Dr. W. H. Bates was an ophthalmologist at the turn of the 20th century. He was extremely bothered to watch his patients continually need higher and higher prescription glasses. Through his own studies on animals and with patients, he made several important discoveries about vision and developed a treatment plan to help people see clearly without glasses.
His main focus is on relaxation of the eyes and mind as a way of improving and fixing pretty much all eye problems.
His book is over 100 years old and is available for free over here. You can also buy a hard copy.
Pros
There is so much great information in this book. Multiple eye relaxation techniques and several exercises that I have incorporated into my therapy that have made a difference.
My favorite chapters that are pertinent to strabismus/amblyopia and vision therapy were:
- Chapter 10- Strain
- Chapter 11- Central Fixation
- Chapter 12- Palming
- Chapter 13- Memory as an Aid to Vision
- Chapter 14- Imaginations As an Aid to Vision
- Chapter 15- Swinging and Shifting
- Chapter 21- Squint and Amblyopia: Their Cause
- Chapter 22- Squint and Amblyopia: Their Cure
This book is focused on curing myopia and presbyopia, but I found that the same principles that supposedly help those conditions are extremely beneficial for strabismus as well.
Cons
While there is great information, this book was written by a doctor over 100 years ago. Some of the information is outdated and hard to understand because of context. It is definitely not an easy read!
Dr. Bates makes a ton of claims that I really can’t speak for. Things like, relaxation can be used in place of anesthesia for surgery. It is just a little out there. I can skip over those wild claims and just think, “hmm, maybe,” and then move on, but if that bothers you, you’ve been warned.
Overall, it was a very informative book, but I would probably choose to read a more modern version with the same information next time. When I find a good one, I’ll be sure to share the information.