Do your eyes need a break?
Photo courtesy of Canva
Do you spend long hours at a computer screen as you work on your writing project or other creative endeavors? Do you find your eyes getting a bit tired and cranky after a while?
Eye strain can slow your writing progress, but it doesn’t have to do so. Below are six tips to remedy this issue. If it persists, be sure to see your eye doctor.
Adjust the brightness and the warmth of your screen. Blue, “cool” light from screens tends to be more irritating than the warmer side of the spectrum. You can tweak this in your settings. If that’s not enough, dimming the brightness might also help if you are sensitive to light, but don’t go overboard or you could actually make the eye strain worse.
Wear blue-light blocking glasses. These are widely available now at everywhere from Target to Amazon. If you have prescription glasses, talk to your eye doctor about getting blue-light blocking tint added to your lenses. Note: this is different from glare reduction. Be sure to specify that you want blue light blocking as a feature.
20/20/20 rule: Every 20 minutes, look 20 feet away from the screen for 20 seconds. Set a timer or use an app to help you remember if you tend to be very focused.
Tweak the type size, your distance from the screen and your posture. Little adjustments like these can optimize your eyes’ ability to focus so they don’t have to work as hard.
Ask your eye doctor about dry eyes. This issue can make the eyes feel more tired and strained, and eye doctors often can measure eye dryness. Your doctor may recommend dietary changes, supplements or eye drops to address the problem if you do have dry eyes.
Visit the experts: If you’ve recently had an eye check-up and everything looked fine, but you find the screen blurry or hard to read for any length of time, your eyes and brain might not be working properly together. Some occupational therapists are specially trained to test for and treat this issue. They may also recommend a neuro-optometrist for further assessments as needed.
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