Relief from Eye Strain in a Digital World

Are you noticing that your eyes are tired, blurry, or dry after a few hours of working on a computer? What about sore shoulders or headaches? These are all common symptoms of digital eye strain, also known as computer vision syndrome, which affects many people who use screens even for just 2 consecutive hours a day.

A detailed eye exam can help determine if there are factors contributing to your digital eye strain symptoms, like uncorrected refractive errors or the wrong glasses or contacts for working at a computer. We can also make suggestions to make your workspace more friendly for your eyes.

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What Is Digital Eye Strain?

When we use digital screens, our eyes have to work hard to process the text and images we’re viewing. The blue light emitted from screens is also tough for our eyes to process, contributing to eye strain.

We also tend to blink less when using a computer or scrolling on our phones, which can make our eyes dry out and feel gritty or tired.

Treating Digital Eye Strain

Your digital eye strain symptoms might be caused in part by your workspace setup, an uncorrected refractive error, or issues in the ability of your eyes to move and focus together.

In an eye exam, we’ll discuss your symptoms and office setup to help us create a treatment plan, which might include a new prescription and changes to your workspace.

The Right Correction for Digital Life

We’ll test your prescription to make sure your glasses or contacts are right for the work you do.

If you’re in your 40s, you may be experiencing a natural change to your vision called presbyopia, which results in difficulty focusing on close-up objects. If you’re currently wearing bifocal or multifocal glasses or contacts for presbyopia, we may prescribe single-vision lenses designed specifically for your work setup. These can provide relief for symptoms related to presbyopia.

Workplace Adjustments

Your desk and office setup might be contributing to your digital eye strain symptoms.

Common fixes include:

Placing your monitor 20–28 inches away from you, and about 4–5 inches below eye level
Adjusting lighting to avoid glare on the screen
Remembering to blink regularly
Every 20 minutes, take a 20-second break to look at something 20 feet away