I freaked out my eye doctor tonight

(Michael Wallace Ellwood) #15

Or if you want a more sophisticated role model, you could be Lord Peter Wimsey. :wink:

(Craig) #16

Hi Roxanne

Your amount of myopia(shortsightedness) will often be associated with an increase in the axial length of the eyes ie myopic eyes, when measured, are often physically longer than normal.

Many theories exist as to what genetic predispositions and environmental influences are driving this myopic shift in modern populations.

I think the jury is still out on keto’s ability to effectively reverse significant amounts of myopia in eyes with demonstrable axial lengthening.

Most of the variation in refraction seen with tightening glucose control is thought to be associated with a change in hydration of the lens, which could result in either more or less myopia.

Was interested to hear about your new eye scan. Believe it may have been fundus photography, where we take a picture of the structures at the back of your eyes, or OCT (optical coherence tomography), where we can actually view the deeper layers of these structures.

Yes, like noses, eyes come in all different shapes and sizes!

(Craig) #17

Hi Mike

Am obviously not as well read as you. Up until now, was unaware of Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey.

Appears that he may be left eye distance dominant.

Gotta wonder whether either of these guys ever wore any lens power in their monocles while on set? Had a quick look on Google photo search, and am not convinced.

(Roxanne) #18

That was it, I think. Was glad that it found no new issues!

(David) #19

(Stickin' with mammoth) #20

It’s not just keto.

I reduced my contact lens prescription from a -4.75 to a -2.25 over a decade by simply convincing myself that it was possible and then finding optometrists willing to prescribe one step less than I needed to give my eyes space to relax into. Worked like a charm. In fact, it would have worked even faster had I not gotten sidelined by other projects and shifted my focus, so to speak.

I did all this while transitioning through a SAD diet, pescatarian, vegetarian, vegan, raw vegan, SAD diet again, and then keto. I did no special eye exercises, took no bilberry, and I rarely wear sunglasses. My entire nuclear family is profoundly nearsighted; my eyes are still improving. In fact, most days, I wake with near-perfect vision and I can relax into clear flashes throughout the day when I concentrate.

I’ll be lens-free by 50.

(Arlene) #21

I have wanted to do this. Eye docs say “that’s impossible” every time I ask about it. Nice to know you have had success with this. It makes perfect sense to me, and I’m also one that believes that many impossibles are just narrow-minded thinking. It certainly doesn’t hurt to try.

(Crow T. Robot) #22

Wow, that’s pretty cool, congrats! I’ve wondered if this were possible, but only ever got the same old advice from optometrists. Then again, I’ve never asked to try this method. Did you read about this or is it your own invention?

(Stickin' with mammoth) #23

Go back and read the history of medicine–it’s appalling what people used to believe compared to what we now “know.” Did the facts change? Nope. Just our understanding. Imagine what we’ll know in a hundred years. I say why wait? Hell, is it any wonder I’m keto?

Little of both. I started with being angry at being told what my health was going to be regardless of my input or agency (sound like any diabetes lectures you’ve ever gotten?) Then, I did what I always do: copious research. Sure enough, there were plenty of people healing and curing themselves of all sorts of things out there, usually contrary to smug doctors’ opinions. This suited me very well.

I found the Bates Method and did a little of it, then “Restoring Your Eyesight,” by Doug Marsh. Again, I did only a little, then stopped. Mostly, I just used these things as tools to convince myself that it was possible. Once my body and brain were lined up with the ability to have 15/20 vision again, it pretty much happened on its own. I had shifted my mind from focusing on “I have bad eyesight” to “my eyesight is getting better and better” and the body always follows the mind.

The only thing that slowed me down, really, was the cost of having to go in for another check up every time my eyes improved. They all know me by name down there.

(Melanie Marie) #24

I did a bit of reading about this last fall, when my daughter all of a sudden immediately needed glasses. The doc suggested that she could not see a matter of feet ahead of her and it was quite a frustrating shock. She was fine a year ago (She is 14 yrs).

She does try to go without them, and spends more time outdoors which is supposed to help “retrain” your eyes to re-adjust to seeing farther? She is a book reader, and in the past year has gone to reading nearly constantly. I read a study re: children in cultures that changed their focus to education rather than labor and the drastic increase in near-sightedness. I’m sure cell phones don’t help, either. But luckily mine aren’t too badly wrapped up in theirs. It’s all the darn books.

(Stickin' with mammoth) #25

Look a little further out around her. What’s her social life like? Does she have a healthy one? Are you sure?

My vision suffered suddenly at fourteen, too. Looking back, I realize it was the horrendous stress of junior high that did it. There’s only so much trauma the body and mind can take before something gives. I was a heavy reader before fourteen and I’ve been a heavy reader since I healed my eyes. It ain’t the books.

