| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| efyl |
Posted - 07/20/2010 : 08:01:47
I started reading about TMS about 2 1/2 weeks ago and have seen a 50% improvement since then in my physical symptoms in my neck, jaw and shoulders. I'm curious, however, if anyone has any sense whether or not nearsightedness might be TMS. I'm a classic perfectionist/goodist and started to become slightly nearsighted about 20 years ago somewhere around the age range of 16 to 19. Marc Sopher, in his book, continually says about humans--if we were so fragile, we wouldn't have survived. It seems to me like nearsightedness is oddly epidemic. Are we really "damaging" our eyes or could it be TMS? Thanks for your thoughts. |
| 12 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| art |
Posted - 07/28/2010 : 06:54:37
Appreciate the thoughtful post efyl. I don't have the amswers you seek. Surely, if what used to be called "hysterical blindess" can occur, one would think a form of "hysterical" myopia could as well.
I'm more interested in your reaction to your nearsightedness than the TMS question. Most people accept the prospect of glasses with equanimity, especially these days when there's a laser clinic on every corner it seems.
Why such a strong reaction do you suppose? "Betrayal" seems a strong word. I think that might be a fruitful line of thought for you.. (I'm no shrink, tho I often play one on the Internet :>) |
| efyl |
Posted - 07/26/2010 : 21:35:26
Hey Art, forgive me for quickly jumping to conclusions on heredity. After I did that post I gave things a bit more thought and realized that--as you later stated--that something doesn't have to manifest itself in childhood to be genetic. As well, despite the lack of myopia in my family (even in my extended family), a genetic component could be recessive I suppose. Note though that I've selected the word "genetic component" . . .
I hadn't really thought much about the possibility of a genetic component, although I've certainly seen families where everyone has glasses. I have been long curious though as to the incidence (and seeming epidemic) of myopia--especially ever since an eye doctor friend who used to run eye clinics with other American doctors in Guatemala told me that while there was less accessible eye care in the highlands of Guatemala, there was also a lower incidence of myopia than in the US. It just made me wonder what's going on. Anyway, in doing a some research now it does seem that it's still not clear to the medical community what exactly is going on. There is evidence for some level of genetic hereditability (though one study I read about gave a range much lower than the 89% upper limit from the Wikipedia source). The genetic component or components--as it may be "multifactoral"--seem to be complex, however. Then, of course, there is the argument and the evidence for environmental factors. Apparently there are even arguments for environmental factors triggering/effecting genetic expression of myopia. With my friend's experience in Guatemala in mind, I looked at things cross-culturally and apparently there are wildly different percentages of myopia in different societies. The tendency apparently is that the more developed a society is, the higher the myopia rate . . . but it isn't that clear cut. Some countries don't fit that, including some developing Asian countries that seem to have high rates. There are also differences by age group, by gender, by income level, by educational attainment, and by occupational type. Sounds like a complex picture, no?
The question I'm naturally raising here is: Does TMS play a role in this? That is, is nearsightedness TMS or can it be or can TMS be one of a plethora of components, even perhaps being involved in the expression of myopia? Even just from the stories of others, it sounds like eyesight may be susceptible to emotional factors/TMS.
I had read that most people who become myopic start to do so in childhood or in their early teen years. As it didn't happen to me until my later teens, I guess the bottom line here is that I felt "betrayed" by my body. More or less the "How could my body have done this to me?" kind of feeling. I started having pain symptoms years ago but when I started having more debilitating problems two years ago, it included (and has at times continued to include) a sense of "pressure" around my eyes (though without notably affecting vision). Of course, other than slight myopia my eyes have checked out fine numerous times. Hence, this overall story is why I'm interested in whether emotional factors may play a role in nearsightedness. |
| Erata |
Posted - 07/23/2010 : 14:31:56
^^You’re right and there are simple exercises to keep eye muscles toned and to promote blood flow to the optic nerves. I was so freaked out when my vision went haywire; I found a book I had bought years before with diagrams of Yoga exercises to promote vision and I still do them every day. Some of them are described here http://www.holisticonline.com/yoga/hol_yoga_pos_eyeex.htm. I haven’t had a recurrence in 16 years, but, my brain found a ‘better’ diversion through Fibromyalgia.
This is a webpage about a young man who reversed, through exercise and Tibetan Yoga, lifelong blindness. He also used techniques by William Bates, referred to by TennisTom in another post above. (I ordered his DVD several years ago and never got around to watching it—this is a good reminder for me to finally see it.)
http://www.cyberparent.com/fitness/dvdyogaforeyes.htm.
For some reason these websites won't connect, but in any case, just google 'Yoga for eyes' to find exercises. The man who regained his sight is named Meir Schneider. |
| tennis tom |
Posted - 07/23/2010 : 11:52:14
The eyes have muscles that shape them to focus. As we age, we need to warm-up our muscles a bit, before they are good to go. The first thing I think about warming-up on the tennis court are my eyes.
The books by Dr.Robert-Michael Kaplan are are excellent to learn about the fascinating subject of vision/VISION.
TAKE THE HOLMES-RAHE STRESS TEST
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holmes_and_Rahe_stress_scale
Some of my favorite excerpts from _THE DIVIDED MIND_ :
http://www.tmshelp.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2605
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| Erata |
Posted - 07/23/2010 : 11:24:02
quote:
Originally posted by efyl
I started reading about TMS about 2 1/2 weeks ago and have seen a 50% improvement since then in my physical symptoms in my neck, jaw and shoulders. I'm curious, however, if anyone has any sense whether or not nearsightedness might be TMS. I'm a classic perfectionist/goodist and started to become slightly nearsighted about 20 years ago somewhere around the age range of 16 to 19. Marc Sopher, in his book, continually says about humans--if we were so fragile, we wouldn't have survived. It seems to me like nearsightedness is oddly epidemic. Are we really "damaging" our eyes or could it be TMS? Thanks for your thoughts.
