Fresh Healthy Body

We are grateful for many things that the internet has brought to us – even breaking through the price barriers for buying glasses online.

One of our elder statesmen members of staff approached us recently to discuss how procedures were done differently (read “better” in his day – compared to the procedure as performed today.

Of course, in his opinion, in the past time moved much slower – patient care was bilateral, and time needed to be taken to ensure that spectacles met all necessary golas of form fit and function.

This is of course juxtaposed with the hustly and bustle of the online glasses business we operate today – where the entire emphasis is on speed, efficiency and cost. Perhaps one of the strangest anecdotes this technician shared with us however of how things were done (properly) in the past was when it came to the procedure of “eyescraping”. Follows is his description…………….

Every optician of a certain age will be aware of the famous technique of eye scraping.

This process consisted of the gentle massaging of the temples with a gently but firm pressure inwards across the forehead and in the end strong pressure – resulting in the eye being completely seperated from the socket for scraping – and then returning it to its righful place. Maybe this is why we have reverted to cheap glasses these days – nobody could offer this service online !

Now, the clever reader may say, “That is not possible”. To which I and all of my generation would reply that we have heard of hundreds, nay, thousands of such cases. In fact my maternal grandmother herself benefited from this procedure. Some such fortunate recipients of this beneficent treatment, (so I am informed), actually had the luxury of having the eye frozen while the operation took place.

Now, the sceptical readers of this column (for there are such people) will maintain that this is the dubious product of folk lore or mythology. To those sceptics however, one question : “how can it be possible for so many patients to believe that they have undergone such a procedure”?

Readers views would be welcome, especially those who like me, have had personal knowledge of this phenomenon and from the sceptics, any information as to the origin of what they believe to be an old wives tale would be especially well received.

To the doubters, I would say, BEWARE, my grandmother was what, nowadays would be described as a feisty lady! In the meantime………..if you don’t fancy such self-medication (and that is probably a wise choice), stick to purchasing your glasses online !

Consider however that this is being written and submitted at a very spooky time of year……….