About The Eye

How do we see?

Your eyes work by focussing light rays from an image you’re looking at onto your focal point in the back of your eye (retina). If this focus isn’t right, your vision may become blurry.

Short-sighted (Myopia)

As the name suggests, things far away seem difficult to see but things closer are clearer. This can be because your eye is too long and so light rays focus closer than the focal point.

Long-sighted (Hypermetropia)

By contrast, things far away seem clear and things closer seem blurry. This can be because your eye is too short and so light rays focus further than the focal point.

Astigmatism

Normally, the front of you eye should be round, like a tennis ball. If you have astigmatism, the surface of your eye is oval shaped, like a rugby ball. That means that light is focussed on more than one place in your eye, so you don’t see one clear picture, either up close or far away. Your eyes can also feel tired or you might get headaches.

Squint

When you have a squint, one of your eyes looks straight ahead and the other eye is in, out, up or down. This makes it difficult to see clearly and can cause double vision, which is where you look at something and see two of it. Many children usually have a squint and it’s often treated with glasses or patches. If these don’t work, a short minor operation can be carried out at the eye hospital.