April 18, 2016
Relaxation
The relaxed eye in the Bates method is vibrant and alert, bright, and interested in seeing. It holds no concerns . . .
439The Effect of Weightlessness on the Shape of the Eye
"Astronauts' eyeballs deformed by long missions in space, study finds"
The effect of weightlessness on the shape of the eye
"Astronauts' eyeballs deformed by long missions in space, study finds"
The article linked to was originally published in the Guardian on March 13, 2012 - (see article and link below)
Some astronauts have reported changes in their eyesight after missions on the International Space Station. Photograph: AP
While the bulk of the article assumes a negative cause and outcome from the study, from a Bates method vantage point it makes reasonable sense that zero-gravity could - in many cases- trigger a release of habitual tension in the muscles around the eyes. While the orthodoxy continues to maintain that an elongated eyeball is an unchangeable genetic condition that underpins myopia, this unusual experience for people in long-term weightlessness shows clearly that the shape of the eye is not fixed.
"Brain scans revealed that seven of the 27 astronauts had a flattening of the back of one or both eyes. By making the eyeball shorter, this made the astronauts more long-sighted, which in some cases had the effect of reducing or correcting their short-sightedness."
The rather curious implication that a correction of short-sightedness is due to 'eyeballs [being] deformed' leaves one asking: how long will it be before some credence is given to the possibility that chronic, long-term physical and mental tension has a potential influence on the shape of the eye, and thereby on the condition of sight? Those who undertake Bates lessons from a competent teacher know the simplicity of this from experience.
Far from being a 'serious abnormality' even those who move into hypermetropia (long sight) are potentially showing a similar freedom from muscular tension that babies have by default from birth. It's well known that new-borns are hypermetropic at birth, and take some time to learn how to bring the eyes to focus.
Food for thought. In the meantime, when you next do some palming, imagine your eyes are floating in space!
The full article:
The Guardian: The effect of weightlessness on the shape of the eye
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