Whether you’ve had laser eye surgery in the past or are just beginning to consider it, there’s always room for a little extra self-care when it comes to looking after your vision by performing eye exercises like the ones listed below.
It’s important to note that very few qualified eye care professionals have ever claimed exercises can do anything to cure or reverse vision issues that require correctional intervention in the form of glasses, contact lenses or laser surgery.
In fact, proponents of the somewhat controversial ‘eye yoga’ – yes, it’s a thing – are often accused of misleading clients about the extent of its potential impact.
Indeed, Harvard Medical School stated way back in a 2003 paper that ‘some programs even claim faithful adherents may be able to give up their glasses…if this sounds too good to be true, that’s because it is.’
However, that same study also concluded that when ‘practised faithfully, eye exercises may actually help delay the need for glasses or contact lenses in some people.’
While you certainly won’t be able to exercise away any encroaching issues with nearsightedness, farsightedness or astigmatism, some types of simple DIY exercises are thought to carry potential benefits for certain sorts of visual activity, such as focusing and reducing fatigue blur.
At the very least, you should be able to give tired or underperforming eyes a quick boost from time to time with some of the simple, relaxing exercises outlined below.
Treat these exercises as a meditative and relaxing process, with a particular focus on soothing the overworked muscle groups and fatigued surfaces of your eyes.
Almost anybody can give these quick vision tune-up routines a go – except, that is, for patients with partial or total blindness, cataracts, and those recovering from recent corneal injuries. Anyone with these or similar conditions should always consult a doctor first.
Practising the following once a week at home is a terrific way to get started.
Treat these eye exercises as a meditative and relaxing process, with a particular focus on soothing the overworked muscle groups and fatigued surfaces of your eyes. Almost anybody can give these quick vision tune-up routines a go – except, that is, for patients with partial or total blindness, cataracts, and those recovering from recent corneal injuries. Anyone with these or similar conditions should always consult a doctor first. Practising the following once a week at home is a terrific way to get started.
At the end of all vision exercise routines, it’s a good idea to ‘warm down’ with a final round of palming to soothe your eyes and relax you back into the rest of your day.Once again, while these sorts of exercises can be extremely helpful in making your eyes feel refreshed, tuned-up and less easily fatigued, no conclusive scientific research of any kind has shown that they’re effective in combating vision issues such as myopia, presbyopia or astigmatism. This is because those sorts of conditions are related to the physical shape of the eyeball, and how it, therefore, refracts light.
As useful as DIY eye exercises can feel, no amount of massage, palming or focal practice can change the structural anatomy of the human eye.
Here’s the bottom line: if you’re experiencing problems with your vision, you should always get it checked out by an appropriate doctor as the first port of call. Delaying necessary medical treatment can make various conditions more difficult to correct effectively in future.
