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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Brogan-Leigh Hurst

Doctor shares eye trick to reduce stress – and it 'works wonders' within seconds

TikTok fans have gone crazy after a doctor revealed a simple hack to reduce stress using your eyes.

An NHS surgeon named Dr Karan Rajan shared a surprising method with his 4.7million followers, which left many gobsmacked.

Dr Rajan - who is a surgeon and lecturer at the University of Sunderland - says his method works within seconds.

In a short video clip, he explains that by simply relaxing your eyes and looking at a large area, such as the sky, you will de-stress.

The doctor went on to tell fans that while working on computers or scrolling through social media, we lose focal vision.

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He said when we focus on something, our vision narrows and it activates the nervous system - which causes stress.

The surgeon said that if we switch our focal vision to panoramic vision and engage our peripheral vision, it can reduce stress. He gave looking up at the sky as an example.

In the comments section, many people agreed with his strategy and thanked him for sharing.

Explaining the logic behind this, he says that panoramic and peripheral vision activates the parasympathetic nervous system – the rest and digest response – which decreases arousal.

Dr Rajan signed off his video by suggesting taking a few minutes every day to "focus on un-focusing" to help find relaxation.

His video has gone viral (Jam Press Vid/@dr.karanr)
The NHS doctor shared his advice (Jam Press Vid/@dr.karanr)

One person commented: "I've started looking at the stars. Sounds sad but it's so relaxing. Literally switches off the stress."

Another person wrote: "Ahhhh. Hence walks in nature work wonders."

A third said: "Ooh I do this while driving, helps me stop panicking."

Another shocked viewer said: "Wow I’ve done this since being a really little kid, it’s great getting a good doctor reinforcement of my ways."

A final person shared: "Is this why I feel more relaxed when just gazing at the sky. When I’m anxious I look at the sky I feel calm soon after."

Dr Karan responded: "Must be!"

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