Children who learn to see underwater clearly

[Mermaid Alaria]

I never knew why! I swam without goggles my entire childhood. I never had a problem seeing underwater even in chlorine. I hated goggles. Then sometime during my early teens i lost the ability somehow. Now it's too much of a reflex that as a new mer I'm having a terrible time learning to open my eyes at all. Gah.

[Mermaid Jaffa]

Is there hope for people who wear thick glasses? Though the lines would have to be pretty big for us to see them!

[Moana.the.mermaid]

Wow, this explains so much! In the water, without my contacts, I have near perfect vision. Above the water, my eyes are -6 and -5.75. So this is really interesting - I thought everyone had good underwater vision. Lol

much love, one love - Moana

[AptaMer]

Well, that correlates, Moana. I don't need glasses and see clearly above water, but underwater everything is blurry.

[Sabrina the Selkie]

My eyes are at -2.50 and -5.00. Underwater, I can see better than a lot of people, but still not perfectly. I think I'll try closing my stronger left eye and seeing how my weaker eye does on its own.

[Sabrina the Selkie]

Now I know for a FACT that I'll never get Lasik.

[Mermaid Nerida]

Fun fact: People who are extremely short-sighted can see almost normally underwater! Possibly dangerous suggestion, but if you were to wear contact lenses designed for correcting far-sightedness (at a corrective index of at least +1.30), you may be able to see normally underwater. I'm short-sighted, but not enough to completely throw off the distortion that the water causes, so my eyesight (without glasses) above and below water is about the same. :-/

That sounds like me Lol! I always thiught my extreme near-sightedness was a curse, but I can see almost perfectly under the water. It's what made me feel like a mermaid when I was little.

Sent from my shell phone under the sea!

[AptaMer]

Now I know for a FACT that I'll never get Lasik.

I always thiught my extreme near-sightedness was a curse, but I can see almost perfectly under the water. It's what made me feel like a mermaid when I was little.

LOL- you know you were meant to be a mermaid when you can see underwater, but not above

[Sabrina the Selkie]

Yuuuuup. Lol.

Infuriating note: my mother - who has perfect vision - says she can see perfectly under the water too.
Gah. *flicks fins irritatedly*

[Merman Lir]

That is interesting.

I used to wear thick glasses for distance, and could see really well under water. After having Lasik done, to correct it, my underwater vision, is blurry now.

same here! still don't regret the lasik, however.

[Mermaid Jaffa]

-9 and -10. Nothing can ever help me except expensive custom made goggles.

[Sabrina the Selkie]

How frequently do you open your eyes under the water, Jaffa? I woulda thought your vision (-9 and -10) would actually be fairly good when under the water, sans goggles.

[Ariel-Starfish]

-9 and -10. Nothing can ever help me except expensive custom made goggles.

We are in the same boat : -15 and - 16 here, and tunnel vision.

[Sabrina the Selkie]

Oof that's awful. But again, how is your vision under water?

[Ariel-Starfish]

Quite clear without goggles. But clorine hates me! And with my premature eye I can only open one eye under water. :facepalm:

[AptaMer]

with my premature eye I can only open one eye under water

Had an interesting thought, Ariel Starfish. With a piece of black rubber and the seal from a pair of swimming goggles, you could make a really cool pirate eyepatch to wear over the eye you can't open underwater when you're in the water as a mermaid. The rubber glued onto the seal to make the patch would be flexible and equalize the pressure so you wouldn't get eye squeeze, and it would mean you wouldn't have to squeeze one eye shut when you go down.

Just a thought

[Ariel-Starfish]

[QUOTE=AptaMer;204388]Had an interesting thought, Ariel Starfish. With a piece of black rubber and the seal from a pair of swimming goggles, you could make a really cool pirate eyepatch to wear over the eye you can't open underwater when you're in the water as a mermaid. The rubber glued onto the seal to make the patch would be flexible and equalize the pressure so you wouldn't get eye squeeze, and it would mean you wouldn't have to squeeze one eye shut when you go down.

Just a thought/QUOTE]

That is a really neat idea! Thank you! Love the picture aswel! ❤️

[Mermaid Jaffa]

How frequently do you open your eyes under the water, Jaffa? I woulda thought your vision (-9 and -10) would actually be fairly good when under the water, sans goggles.

Nope. Blind on land. Blind underwater!

[Echidna]

LOL- you know you were meant to be a mermaid when you can see underwater, but not above

Indeed!
Sadly, I have not found a feasible way to spend most of my time underwater

[AptaMer]

Don't we all wish. That reminded me of this video by the famous Turkish freediver, Yasemin Dalkilic



Note added: Although there is a sad note at the end of this video about NOAA deciding to close the Aquarius lab, which looked like the fate of the habitat in 2012 when Dalkilic made this video, in 2013 Florida International University was able to raise funding to save it, and the habitat is still active, and is being operated by FIU.