(Crow T. Robot) #26

I was a heavy reader when my eyesight went bad, too, but now that I look back, I was also a heavy consumer of sugar, like, right out of the bowl. I would even sneak away with it so Mom didn’t know how much I was eating. I strongly suspect now that that was the real cause of my vision problems.

(Crow T. Robot) #27

Wow, sort of mind over body? Pretty cool, thanks.

(Stickin' with mammoth) #28

Precisely mind over body. Mind has the conn. I’ve turned all sorts of stuff around using the same technique. It’s kind of astounding how simple and effective it is. And free. Free is good.

(Melanie Marie) #29

bacon and Chris, yes. I do worry about all of that. It has been a stressful year just on a normal basis, with typical “stresses” (I mean she doesn’t have anything traumatic she is dealing, that I know, and we are pretty close and I monitor her phone, etc) She is an anxious child anyway, so there’s that. I have upped her supplements, added more D, Omegas and B vits. I got them a basketball hoop. We live in a terrible climate. If it’s not freezing, it’s 95 degrees, so getting them outside has been great. My kids are NOT sports enthusiasts, but having that basketball hoop outside has gotten us all out shooting hoops for hours. :slight_smile: Anyway, I’m trying. What I think is odd, is I am just like she was. I didn’t have computers or cell phones, but I read constantly and I still do. My eyes are 20/10 at last check-up. I wonder why the children are degrading and mine are still perfect (even at 41). I am going to work harder with her on using the long-vision, and like I said she has been actively trying to avoid using the glasses when she can.

(Richard Morris) #30

Awesome response. Apparently in a type 2 diabetic that polyol disposal of glucose via sorbitol and fructose jumps from 3% to 30% so it’s a very nasty steep slope I was on that I consider myself very lucky to have avoided cataracts.

I had an eye test in 2005 after the incident in 2004 and going onto an Atkins diet that brought my HbA1c back from 11.2% to 5.7%. I don’t have a copy of the report, but my recollection is the optometrist observed no long term damage.

Last year I had the full “bells and whistles” eye exam. I have no apparent cataracts, no retinopathy. I have one imperceptible widening of one retinal capillary that the ophthalmologist said he probably wouldn’t have noticed had I not told him I was at one point very diabetic and asked him to look closely for anything.unusual.

I had both of these done. If I can find the copy of the report I’ll post it up here.

I have always been a little long sighted and survived without glasses into my early 50s, but then hit the usual focus issue of people my age and had to get reading glasses for small font work.

Personally I think I may have dodged a bullet in 2004 and again in 2014 (when diabetes caught back up with me and that was when I found a ketogenic permanent solution)

(Craig) #31

An amazing result! Wonder if that could be put down to a change in refractive index of your eyes’ lenses?

Research eg https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26826749 tells us that in advancing myopic kids, the best that we can hope for by way of myopia control strategies is a reduction in the progression of myopia, let alone reversal like you experienced.

Also, you would think it wouldn’t have been too hard to find an optometrist willing to support your strategy, seeing that you were purchasing new lenses on a regular basis, even if they were weaker!

(Craig) #32

Plenty of studies eg https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=The+Association+between+Near+Work+Activities+and+Myopia+in+Children—A+Systematic+Review+and+Meta-Analysis pointing the finger at both genetic predisposition and environmental influences eg sustained near work, less outside sun exposure, playing a part in the increase in myopia in the population.

(Sondra Rose) #33

Years ago, my vision improved when I moved to a small town from a big city. Freaked out my ophlamologist!

At the time, I attributed it to stress reduction, but I had also greatly reduced the amount of computer work I was doing.

Once I realized that vision was malleable, I was open to learning more ways to improve it.

Going Paleo helped.
An optometrist who introduced me to monovision helped.

Most recently, I found great info over at www.endmyopia.org. I’ve further improved my vision simply by reading the blog and the free program. (No need to buy anything, if you understand the principles!)

(Craig) #34

Agree. Definitely dodged a bullet mate.

What your opthal was describing was probably a micro-aneurism, which are occasionally seen in non-diabetics, but are often the first sign of diabetic retinopathy. The OCT allows us to check for subtle diabetic macular oedema, which is often a little harder to visualise than micro-aneurisms or retinal haemorrhages. I work in a community where I see the ravages of diabetic eye disease on a daily basis.

Am in an AHPRA regulated profession, so am in a similar position to Dr Gary Fettke, however I often get to see diabetics at the very start of their journey, where early evidence of retinopathy or refractive change during a standard eye-test is the forerunner to a formal diabetes diagnosis.

Am only just starting my own personal journey into ketosis (non-diabetic, 10 weeks, lost 7 kgs, BG 4.3, ketones 2.1), and am excited about the future.