Taking Mindful Care of your Eyes

“the eyes are the window to the soul” William Shakespeare.

The modern world of stress, lack of sleep and with so much time in our day spent in front of screens, squinting and scrolling on our phones, our eyes are quietly working harder than ever before, without us paying them much attention.

Mindfully tending to our eyes more frequently through the day we can offer them a moment of appreciation to avoid them becoming worn out, fatigued and plain overworked. They are just like any other muscle in the body and need time to rest and restore.

Enjoy two simple eye care practices below to support your eye health in reducing eye tension and strain, elevating dark circles, leaving you feeling fresh and bright-eyed.

30-second Soothing Eye Ritual  

Based on the theory of lymph drainage, enjoy this gentle ritual to tend to your eyes.

  • Using gentle tapping motions with your index and middle fingers (no tugging or dragging), tap out a circle around your eyes. Tapping brings blood flow to the area.
  • Go outward along your eyebrows, then inward along the top of your cheekbones toward the bridge of your nose. Circle your eyes three times.
  • Then with your middle fingers, press firmly upward at the pressure points just under the brow bone on either side of your nose where your brows should start.
  • Then press firmly inward toward your nose, above the bridge, next to your tear ducts.
  • Massage your temples with your index and middle fingers to finish.

    This is a ritual you can do throughout your day as an act of compassionate care. Go gently and be mindful not to drag your fingers along the delicate skin near your eyes to avoid any damage.

    Rest your Eyes practice.

    • Closing down your eyes as a gift of rest. Gently cupping your hands over your eyes so that the heel of each palm is pressing gently into your eye socket.
    • Now apply soft pressure – like the slightest massage for the eyes. Allow your focus to shift into the black, middle distance and relax, breathing in and out.
    • You may see blotches of color and feel your eyes twitch beneath your eyelids. Keep your gaze soft in the darkness until the colors and shapes fade into black. You are essentially resetting your vision, lubricating your eyes and helping prevent muscle strain and dryness.
    • Bringing your hands down into your lap, settling into your chair.
    • Return to your breath, allowing your eyes and every part of your body to rest here. Turning your focus inward to connect more deeply with your experience of discovering what you see inside. Take as long as required here.
    • Resting the eyes is a wonderful way to be more mindful of what we ordinarily take for granted.