Thanks Efyl,I also find this a very interesting topic and why, after thousands and thousands of years of evolution, is nearsightedness such a common and accepted condition,? It’s not really a very good diversion, as are so many TMS pain conditions, so it doesn’t really serve the same purpose as a TMS equivalent. But, I wonder how much influence the brain has over vision.
My own personal experience is that, when I was in my early twenties, I had near perfect vision, but I actually envied people who wore glasses for nearsightedness because I thought glasses were fashionable. Isn’t that nuts—to want reduced eyesight in order to be fashionable? Within a year, my vision had changed and I was prescribed glasses.
Years later, when I began dealing in therapy with very painful repressed memories, I suddenly developed a dramatic loss of vision in one eye that couldn’t be explained by ophthalmologists. It cleared up, but reappeared years later, whereupon it cleared up again, was replaced by overall debilitating pain, and I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. I think those two instances were TMS equivalents. When I later told an eye doctor during a routine exam about the prior problems with that eye, he was surprised because he said my optic nerve looked fine and showed no evidence of prior vision loss.
Coincidently I was thinking about eyesight as a ‘TMS subject ‘a few weeks ago when I was watching a movie but misplaced my glasses. I started to watch without them and noticed I could see just as well, so I turned on the captions and was able to read them without fuzziness. I found my glasses, put them on but the captions & images were blurry with my glasses on. I went back and forth a few times, and my vision continued to be better without my glasses, but it didn’t last, I think because I’d found my glasses so it was no longer necessary for me to ‘see’ without them. I think the brain’s a pretty powerful manipulator! |
| art |
Posted - 07/23/2010 : 09:07:37
quote:
Originally posted by efyl
A thanks to Tennis Tom and a question to Art: Art, if I'm the only person in my family with myopia and I didn't develop it until my teen years, how is this an inherited condition? That is, it may not be TMS, but I sure wasn't born with it. Enough to make one think anyway . . . especially since the teen years are when I really started to put a lot of pressure on myself.
efyl, You don't need to manifest something as a kid for it to be inherited. I can think of many conditions right off the top of my head, from male pattern baldness to a bunch of terrible diseases.
edit: from wikepeda.
Genetic factors—The wide variability of the prevalence of myopia in different ethnic groups has been reported as additional evidence supporting the role of genetics in the development of myopia.[39] Measures of the heritability of myopia have yielded figures as high as 89%, and recent research has identified genes that may be responsible: defective versions of the PAX6 gene seem to be associated with myopia in twin studies.[40] Under this theory, the eye is slightly elongated front to back as a result of faults during development, causing images to be focused in front of the retina rather than directly on it. It is usually discovered during the pre-teen years between eight and twelve years of age. It most often worsens gradually as the eye grows during adolescence and then levels off as a person reaches adulthood. Genetic factors can work in various biochemical ways to cause myopia, a weak or degraded connective tissue is a very essential one. Genetic factors include an inherited, increased susceptibility for environmental influences like excessive near work, and the fact that some people do not develop myopia in spite of very adverse conditions is a clear indication that heredity is involved somehow in any case |
| tennis tom |
Posted - 07/23/2010 : 08:33:33
Hi Efyl,
Here's my eye doctor north of San Francisco:
http://www.eyeexercises.com/
He does phone consults and could maybe recommend an eye doctor in your area.
Good Luck
TAKE THE HOLMES-RAHE STRESS TEST
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holmes_and_Rahe_stress_scale
Some of my favorite excerpts from _THE DIVIDED MIND_ :
http://www.tmshelp.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2605
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| efyl |
Posted - 07/23/2010 : 06:12:01
A thanks to Tennis Tom and a question to Art: Art, if I'm the only person in my family with myopia and I didn't develop it until my teen years, how is this an inherited condition? That is, it may not be TMS, but I sure wasn't born with it. Enough to make one think anyway . . . especially since the teen years are when I really started to put a lot of pressure on myself. |
| tennis tom |
Posted - 07/21/2010 : 21:52:55
quote:
Originally posted by TotalStrangerFigure
Tennis Tom,
What results did you have?
Without going into detail, I don't worry about my eyesight, I trust my vision.
TAKE THE HOLMES-RAHE STRESS TEST
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holmes_and_Rahe_stress_scale
Some of my favorite excerpts from _THE DIVIDED MIND_ :
http://www.tmshelp.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2605
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| art |
Posted - 07/21/2010 : 08:45:40
We've got a powerful hammer, but important to resist thinking every problem is a nail. Myopia is an inherited condition involving the shape of the eyeball. |
| TotalStrangerFigure |
Posted - 07/20/2010 : 15:50:31
Tennis Tom,
What results did you have? |
| tennis tom |
Posted - 07/20/2010 : 09:01:19
Dr. Robert-Michael Kaplan and Dr. William Bates are noted Behavioral Optometrists. If anyone is interested in the topic of VISION/vision, search on this site for numerous posts that deal with the fascinating topic of "eyesight". They are compatible with TMS theory and are non-invasive.
Eye doctors who practice this special form of vision therapy are few and far between as are TMS doctors. People want a quick fix and just slap on some eye-glasses or contacts. These eye-therapy specialists are out there for those who wish to explore a natural form of VISION/vision improvement. I saw one in Novato, CA. There are many videos and books on the topic.
TAKE THE HOLMES-RAHE STRESS TEST
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holmes_and_Rahe_stress_scale
Some of my favorite excerpts from _THE DIVIDED MIND_ :
http://www.tmshelp.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2605
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