One of the three fundamentals of vision taught by Dr. Bates is Eye-Mind coordination. Consider the fact that vision is 90% mental and 10% physical. This statistic is startling and can shatter many misconceptions about vision. The eyes simply take in light, while the mind interprets the electrical impulses sent from the retina through the optic nerve to the visual cortex in the back of the brain. So much of the Bates Method is geared toward rebuilding a connection between mind and body, reestablishing the eye-mind coordination we once had.
Eye-Mind coordination happens when the eyes, the attention and the mind all focus on the same thing at the same time. If you are hiking through the woods looking at beautiful trees and streams but your mind and attention are off thinking about emails you need to send when you get home, you will neither appreciate the beauty of nature nor see it as clearly as you can. Eye-Mind coordination is a practice of Presence, of fully immersing into the present moment. Vision occurs spontaneously at the speed of light and depends on the teamwork between the focusing eyes and the interpreting mind. Any interruption in this connection results not only in an unfocused image but a confused mind. The practices of the Bates Method work to reestablish the Eye-Mind coordination and therefore restore the original teamwork between the mind and body.