The audio above is my interview with Esther Joy van der Werf, a Bates method trainer. In the second, I interviewed John, an anonymous polymath physician.
"I got your Substack with all the links to her books and this podcast. Thanks so much. I am almost finished listening here, and already have learned a lot. She and you are both very easy to listen to, very well-spoken. Interestingly, I often use ASMR vids on YouTube to relax and doze off. My favorite and most effective one is SRP Asmr. He is an optometrist, and uses his calming voice while giving eye exams with his closeup devices, looking into your eyes with the bright lights, giving eye chart exams and color vision tests, checking for lens strength ( first or second, first or second ), etc. His practice is in England
When I was a kid in the 1970s my sister was diagnosed with learning disabilities. For some reason, my parents had the idea to take her to Vision Training, taught by an opthamalogist trained at the Giselle (Sic) Institute.
After a pretty intense vision training program, her learning disabilities cleared up. My dad tried it next and he went from wearing Coke bottle glasses to 20/20 in about a year.
The idea was that you train your brain rather than your eyes
I went next, and went from being a kid who was fast becoming nearsighted to 20/20, which I remain to this day, age 63.
Everyone thought we were weirdos, but the results stand.
Another GIGANTIC topic. Another world of misinformed practices deemed normal. Dr. Yoho retired from surgery and took up dragon slaying! He uses the same precision, just a bigger knife. Thanks, Doc!
So interesting, thank you ! Have just realised that I occasionally wore magnifying lenses for close reading at night and now I need to wear them everytime I read...... my brother used to advise me to do exactly as specified in a section of your story- look up every few minutes and focus on an object in the distance. Also to look at green-toned things. That was seventy years ago now.....
Another invent the disease and then provide the useless cure. It's been a pandemic for decades. I do not use glasses to read and try to keep them off as much as possible. They have been with me for about 60 years. I can't see distances very well at least for sharpness.
My nearly 97 year old father has been getting shots in his one eye for many years. Now his good eye is acting up. He will finally quit driving in a few months. I don't want to end up like this. You go to the doc, he finds a problem and then wants to drug it to death and you as well. No thanks.
Thank you for this. I first heard concerns about glasses on a video that sounded like they would want to sell me something in the end, so I made a mental note but hadn't researched it yet.
I originally asked for multifocals so I didn't have to put reading glasses on '100's' of times a day, basically for convenience. But with increasing prescriptions every two years from then on, I wondered if my request had precipitated the deterioration somehow. Again, thank you.
I was Rx’d reading glasses in 9th grade which I wore through HS. Off to college, I stopped, my eyes improved and at nearly 67yo I read perfectly w/o them.
So glad you posted about this. I read about Bates' methods a long time ago, but couldn't understand it. Fast forward 3 decades and over the pandemic policy period, I noticed a distinct decline in my eyesight requiring a switch to "new" prescriptions. I also found I was wearing them a lot more.
Then I came across a mention of Bates again on FB and so I did some searching again and came across Esther's book and some podcasts.
I quickly read the book and decided to stop using any glasses (including sunglasses) and simply relax my eyes. I noticed a significant difference within weeks, using very basic relaxation techniques outlined in Esther's book.
After that I booked a session with her. I haven't worn any glasses for 1.5 years now. I have confirmation from my ophalmologist that my eyesight significantly improved although it is far from perfect.
The biggest challenge for office workers like me, is to get enough outdoor light but I'll never go back to glasses.
What a lovely human being. Her advice to trust your instincts over your doctor should be a mantra repeated daily. An Israeli friend told me years ago that wearing sunglasses was harmful. With light-colored eyes, I didn't believe her. I just tried looking at the bright Cali sun and I couldn't do a second. So perhaps my cool Ray Bans aren't so great.
I needed this. I wear glasses for reading and a different pair for driving. I seldom drive at night, but last night after shopping I drove home in the dark. The right lens corrected the vision in my right eye, but the left lens made the vision much worse in the left eye. I kept having to peer over then through.
And the cheap reading glasses I have now are much the same. I can't afford new prescription glasses right now, certainly not ones with different prescriptions.
I will listen to this interview, and hope I can find something I can do to help myself. Before I turned 50 I had near perfect vision, never wore glasses, and could read very fine print easily.
I was fitted with eye glasses near the end of my 5th Grade. While in the 5th grade classroom, we rotated desks one a week to that those in the back of the room would eventually be on the front row. I was poor student with a bad attitude after transferring from another school from the 4th grade. My 5th grade teacher treated me poorly and often embarrass in front of the class. I became the class laughing stock. So, I preferred to be in the back of the classroom all the time and did not complete assignments.
