can you fix eye dominance issues?

S

six-gun

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I'm right eye dominant. i cannot fire with both eyes open because i see two sets of rear sights and two targets when i focus on the front post. is there a way to fix this? should i just keep squinting the left eye? do you just get used to knowing which of the two sets of sights and which of the two targets to use? when i close my eye, i lose depth perception. the act of squinting also puts tension on the other eye. This also creates issues with holographic sights. I would really like to keep both eyes open but i don't know if that's going to be possible.
 
First off, have you been to an eye doctor? I have some really weird astigmatism, and that's how things look to me when I'm not wearing my glasses.

Now, the rear sights and target should be fuzzy if you're concentrating on the front sight like you're supposed to. Double images are odd, though.
 
I asked my eye doc about the eye dominance issue (I'm RH LE) during my annual checkup. It never bothered me shooting handguns I just hold the gun left of center slightly.

Since I started shooting rifles about 2 years ago its been more noticeable. So, I asked if there was anything to that could be done. He said basically at my age,37, there really wasn't much to do.


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Put a piece of scotch tape over the lens on your shooting glasses of the eye you don't want to use, and keep both eyes open. Works for me in Bullseye, I am left eye dominant but shoot with my right eye since that's the one I see the sights best with.
 
i know you can work with eye dominance and still shoot. but not without losing depth perception when you close an eye or cover it. and if i ever need to use it in self defense or in a tactical shooting competition, an eye patch won't work. I know how to restrict myself to one eye but what i'm wanting to know is if there is any way to actually fix eye dominance.
 
Thanks for bringing this up. I am right handed but left eye dominant. I tried shooting with my left hand and that works up to a point. I would love to keep both eyes open too, but end up closing right eye. My eye doctor, just last week, offered no solution to changing eye dominance when I brought the subject up. As for me, I will try one of the other suggestions already mentioned.

Shoot Safe and Often
 
Not that this is an answer it is just my personal experience. As a child I suffered an injury to my right eye and had to keep it covered with a patch for several weeks. Being right eye dominant at the time it illustrated just how dependant I was on that eye as I continued to shoot BB guns. At first it was very difficult to shoot with my left eye only as the muscles were not attuned to focusing the left eye as well. the loss of depth perception was tough as well.

In the end I was able to become much better with my left eye and to this day I'm able to focus independantly each eye. In otherwords I became switch eyed and able to use either one on demand. Although not as good with the left as the right it did open up a different capabilty.

It was similar experience with a broken hand for many tasks as well. What I mean is that the body is very resilient and can adapt to difficulties if given enough time. You may well be able to "correct " your cross eyed dominance. It may require you to cover up your dominant eye for a good period of time to aide you in this.

It is doable to be sure, but take note though. There may be times when you are tired the dominate eye will take over and make it harder to accomplish. there are times that my eyes can be tricked by this "switch eye" abilty and make focusing on the front sight difficult. Overall it is an asset though.
 
A technique I learned last summer, that works well for me when I shoot lefty (I'm right handed and right eye dominant, and when shooting lefty had a tendency to push rounds slightly right - though still near center) is to rotate the gun to the 1 to 2 o'clock position.

The sights aren't vertical, and this would probably not work so well for longer shots, where drop would come into play. But, this not-quite-gangsta rotation brings the sights to my dominant eye, and my shots hit much closer to the bull.

As far as using both eyes, I only started working on that a few years ago. I started out by slightly squinting my left eye, and as I grew more accustomed to the picture, opening it more and more. YMMV.
 
Yes, you can retrain eye dominance, assuming nothing else is wrong with the eyes in question. Have you actually tested for which eye is dominant? What you describe doesn't seem, based on what you say, to be a cross dominance problem.

Black patch, black tape on glasses, Scotch "magic tape", or anything to make the (other) dominant eye have to switch to the non-dominant one will work. You can even do this in everyday life if you want to accelerate the process & don't mind looking a bit odd with the attachment in use while the process completes.

There is a HUGE amount of brain processing involved in vision & it's been successfully tested that you can invert vision (view everything upside-down), reverse it (looking behind instead of in front of the head) & many other things fairly simply, just by using optical gadgets to produce the effect desired. All of the processes were 100% reversible as well.
 
IF you wear contacts, you can always wear one in your dominant eye and none in your other (or a weaker scrip version). I do this to avoid carrying cheaters around. Does my depth perception suffer? Supposedly so, but i do not blame it when I miss a sporting clay target
 
The only way I have found for RH LE dominant is:

Handguns- I pull the rear of the run over to my left eye and tilt my head a little to my right shoulder. The other is to learn to shoot dominant eye side or left handed for me. In times of severe danger (fight or flight) you body will try to keep both eyes open naturally. For me no tape, patches, secret hand shakes, or magic involved.

