Like many of you, I spend my days glued to a screen all the time. Most of the time I get so lost that I forget to take breaks and the result is eye strain and extreme dryness by the time I am done with my work.
Recently, I learned about the 20-20-20 rule. This rule says that after every 20 minutes of screen-time, take a 20 seconds break and look 20 feet away. I was skeptical at first but boy oh boy has it made a positive impact on my eye health.
I was so impressed by the simplicity and effectiveness of this technique that I ended up building an app called LookAway to remind me to take breaks.
If you're facing similar eye issues, then I would definitely recommend the 20-20-20 method. I'd also love to hear if you've found other strategies that help mitigate eye strain. Please share your experiences!
Top comments (11)
I found this useful: HOW TO LOVE YOUR EYES - 10 tips.
I also use a free desktop application called EyeLeo - it is a handy PC application that reminds you to take a break for your eyes.
I have been using computers for over 30 years, and found that taking care of eyes is very important. At later years one can encounter issues which are difficult and expensive to handle.
Thanks for the article. EyeLeo looks good :)
Physically getting up to take breaks regularly helps too! I work remotely so I get up to do household chores or errands or yoga for a bit. Sometimes a break like that helps the mind settle too.
Oh yeah that's a great tip! I have made it a habit to take regular eye breaks every 20 minutes, and then get up and stretch every hour. Works wonders!
Find the perfect distance from your monitor, close enough so you won’t need to break your neck but far enough away to avoid hurting your eyes. If you need to, scale the UI to fit (my UI is always scaled to 200% through the OS settings).
Adjust the colors on your monitor, reduce the contrast and saturation by 5-10 percent if you can. Not many people like this option but it works.
Buy a quality monitor, I don’t know if refresh rate affects eye strain directly but I sure feel better sitting at the computer for hours on end since I bought my 4K 32in monitor.
Not using small screens, blue light filter, always fairly high brightness with enough contrast, no background lights in peripheral vision, playing video games, blueberries, occasionally looking out into the distance. Walks in the forest help me too, there's something about the color green and about the complicated patterns of nature that are good for eyes.
One important element for eyes: you must have as much natural light as possible in your room (without reflections on your screen) ☀️ lack of light creates fatigue, the brain has to make extra effort, and it is the origin of Myopia.
I would say the most important steps are 2 and 4.
I was having dry eyes and eye strain so bad before that I've gone to the hospital few times but these "quick" tips helped me.
It used to happen to me often, but I find myself not dealing with this issue as much anymore. Not sure what the solution was as I've just ignored it and went along my day coding lol
These can provide remedy: sipping water throughout the day, reducing the stress levels, glancing out the window occasionally in between coding sessions, Music in the background, circular eye motions.
I wonder if those computer blue light glasses help at all?
I try to use the 'Pomodoro Technique' to manage the time I'm working on a task, and this helps me to avoid killing my eyes!
I am using blue ray protected lenses ! 😁👓🤏🏻
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