How often do you have at the end of the day tired, red and burning eyes? I imagine often, especially if you work with the computer, or if you have to drive for several hours, but also reading in a room with bad lighting may cause tired eyes. Among herbal remedies, natural cosmetics, exercises and small precautions there are interesting methods able to bring relief to watery or swollen eyes, that have problems to focus the objects and burn.
Swedish bitter
The Swedish bitter is a tincture obtained through maceration of different medicinal herbs. The formula is very old, it was revived in the eighteenth century by a Swedish doctor, Dr. Samst, and then brought to the fore by the well known Austrian herbalist Maria Treben (Health Through God's Pharmacy). Nowadays this preparation is easily available in chemist’s and herbalist’s shops, or you can prepare it by yourself following the recipe at the end of this paragraph. The Swedish bitter is really beneficial for a wide range of disorders, from sore throat to toothache and, and this is interesting for those who have tired eyes, for the eyes. In case of blurred vision, red and tired eyes you can try to soak the cotton pads with a bit of Swedish bitter. Close your eyes and place the disks over the eyelids for about ten minutes and the benefits will come soon. Would you like to prepare the Swedish bitter by yourself? Here's the recipe, according to Maria Treben's book. You need 10 grams of Aloe, alternatively powder of Wormwood, 5 grams of Myrrh, 0.2 grams of Saffron, 10 grams of Senna leaves, 10 grams of Camphor, 10 grams of Rhubarb root, 10 grams of Turmeric, 10 grams of Manna, 10 grams of Theriac venezian, 5 grams of Carline Thistle root, 10 grams of Angelica root. Soak these herbs in a liter and a half of 40% spirit in a wide-necked bottle and leave to macerate for 15 days in the sun or near the stove. You have to shake it every day, then, at the end of this period, shake it again and filter the liquid in a smaller bottle. Close the bottle and store it in the fridge, so it may be preserved for many years.
Eye exercises
Eye exercises can also help to relax the eyes. Palming exercise is excellent, we talked about it in a previous post, but we should also mention the blinking, a technique developed by Dr. Bates, an American doctor who published in 1919 his famous book Perfect Sight Without Glasses. Often, in case of impaired sight, we tend to stare the objects that surround us, blinking little or nothing. In a healthy eye, on the contrary, blinking occurs constantly and, generally, a movement of the eyelids every three seconds is considered normal. This condition that leads to immobilize the eyes happens even more frequently when you read, work at the computer, watch television or drive and the consequences can be tired and dry eyes. During the day try to take some time for yourself, stop what you're doing and blink gently and repeatedly for a minute, then close your eyes for a few seconds and then start again blinking. This exercise can be performed several times throughout the day and this will help to relax the eyes and, at the same time, keeps the eye well lubricated.
These are some methods to counteract the red and tired eye. Next time we will see other methods able to soothe red eyes and to bring benefits to a tired eyesight.