Rifles & shotguns- I learned at a young age to shoot them left handed, the only other option I can think of is close one eye if learning to shoot non-dominant hand isn't possible.
 
This may sound strange, but when I shoot with both eyes open I look through the front sight. :eek:

I can see the sight, but I can also see what's in front of it. I'm focusing more on the target itself so it allows me to see everything.
 
From six gun;

i know you can work with eye dominance and still shoot. but not without losing depth perception when you close an eye or cover it. and if i ever need to use it in self defense or in a tactical shooting competition, an eye patch won't work. I know how to restrict myself to one eye but what i'm wanting to know is if there is any way to actually fix eye dominance.
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Several things are raised here, so first off...no there is no correction to cross eye dominance. This is not a condition that requires correction. As this is a normal and common condition it needs no correction by surgical or chemical means but it may require some adapting for some hobbies and occupations or things like shooting. Folks who are cross eyed dominant can and do shoot with both eyes open. You need to learn how.

Bullseye shooters and precision rifle shooters often wear patches, sight blockers etc. whether they are cross dominant or not as a way of shutting out unnecessary visual noise and allowing them to focus on the sights. This works at the range. At the op points out this don't work so well walking down the street. Blinding yourself in the dominant eye so that the non-dominant in time takes over the job is likely a too radical solution.

Note that when you put your key into the front door of your house or car you can see both clearly even though you are cross dominant and both eyes are open. This, and many other daily actions (shooting a basket through a hoop, throwing darts, etc.), requires no special training or effort on your part.

Hold a pen up in the strong hand and aim the tip of the pen at a light switch on the wall. With both eyes open focus on the tip of the pen. Move your head and/or hand slightly till the tip is clear and the light switch is fuzzy. The dominant eye will lead the way on this with the other assisting with both eyes open. The tip should come into sharp focus as you concentrate on it. There should be no blurry vision of the tip of the pen. Try the same dry firing an unloaded weapon at home.

tipoc
 
I have the same problem. Right hand Dominant, Left eye dominant. It isnt a problem shooting rifles, but when I shoot handguns, I turn my head slightly so that my left eye is lined up with the gun. Granted this works better with a left-foot forward stance, but I shoot just fine that way. Play around with it till you find a position that works. My general philosophy is Figure out how to use what ya got, don't try to fix what you don't got.
 
sorry but i never said i was cross-dominant. i'm right eye dominant and right handed. same side. my issue isn't with how to deal with cross-dominance, it's that i have to close one eye and i want to fire with both open. with both open, i focus on the front sight and see one front sight, 2 targets, and 2 sets of rear sights. closing my eye causes eye strain and having a patch on my glasses isn't good for hunting or self defense. i'm wondering if there's a way to fix eye dominance or somehow deal with my multiple targets and sights so that i can fire with both eyes open
 
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Look at an object and keep your eyes focused on a certain spot, then point your finger or a pencial upwards and put the tip of it in front of the spot but continue to focus on the object. You should be able to see "through" your finger/pencil but still see it and your point of aim at the same time. This is how I shoot with both eyes open and it works for me. It works even better with a smaller object like sights.
 
Hold a pen up in the strong hand and aim the tip of the pen at a light switch on the wall. With both eyes open focus on the tip of the pen. Move your head and/or hand slightly till the tip is clear and the light switch is fuzzy. The dominant eye will lead the way on this with the other assisting with both eyes open. The tip should come into sharp focus as you concentrate on it. There should be no blurry vision of the tip of the pen. Try the same dry firing an unloaded weapon at home.
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ok, i did this. i focused on the target, pointed my pen, then switched focus on the tip of the pen. now there are 2 targets again (one is from my left eye, other is from my right) but the pen is lined up with the target from my right eye and the other is way up and to the left. if i line up like this, i can just ignore the left eye image and aim at the right eye image. i hope that makes sense. is this what I should be doing? because i think i could learn to live with that.
 
Look at an object and keep your eyes focused on a certain spot, then point your finger or a pencial upwards and put the tip of it in front of the spot but continue to focus on the object. You should be able to see "through" your finger/pencil but still see it and your point of aim at the same time. This is how I shoot with both eyes open and it works for me. It works even better with a smaller object like sights.
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so i should focus on the target and not the front sight? not disputing the validity, but it does go against what i've always been told. if that's what you mean and it works for you, i will gladly give it a try and see if i can make it work for me too.
 
Try it at the range and see how it works. I know what you mean by two images but I know what to focus on . In my sight, I technically see another image to the right but the left is my target sight. By shooting this way, I find myself to be much more consistent, especially if running any type of drills or quicker shooting.
 
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