Prior to last November, I hadn’t been to a movie in over ten years. I had seen them on TV, on DVD, and On Demand, but to actually go to the movie theater, nope! The main reason was because of a problem I have with my eyes. Severe eye pain and light sensitivity when my eye muscles get strained (and they strain easily) have prevented me from doing many things. Over the years reading, watching tv, working on the computer, and driving have all been curtailed to a greater or lesser extent depending on the strength of my eyes.
Last November, I went to my first movie in a decade with the help of a very good friend who took an interest in helping me rediscover life outside my home again. I blogged about it then (http://notesfromthecouch.com/2011/12/14/my-first-movie-in-ten-years/) and planned to go to more movies. For some reason it didn’t happen again for six more months. Last week I was talking to my friend about going to see another movie. We were looking at what was playing and I spotted one that looked interesting. It was about the evolution of underwater sea animals through millions of years. Truly this wouldn’t normally interest me all that much as I am a tried and true romantic-comedy girl. What made this look so interesting was that it was in 3D. It also looked very serene and relaxing. I realized it was at the IMAX and got a little nervous. The IMAX 3D is a relatively small theater with an ENORMOUS screen. The screen, the surround sound, and the fact that it is in 3D gives you the experience of actually being a part of the movie. Up until recently I would have said, “NO WAY AM I GOING TO AN IMAX MOVIE!” My eyes would never have been able to handle the enormity of the screen, let alone the 3D aspect of it! And my POTSy nervous system would be on overload with the booming sounds and vibrations! But because this movie was about underwater animals and I thought it would be pretty serene, I decided to give it a try.
Again we went in the middle of the day when there are no lines. We got our popcorn and headed to the theater. We stepped into the room and I realized we were at the bottom right corner of the screen. I looked up at it and my eyes opened wide as I scanned the monstrous size of the screen towering over me. I felt paralyzed for a second thinking, “Oh no, what have I gotten myself into?!?!” I pushed myself to walk up the steps of the stadium seating to the second to last row. I wanted to be as far back as possible. It’s a fairly small room, so it’s still not that far back, but it was enough. As soon as the film started we put on our 3D glasses. I quickly felt overwhelmed by the sights, sounds and vibrations. I couldn’t look, I kept closing my eyes. I wanted to hide my head. I wanted to run out the back exit! Even my friend joked, “I think I have POTS” as the movie made us feel as though we were flying over the mountains and sea. It was dizzying and disorienting. I thought to myself, “This was a HUGE mistake!” I had visions of it causing a relapse and days of recovery. My anxiety was shooting sky high. I took off my 3D glasses which helped calm me down and I did some deep breathing. My friend encouraged me to put my glasses back on and try again. I did.
Then the funniest thing happened about ten to fifteen minutes into the movie, I relaxed! I began to adjust to the 3D, the sounds, and the whole experience. I could keep my eyes open and go wherever the film took me. Not only did I adjust to the feeling of flying over the water and mountains, I started loving the feeling. Instead of fighting it, I was able to just go with it and I realized that this was really fun! I found myself totally into the experience and not wanting it to end. And my eyes didn’t even hurt. What a shock. The film was only forty minutes and when it was over I wanted to see it again. I guess it’s like when people go on a scary ride at an amusement park and then had so much fun they want to take that ride over and over. We didn’t see it again, but we agreed to go to another very soon. There is one playing about the rescue of elephants and orangutans in Africa that looks good. I haven’t been this excited about doing something new in a long time. I am so glad I didn’t run out the back door.
Inspirational Quote Of The Week – “Curiosity will conquer fear even more than bravery will.” ~James Stephens