Do you want to annoy your parents, entertain your friends or give an extra touch to your usual antics? "Crossing" your eyes (towards your nose) is fun, easy, and never fails when you want to make someone jump. Unlike what your parents or teachers will tell you, your eyes cannot get stuck in this position. If you want to learn how to cross your eyes and impress your audience, read on.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Fix the Nose
Step 1. Focus your eyes towards the tip of the nose
Slowly, look down until you focus on the tip of your nose. You may feel some tension in your eyes because it is a movement that is done very rarely and to which the eye muscles are not used to. Even if you won't be able to see yourself, know that the eyes should be crossed. However the result is not very funny, as you are looking down, few people will notice the crooked eyes!
Step 2. Move your gaze upwards
This is the hard part. Once you are able to fix the tip of the nose without difficulty, you should start to raise your eyes as if looking straight ahead, without losing the crossed position.
Step 3. Exercise is the key to everything
You will probably have some difficulty in keeping your eyes crossed without fixing your nose. Know that the ability to "cross" the eyes is completely natural and is called convergence; this allows us to focus on nearby objects. However, as soon as you remove the fixation from the object (in this case the tip of the nose), the brain automatically brings the images of distant elements back into focus while straightening the eyes. Despite this, you can control the ocular musculature with a little practice. Don't forget to keep your eyes open, otherwise no one will be able to see your gaze!
Step 4. Ask a friend for help
If you really want to master this technique, you should have a friend watching you so he can tell you when you can hold the right position of the eyeballs. If you look up and your friend has an amused or impressed reaction, then there is a high probability that you have succeeded. Some find taking photos to check the result is helpful, but a lot of coordination is needed.
Part 2 of 3: With a Pen
Step 1. Hold a pen at eye level and arm's length
Focus attention on the object trying to ignore any background image. This method is similar to that of the tip of the nose, but develops through a process that makes it a little easier.
Step 2. Bring the pen close to your face
Perform this movement slowly without ever losing fixation on the object. This exercise also takes practice. Don't get frustrated if, at first, you can't keep the pen image in focus.
Step 3. Stop when the pen is close to the face
When it has reached a distance of 5-10 cm from the face, the eyes should be crossed. Maintain this position for a few seconds without straightening your gaze.
Step 4. Remove the pen from your line of sight but don't move your eyes
This is the critical stage. Just like with the technique described above, holding the position is quite complicated, but with practice, anything is possible. You will know that the eyes are "straight back" because, "suddenly", the image of the surrounding environment will come back into focus.
Part 3 of 3: Move one eye at a time
Step 1. Become a "cross-eyed" pro
The trick described in this section requires an advanced level of skill and you will only be able to put it into practice if you are already able to cross your eyes without any problems. Moving only one eye at a time creates an amplified grotesque effect because, if you can do it right, the eyes will each move in different directions.
Step 2. Cross your gaze
Use whatever technique is simple for you, whether it is pinning a pen or the tip of the nose.
Step 3. Focus on taking one eye out of your nose
While the gaze is crossed and concentrated on the pen or nose, try to move the right eye completely outwards. At first you will barely be able to get halfway up the face. As you perform this movement, make sure that the left is always converging towards the nose. You will have a disturbing appearance because one eye will be crossed and the other completely towards one side.
Step 4. Repeat the exercise with the other eye
You may have greater control of one eyeball than the other, so try to exercise both, this time keeping the right still and moving the other all the way to the left. Evaluate which movement is easier for you.
Step 5. Keep loosening
This trick is even more complicated than just crossing your eyes, but if you can master it, you'll drive your friends crazy, guaranteed! It only takes a few minutes every day and you will become a champion in no time.
Advice
- Once you learn how to cross your eyes, learn how to cross your eyes with just one eye for a stunning effect! Start by staring at something all the way to the left or right and then crossing your eyes without returning them to the center. Train with a mirror. When you are able to do it on both sides, you can pat yourself on the head and "move" the crossed eye to the other side for a great effect.
- How do you know if you are doing it right? You can't really look in the mirror, because fixation will make your eyes realign. The easiest way is to have a friend tell you if you are succeeding. If you don't want to train in front of someone, take a picture when you think their eyes are crossed. Try using a digital camera or mobile phone and check the results immediately. Pay attention to how your muscles work when your eyes are crossed and try to remember how you feel them. Another way to check the result is to check if everything around you is blurred or "split". When you meet your eyes, everything tends to blur and "split."
- Many people have a tendency to turn a blind eye when they look into their nose; remember to keep them both open or no one will understand that you crossed them.
- Training in the dark or with your eyes closed can help because there are no stimuli that can distract your eyes, so it's easier to keep them crossed.
- Everyone can cross their eyes to some degree, but it's not that obvious to everyone. If you are one of these people, check out wikiHow for other tricks to impress your audience.
- Some are born with misaligned or "crossed" eyes, or have developed a problem called strabismus soon after birth. Strabismus is a serious problem. If left untreated, the person can lose sight in one eye. Fortunately, there are effective treatments and intentionally crossing your eyes does not cause squint.
- If you want to see what your crossed eyes look like, take a picture.
- When you can perceive how to cross your eyes, you will be able to do it instantly in a simple way whenever you want.
- If you have or have had "lazy eye", an ocular condition that causes different functionality between the two eyes, you may not be able to cross them because one is dominant over the other.
- Just focus on an object between your eyes. The right point should be between 2.5 and 7.5 cm from the root of the nose!
Warnings
- Sometimes you may feel eye pain.
- If you try to focus on something too close to your face, your eyes will probably feel a little tired. Although doctors say that the myth that the eyes can stay crooked is not true, you can still temporarily damage the eye muscles if you keep the intersection for long periods. To avoid fatigue, make sure you take breaks often while exercising.
