My name is Marina Montiel. I am a Natural Eyesight Teacher recognized by the AIEV (Italian Association for Visual Education) and a Yoga instructor; I am interested in working in a holistic way. I strongly believe that we have the capacity to heal our body and mind and I encourage people to be responsible for their own health. I have lived in the Uk for a few years and now I live in Spain where I offer my services as a Yoga instructor and Natural Eyesight Teacher. I teach vision and yoga around the world in workshops and retreats. And I also work online. 

I have participated in different events as The Pay it Forward (the first yoga festival in Edinburgh), The holistic ways festivals in Edinburgh and I have taught workshops and talks in Uk and Spain about The Bates Method.

I have two passions: natural vision and yoga. I have other interests, but all of these run in the same direction: finding a way to be in balance with the environment, with others and with ourselves.  

Ever since I discovered the Bates Method, I knew I wanted to help people improve their vision. I learned about this in Barcelona with Amelia Salvador, Maurizio Cagnoli and Andrea Buch. 

My educational background:

• 200 hours Yoga Teacher Training (2016, Suddha Anand Yogshala, Varkala, India)
• Bates Method and Children (2016, Bates Method School of Madrid)
• Mucusless Diet Healing System (E- education, Irene Bueno, Spain) 
• Natural Eyesight Teacher Training (Bates School in Barcelona, Spain)
• Bachelor's degree in Educational Psychology (Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain)
• Naturopathic Nutrition and Oriental Dietetics (Roger de Lluria, Barcelona, Spain)
• Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education (University of Alicante, Spain)

My story:

My passion for this area began when I was six years old. One day, I was at school and the optician came to check our vision. I remember perfectly the dark room, his white coat, and the words he said to me. I could not see all of the funny and colourful pictures he showed me. He told my family that I had astigmatism and hyperopia and I would wear glasses forever. My parents bought me a pair of red glasses, but I started to feel sad and quiet about this. I really didn't want to wear them; I felt self-conscious and angry. I only used them for a few hours and then I decided I didn’t want to wear them at all. My parents respected my decision. 

During the following years, I continued my normal life at school with no troubles. My mum gave me reiki on my eyes every night to relax my eyesight. When I was 10 years old, I went to a bookstore with my mother. There, I found a book titled "Take Care of Your Eyes, Improve Your Eyesight" by Carmela Paris. I persuaded my mum to buy me the book and through this I discovered natural eyesight and The Bates Method. I was happy with the method, I totally believed in it. I practiced some exercises but it was definitely not a book for children, and finally, I abandoned the book.

At the age of 18, I was studying to take my driving license. So, I went back to the optician  again. He told me again that I should wear glasses all the time! I wore my first proper pair of glasses for driving, but only sometimes because I couldn't get used to them. Like many things, during my teenage years and youth I had forgotten about The Bates Method.

Some years ago, I changed many aspects of my life; I became vegetarian and started to practice yoga. I opened my mind to alternative therapies. At this point, I spent much time reading about natural medicine. One article about healing vision particularly interested me and I was reminded of The Bates Method. As a result, I began to attend workshops and I practiced by myself. I purposely left my glasses in a place where I couldn’t remember and I started to improve my vision. I decided to study to be a natural eyesight teacher and to help adults and children learn to manage their health by themselves. I believe I can understand people with the same "trouble" or situation as me.

For me, it was magic to find my inner child again, the one who was right when she didn't want to wear glasses and tried to show me the right path.

I invite you to heal your vision. This is a beautiful and wonderful process.

If you want, you can heal your vision the same way as I did.