Are Eye Exercises a Scam?

Copyright © Rebecca Turner

Nearly everyone who first encounters the idea of vision training asks: are eye exercises a scam? Certainly, for anyone with poor eyesight, the idea of having clear vision without glasses seems too good to be true. And if eye exercises are real, why doesn't everyone do them? These are important questions.

When I first discovered eye exercises, I couldn't believe they worked either. But I was so frustrated with wearing glasses for my myopia (-3.25/-3.00) and astigmatism, I was desperate to try anything. Anything except LASIK that is - I'll admit to being terrified of anything going into my eyes. I was never able to wear contact lenses during my 15 years of being nearsighted either. So when I found eye exercises I felt compelled to give it a go.

My Eye Exercise Trial

Eye exercises had the potential to change my life - if they worked. I decided to give it my best shot. I purchased a vision training course online called Rebuild Your Vision which required me to do 20 minutes of eye exercises each day, with 5 minutes of relaxation afterwards. It also challenged me to only wear my glasses when I really needed them, which was a lot easier than I expected it to be. In fact, I was able to go about many different aspects of my life without glasses, which helped me overcome a major psychological barrier. It was also necessary for the eye exercises to work without holding myself back.

The Beginning

During the first week I performed the simplest eye exercises like Ferris Wheel and In & Out. I began having brief periods of clearer vision on Day Three - ie I could suddenly read titles on the bookshelf from across the room, something I was obviously not used to without my glasses. The course explained that if you already have small fluctuations in your vision from day to day, then you may have the capacity to relax and retrain the muscles that serve to focus clearly.

And that's what was happening to me - I was giving my eyes a break from the near point stress of wearing glasses all day and using them in a variety of new ways. For years, I had never bothered to try to focus in the distance without glasses. Now I finally used my eyes properly, and they were working.

The Middle

About three weeks into my eye exercise trial, I was convinced they had made a measurable difference. I was doing the eye exercises at a set time each day - usually just before lunch. I am lucky to work from home so was able to fit it into my schedule easily enough. This routine made it easier to keep going. I also put relaxing music on or listened to the TV in the background so I didn't get bored.

I'll be honest, 25 minutes every day was a challenge and I think this would be the major detraction for most people. If it required only 2 minutes per day - well then we'd all be doing our eye exercises while we brush our teeth in the morning! So if you are really committing to eye exercises, you have to put in some effort.

The End

After six weeks, I started getting strong headaches when I wore my old glasses to drive (never drive without glasses while you're still improving your vision - if that needs to be said). This concerned me, so I finally made the trip to my optometrist and got my eyes checked. I said nothing about the eye exercises I had been doing - I didn't want to jinx or otherwise affect the outcome of the test in any way.

So you can imagine how pleased I was when the result came: since doing eye exercises, my left eye has improved from -3.25 diopters to -2.25 diopters. And my right eye had gone form -3.00 to -2.00 diopters! My heart leapt. If you have been stuck wearing glasses for any significant period of time you can imagine the feeling... Finally I had my verifiable answer: eye exercises are not a scam!

Beyond The Trial

Of course, I couldn't stop there. My progress had been a little slower than I had hoped but the fact remained that the eye exercises had worked for my eyes. I continued Rebuild Your Vision and after a further month I went back to the optometrist. I was delighted to be handed an even weaker prescription (-0.50 diopters less in both eyes) and I had eradicated my astigmatism of 10+ years!

If you're not familiar with diopters, those results mean I went from seeing 20/150 initially, to seeing at 20/60 without any glasses in 10 weeks. The average person with healthy eyesight has a 20/20 focus. This is a benchmark measure of what you should be able to see at a distance of 20 feet. Amazingly, my vision had not been that good in at least a decade, since when I was at school.

Conclusion

Are eye exercises a scam? Not in my experience. I saw a dramatic improvement in my vision, albeit over a good number of weeks, which is on a par with the overall recovery time of a LASIK patient. Plus, my results came at a fraction of the price (LASIK costs an average of $3,000) and without the side effects and risks of LASIK that I would never subject myself to, beyond the squeam factor.

If you have poor vision as a result of typical refractive errors, I would definitely recommend looking into eye exercises. If you can't be bothered, don't have the time, or are happy to keep wearing glasses or contacts, then you will likely lose motivation. However bear in mind that vision deterioration when you're young (ie before the age of 40) is unnatural and can leads to more serious vision disorders in later life. At a younger age, eye exercises give us a chance to correct the bad vision habits of our youth and restore our vision naturally.

Read My Full Rebuild Your Vision Review Here

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