Back to the glasses. We had free eye exams and was found to be near sighted. So, I was fitted with glasses for that as well as astigmatism in my left eye. My 6th grade teacher was wonderful, she was aware of my situation and took a keen interest in my performance. My reading level went from 4th grade level to 8th grade level in just a few months. Was it the glasses? or proper learning environment, I believe both. In college I was always in the 95% in all subjects except Grammar. I earned three engineering degrees have several peer reviewed publications but may grammar still stinks.
I hate glasses and went to progressive lenses in my mid-50s. I went 10 years with the same prescription then I just stopped wearing glasses and refused to go back for another prescription. My eyes became stronger and I could do many things without them. I started wearing sunglasses while outdoors most of the time. Eventually my near vision changed sufficiently that I decided to go back to the optometrist. Therefore I ended up with a new prescription that was weaker (better eye sight) than my old one. The new glass enabled me to better read road signs and improved my reading. I still hate glasses but the astigmatism is still there so they are necessary. I was able to remove the prism which was an artifact of smoking too much Mary Jane in my 20's but the prism forces my eyes adapt to the lateral distortion. (Note: Lateral eye distortion is common to those that consume Mary Jane). I had the prism in my glasses for 30 years. Not wearing glasses for over 2 yrs. removed that lateral distortion so my new lens no longer has the prism. (Praise the Lord!!)
I know this was long but want to make it entertaining, I hope it was.
Thank you, Dr. Yoho, for the eye-opening interview of Esther. You asked really sharp and useful questions which made the interview extremely useful. I am going to work on the concepts learned.
I never ever wear sunglasses. Though if I worked in a situation with tons of glare I would, Such as being a sherpa or a mountaineer in snow capped ranges. Or if I were a fisherman.
I wear 1.50 glasses for my computer and have done so for 27 years. For reading books, I use a full spectrum 75 watt lightbulb/lamp and my prescription glasses. Or some 2.0 diopter glasses from Amazon.
If you are a big reader of books and magazines on paper. And your eyesight is not that good. Get a full spectrum bulb, 75–100 watts, behind you and shining on your book. You can test this easily. Go outside when the sun is shining brightly. Test how easy it is to read a book. I have loads of 75 watt GE Reveal bulbs . Full Spectrum. Contact me if you are interested.
From Rumble
"I got your Substack with all the links to her books and this podcast. Thanks so much. I am almost finished listening here, and already have learned a lot. She and you are both very easy to listen to, very well-spoken. Interestingly, I often use ASMR vids on YouTube to relax and doze off. My favorite and most effective one is SRP Asmr. He is an optometrist, and uses his calming voice while giving eye exams with his closeup devices, looking into your eyes with the bright lights, giving eye chart exams and color vision tests, checking for lens strength ( first or second, first or second ), etc. His practice is in England
When I was a kid in the 1970s my sister was diagnosed with learning disabilities. For some reason, my parents had the idea to take her to Vision Training, taught by an opthamalogist trained at the Giselle (Sic) Institute.
After a pretty intense vision training program, her learning disabilities cleared up. My dad tried it next and he went from wearing Coke bottle glasses to 20/20 in about a year.
The idea was that you train your brain rather than your eyes
I went next, and went from being a kid who was fast becoming nearsighted to 20/20, which I remain to this day, age 63.
Everyone thought we were weirdos, but the results stand.
Another GIGANTIC topic. Another world of misinformed practices deemed normal. Dr. Yoho retired from surgery and took up dragon slaying! He uses the same precision, just a bigger knife. Thanks, Doc!
Thank you for sharing this life affirming information FREELY to us all...
So interesting, thank you ! Have just realised that I occasionally wore magnifying lenses for close reading at night and now I need to wear them everytime I read...... my brother used to advise me to do exactly as specified in a section of your story- look up every few minutes and focus on an object in the distance. Also to look at green-toned things. That was seventy years ago now.....
Another invent the disease and then provide the useless cure. It's been a pandemic for decades. I do not use glasses to read and try to keep them off as much as possible. They have been with me for about 60 years. I can't see distances very well at least for sharpness.
My nearly 97 year old father has been getting shots in his one eye for many years. Now his good eye is acting up. He will finally quit driving in a few months. I don't want to end up like this. You go to the doc, he finds a problem and then wants to drug it to death and you as well. No thanks.
Thank you for this. I first heard concerns about glasses on a video that sounded like they would want to sell me something in the end, so I made a mental note but hadn't researched it yet.
I originally asked for multifocals so I didn't have to put reading glasses on '100's' of times a day, basically for convenience. But with increasing prescriptions every two years from then on, I wondered if my request had precipitated the deterioration somehow. Again, thank you.
