Shifting Attention

Baskets of dried fruit at Vienna's "Naschmarkt" Farmer's Market
Baskets of dried fruit at Vienna’s “Naschmarkt” Farmer’s Market

Healthy eyes are always moving, we just don’t notice. If your vision is blurry you are probably staring at the screen, trying to see as much as possible at once. That’s not how our eyes work though, they are not like a camera! Our eyes can only see a very small point perfectly clear at any given time, but move so fast that it feels as if we see the whole screen at once.

Activity:
Take your glasses off if you wear any, then click the picture above to enlarge it. Practice eye movement by letting your eyes wander over the different baskets of dried fruit. Close your eyes and remember what you saw. Repeat. Maybe you notice how the baskets seem to move in an opposite direction to your eye movement. Once you feel more relaxed you can let your eyes move from one fruit piece to the next within the same basket. Close you eyes and remember the pieces of fruit and the movement.

For myopia:

Look outside and move your eyes across trees, houses or windows, whatever you can see. It’s ok if it’s a blurry as long as you can make out shapes. Notice how your objects seem to move in a opposite direction. Close your eyes and remember the movement and what you saw. Repeat. When closing your eyes again, remember what you saw, then imagine it clear. Open your eyes. Different or same?

Finish:
End with a 5-10 min palm and relaxed breathing. Enjoy the darkness and rest. Remember to move your eyes across the screen next time you work on the computer, and look into the distance every 10 minutes!