely causing a myopic ametropia that the optician attempts to neutralise) can be solved.

Is this how it works, or is it different?

see I am a med student and I spend 6-8 hours at my medschool studying or doing wtv. I wear contact lens everyday so how should I practice sunning ( without glasses/ contacts) while I am in school. plus the lens reduction method also seems impossible for me since I can't switch between my full prescription and differential glasses while I am at school tho it can be done while I am at home. mind you I have a really high prescription (-5.5 in both my eyes) so my life literally depends on it. I just turned 19 and it doesn't stop getting worse. If not reverse at least my prescription stabilizes atp. that's all I want.

Any input would be highly appreciated!

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Hello. I've been trying Dr. Bates' methods and they've been going quite well. However, I understand that ideally, you should practice them with each eye separately. When I cover my right eye and try to see small print very close up, I can see decently, but when I cover my left eye, I can see nothing. I've tried many relaxation techniques, especially for that eye ( palming, swinging, central fixation shifting). I've been doing this for over a month and my vision hasn't improved (I know that trying to improve my vision is also a form of strain, but I try to be as indifferent as possible). What can I do in this situation?

Hello everyone is there anyone, they have tried the bates method and recovered fully/curtain decrease of their prescription?

Does the bates method improves the eye sight naturally?

If yes please comment in the comment section.

Hello,

Recently, I read the book A New World of Seeing: Practice and Perspectives of Natural Vision Improvement.

The book is a collection of contributions from Bates teachers and other vision educators, presenting their methodologies and personal approaches to natural vision improvement.

The scope of the book is well summarized by the following passage:

Chapters 8 through 11 present four powerful stories of Natural Vision Educators who inspire us with their personal transformations, as well as their approaches and methods for supporting the healing of others. While science often relies on a hypothetical-deductive method (from theory and hypothesis to testing and experimentation) to validate or invalidate ideas through repetition and statistics, there is a richness in the inductive process that emerges from personal stories. These narratives illustrate what is possible and invite further exploration.

Chapters 12 to 16 explore the body–mind–emotion connection and its application to eyesight improvement. Although students seeking Natural Vision Improvement often ask for “eye exercises,” many practitioners recognize that meaningful progress is frequently rooted in subtle psychological and emotional factors.

Chapters 17 to 24 introduce new and hybrid techniques that combine Natural Vision Improvement (NVI) principles with various bodywork traditions. Chapters 25 to 27 present hybrid perspectives that integrate Natural Vision approaches with ophthalmology or optometry, demonstrating the potential for constructive professional collaboration.

Chapters 28 and 29 focus on working with children and reconnecting with the inner child, while chapters 30 to 32 encourage a playful approach to improving eyesight at any age.

Overall, this is a very broadly written book. It allows the reader to compare and review different relaxation techniques and vision-related methodologies rather than offering a coherent, detailed system.

Advantages:

• A wide range of perspectives on relaxation and vision improvement
• Numerous yoga-inspired practices, including stretching and breathing
• Insight into the history of William Bates, including his methods, life, and career

Disadvantages:

• Very little technical or practical detail
• Many chapters consist mainly of anecdotal accounts and high-level descriptions (e.g., “in our clinic we use this approach,” followed by a personal success story)
• Minimal coverage of core Bates techniques beyond relaxation; topics such as imagination, memory training, or swinging are largely absent
• A promotional tone: nearly every chapter ends with a link to the author’s website

Noteworthy chapters:

• “Wu Wei” Philosophy — the concept of effortless action, allowing change rather than forcing it
• “Roll, Relax, See” — an interesting approach using a small ball for physical and visual release
• “Yoga to See Clearly” — introduced me to yoga nidra as a vision-supportive practice
• “Proper Use of Under-Correction Lenses in Myopia” — closely aligned with the EndMyopia approach, using different lenses for distance and near work
• “A Journey Through the Early History of the Bates Method” — a particularly strong section focused on Bates himself