It is very unpleasant and shocking to realize that your own child was among the people who suffer from a pathological defect - strabismus. Many doctors who are treated with such a problem are immediately advised to go to bed "under the knife." Of course, both a small child and an adult are not comfortable with such a thought. What if you don’t go to extremes, but show a little patience and try to correct the situation without surgery?
Features
As you know, every person sees the world through binocular vision. Both pictures that fall on the two eyes of a person, provided that he does not suffer from strabismus (squint), are in fact the same. The nerve endings transmit them to the brain, where they combine into a three-dimensional image - a three-dimensional image of what we see around.
It is believed that with strabismus, a person sees an image flat, therefore, sometimes he cannot determine the shape of an object. If you do not try to restore the normal position of the eyes, then your eyesight can drop greatly.
Why strabismus appears
A person has 6 muscles in each eye (12 in total). It happens (more often than they usually notice) that muscles develop in different ways, that is, some muscles are well strengthened, while others do not develop and weaken. As a result, the eyeball cannot stand in the correct position due to the strong muscles that pull it in their direction (whether they are longitudinal, transverse or other muscles). The weakening or excessive tension of the muscles of the eye can be caused, for example, by a fright or a stressful situation. Strabismus is often a hereditary disease.
The phenomenon is considered normal when the baby "runs" and mows periodically for up to six months. This is due to the fact that the eye muscles are not yet developed enough to keep the eyeball in the correct position. You need to start worrying if six months after birth the squint has not passed. It is important to know that the displacement of the eyeball can be so insignificant that the parent does not notice deviations, therefore it is recommended to consult a pediatric optometrist to exclude a possible risk.
If we talk more about the occurrence of strabismus in a person, then the following factors are worth noting:
- Heredity can cause strabismus.
- With an abnormal pregnancy, the fetal eyes in the womb may not develop properly.
- Infectious diseases, certain medications, or high fever can also affect eye muscle development.
- If the central nervous system is not functioning properly, one should beware of these deviations.
- When injuring the eyes and head, you should consult an ophthalmologist for diagnosis.
- Do not forget about stress and psychological upheaval.
Is surgery the only option?
Many doctors immediately begin to talk about surgery - this is the approach of traditional medicine. You do not need to panic, but ask about the hardware treatment that can be carried out at home or in the office of an oculist. For complacency, you can talk with parents who have encountered such a problem, and whose children have benefited from therapeutic treatment.
Even if the parent agrees to the operation because of fear of harming the child and aggravating the development of strabismus, one must remember that one operation cannot be dispensed with. In any case, you will have to go through the hardware phase of treatment and wear special glasses.
Theory supported by doctors
William Horatio Bates lived at the end of the XIX at the beginning of the XX century and even then he was an opponent of eye operations. For 30 years, he observed the development and functioning of the eyeball in adults and children. He insisted on the therapeutic treatment of patients with strabismus.
And not in vain ... Nowadays, there are doctors who are convinced of the correctness of Bates' point of view and help people to eliminate the deficiency without surgery. Naturally, there are exceptions - sometimes you just can not do without a scalpel.
Strabismus treatment methods
Often people do not have enough time to go to the ophthalmologist's office, and if the squint is excessively expressed, it is necessary to conduct at least 2 times a day for 5-10 minutes a training session for vision at home. The most effective methods are those that are aimed at strengthening the muscles of the eye.
Some of the strabismus exercises in adults:
- It is required to take a standing position, extend one arm in front of you, parallel to the floor. The head should be kept in one position, only pupils should work. Next, gently bring your hand to your face, and then slowly return to its original position, parallel to the floor. The following hand movements should be directed in different directions: up, down, right, left. All this time, the gaze should be focused only on the hand.
- This exercise from strabismus of a diverging type must be performed near a window from which you can look into the distance, or on the street. It consists in focusing your eyes first on an object that is as far away as possible, and then transferring it to an object located nearby. And so repeat for 5-10 minutes (if possible up to 20 minutes). It is important that the objects are clear, noticeable among the rest.
- You can blindfold a healthy eye and, in front of your face, drive it in different directions with any object, for example, a pencil, and maximize it in the direction where the tense muscle does not let the eyeball.
- An effective method is an exercise for the eyes with strabismus "Eight." It consists in repeating the figure 8 with smooth successive movements of the pupil. Then it is only in the inverted position (sign ∞).
These exercises from strabismus with regular repetition by unhurried, smooth movements will help get rid of the problem. But one must be prepared for the fact that this is a lengthy process that requires time and effort.
What to do with the squint of a child
Of course, that a small child will not be able to do these exercises due to physiological characteristics. In this case, parents need to periodically drive bright objects around the baby, forcing him to follow them.
If the child is more adult and allows, without indignation, to fix his head in one position, then you can start charging. For example, an exercise in strabismus in children can be performed simply by picking up an interesting thing (such as a toy, candy) and driving it in different directions. In this case, you need to focus on the oblique looking eye and try to make the pupil look at the object, moving it in the opposite direction from the usual position of the eyeball.
Strabismus Prevention
Strabismus prophylaxis means periodic visits to the ophthalmologist, mandatory daily exercises, and the exclusion of increased eye strain.
It is important to remember that only a competent approach and a responsible attitude to constant exercises can give a high-quality result.
To strengthen the immune system and help the effective displacement of eyeballs, traditional medicine advises eating dark chocolate with cocoa 60% or more.
Conclusion
Remember that strabismus is not a sentence, and if you contact a specialist in a timely manner, treatment can bring a positive result. By following the recommendations of professionals and performing simple exercises to correct strabismus, you can get rid of the disease, not only a child, but also an adult.