I was Rx’d reading glasses in 9th grade which I wore through HS. Off to college, I stopped, my eyes improved and at nearly 67yo I read perfectly w/o them.
So glad you posted about this. I read about Bates' methods a long time ago, but couldn't understand it. Fast forward 3 decades and over the pandemic policy period, I noticed a distinct decline in my eyesight requiring a switch to "new" prescriptions. I also found I was wearing them a lot more.
Then I came across a mention of Bates again on FB and so I did some searching again and came across Esther's book and some podcasts.
I quickly read the book and decided to stop using any glasses (including sunglasses) and simply relax my eyes. I noticed a significant difference within weeks, using very basic relaxation techniques outlined in Esther's book.
After that I booked a session with her. I haven't worn any glasses for 1.5 years now. I have confirmation from my ophalmologist that my eyesight significantly improved although it is far from perfect.
The biggest challenge for office workers like me, is to get enough outdoor light but I'll never go back to glasses.
What a lovely human being. Her advice to trust your instincts over your doctor should be a mantra repeated daily. An Israeli friend told me years ago that wearing sunglasses was harmful. With light-colored eyes, I didn't believe her. I just tried looking at the bright Cali sun and I couldn't do a second. So perhaps my cool Ray Bans aren't so great.
I needed this. I wear glasses for reading and a different pair for driving. I seldom drive at night, but last night after shopping I drove home in the dark. The right lens corrected the vision in my right eye, but the left lens made the vision much worse in the left eye. I kept having to peer over then through.
And the cheap reading glasses I have now are much the same. I can't afford new prescription glasses right now, certainly not ones with different prescriptions.
I will listen to this interview, and hope I can find something I can do to help myself. Before I turned 50 I had near perfect vision, never wore glasses, and could read very fine print easily.
I was fitted with eye glasses near the end of my 5th Grade. While in the 5th grade classroom, we rotated desks one a week to that those in the back of the room would eventually be on the front row. I was poor student with a bad attitude after transferring from another school from the 4th grade. My 5th grade teacher treated me poorly and often embarrass in front of the class. I became the class laughing stock. So, I preferred to be in the back of the classroom all the time and did not complete assignments.
Back to the glasses. We had free eye exams and was found to be near sighted. So, I was fitted with glasses for that as well as astigmatism in my left eye. My 6th grade teacher was wonderful, she was aware of my situation and took a keen interest in my performance. My reading level went from 4th grade level to 8th grade level in just a few months. Was it the glasses? or proper learning environment, I believe both. In college I was always in the 95% in all subjects except Grammar. I earned three engineering degrees have several peer reviewed publications but may grammar still stinks.
I hate glasses and went to progressive lenses in my mid-50s. I went 10 years with the same prescription then I just stopped wearing glasses and refused to go back for another prescription. My eyes became stronger and I could do many things without them. I started wearing sunglasses while outdoors most of the time. Eventually my near vision changed sufficiently that I decided to go back to the optometrist. Therefore I ended up with a new prescription that was weaker (better eye sight) than my old one. The new glass enabled me to better read road signs and improved my reading. I still hate glasses but the astigmatism is still there so they are necessary. I was able to remove the prism which was an artifact of smoking too much Mary Jane in my 20's but the prism forces my eyes adapt to the lateral distortion. (Note: Lateral eye distortion is common to those that consume Mary Jane). I had the prism in my glasses for 30 years. Not wearing glasses for over 2 yrs. removed that lateral distortion so my new lens no longer has the prism. (Praise the Lord!!)
I know this was long but want to make it entertaining, I hope it was.
Thank you, Dr. Yoho, for the eye-opening interview of Esther. You asked really sharp and useful questions which made the interview extremely useful. I am going to work on the concepts learned.
Thanks for sharing so much you are learning, Doctor. It's so valuable. Great resources!
Might be too late/hard to correct, but I hear John fine while Dr.Yoho you are so very feint. I miss hearing your input/questions!
John & Ester are both fascinating. Thank you!!
I never ever wear sunglasses. Though if I worked in a situation with tons of glare I would, Such as being a sherpa or a mountaineer in snow capped ranges. Or if I were a fisherman.
I wear 1.50 glasses for my computer and have done so for 27 years. For reading books, I use a full spectrum 75 watt lightbulb/lamp and my prescription glasses. Or some 2.0 diopter glasses from Amazon.
If you are a big reader of books and magazines on paper. And your eyesight is not that good. Get a full spectrum bulb, 75–100 watts, behind you and shining on your book. You can test this easily. Go outside when the sun is shining brightly. Test how easy it is to read a book. I have loads of 75 watt GE Reveal bulbs . Full Spectrum. Contact me if you are interested.