Vision for Life

Chapter 3

Computer Use and Relieving Built-Up Fatigue

When working at a computer terminal, it’s critical to be aware of your position, the lighting, and your overall surroundings. First of all, you should sit at a distance from which you can comfortably read the screen. There should be adequate lighting (natural light is best), but it should not be shining directly into your eyes; nor should it be reflecting off the screen, creating a glare. Finally, the computer itself should be positioned where you can easily gaze into the distance: next to a window or a long hallway would be a good location.

You can use the features of a computer to your benefit by following data as it appears on the screen or by visually keeping track of the movement of your fingers across the keyboard. Look at the actual shapes of the letters you are typing and be aware of the spaces between them.

Often, however, when we work at computers, we create an “invisible strain” that we don’t really feel. This is the worst kind because if you don’t recognize the strain, you will do nothing about it. And if you are actually straining, then by the end of a day of computer use, your eyes may be red and you will be unnecessarily fatigued.

So, what is it that actually makes you strain as you look at a computer screen? First is the weariness of looking from so close. If you look into the distance three times a day for eight minutes, it can help to alleviate this. Not everyone, however, has this amount of time, so even twice a day would suffice. This can occur before you start to work, after two hours of working, or at the end of the work day (if your eyes are not too tired). The main thing is not to strain: do not try to see the distance; instead, scan the distance. From time to time, use the obstructive lenses described in Step 8 to obstruct the eye that sees better from far away, even if the other eye sees better from near. Then take the glasses off and keep looking into the distance.

Every hour that you use a computer, you should do something different. If you focus on the rush of information coming from your monitor for very long, it’s very easy to disregard your peripheral vision. When this happens, your central vision becomes overtaxed, a situation that may contribute to glaucoma or lead to a loss of clear vision. So it’s imperative to provide your central cells with some rest by stimulating your peripheral cells. You can accomplish this by doing the peripheral vision exercises, which will enable you to notice the periphery more: you acknowledge the floor, the wall, the ceiling, and your general work environment. When the periphery is being used, you won’t tense your eyes as much.

Figure 3.1. It’s imperative to provide your central cells with some rest by stimulating your peripheral cells.

The long swing can also work wonders because it gets you away from your computer terminal and forces you to do something physical with your entire body along with your eyes. Even if you have only a few minutes to do this, there will be a noticeable improvement in your vision when you return to your computer. The Melissa exercise is also wonderful to do every day for five minutes; place it anywhere in your day when your eyes are not so tired that they won’t respond to an exercise. In this way, fatigue does not accumulate. Palming for a minimum of six minutes could also be beneficial at some point in your workday, preferably after not more than an hour of sitting at your computer. If you make palming an intrinsic part of your daily routine, it will help your eyes to recover from any strain they are undergoing. And, as your day progresses, you should alternate between all of the aforementioned exercises in order to obtain the most beneficial results.

Throughout your entire workday, you should be certain to pay attention to the periphery as well as the fact that your two eyes are looking. From time to time, as you are reading the computer screen, put a small piece of paper in front of your nose, covering the strong eye. Then wave your hand to the side of the strong eye and read with your weaker eye. Close your eyes and try to remember the last line you read, and say it to yourself twice. This helps because sometimes the brain will remember only what you read with the stronger eye, and this will force you to read with both eyes.

While working, it’s a good practice to look away from the computer for fifteen seconds every half hour. When your day is entirely over, it’s good to finish up with a ritual of three minutes of peripheral vision exercises and one minute of doing the long swing. By doing this, the drawbacks of computer work will not affect you as much; in fact, you may even be encouraged to exercise your eyes more.

There are basically two problems that result from using a computer. One is that we are just not meant to stare at a computer for eight hours a day. Our ancestors did not do it, and through them we have developed the kind of eyes that we currently possess. Nowadays, however, nearsightedness is increasing at an astounding rate. When Dr. Bates was devastated about schoolchildren in New York in the 1920s, it was because 6 percent of them were nearsighted. These days, we would like to return to what had already been thought of as a large percentage, because 48 percent of kids who attend school in the United States today are nearsighted. Sadly, the numbers are even higher in other places around the world: in Hong Kong, it is 62 percent; in Taiwan, it is 84 percent. Therefore, the entire world needs to start to understand these implications. And while the computer itself may not account for these results, looking from near for lengths of time at a stretch is partially responsible for them. This mode of working tempts you not to use your periphery, which is what triggers the problem in the first place.

The other difficulty is that pixels have unique properties, and it’s harder for the eye to see them even though we don’t sense it at the time. The cumulative effect over a period of hours of computer use, however, is substantial. Hence the importance of taking our eyes away from the screen periodically. It is also essential to blink frequently yet gently as we are working. Not only will this break you away from the fixation of staring at your computer screen, which contributes to eyestrain, but it will serve to moisten your eyes and to reduce tension in the muscles around them. Burning, inflamed, or itchy eyes will eventually be alleviated by blinking.

From time to time, especially when you feel you are not responsive to any of the exercises, just massage around the eye orbits, from the bridge of the nose to the temples and from the nose to the ears. Relax yourself, even if it means only ten strokes (about twenty seconds) of this, which could really remove the fatigue you have accumulated. Now, if you’re working on a hot day, you could end up having invisible inflammation in your eyes. So lie down once a day with a cold, damp towel around your eyes.

You need to campaign for zero tolerance in building up unnoticed fatigue. First, you need to be aware of its existence; then you need to remove your fatigue as you progress through your day.

The detrimental thing about reading from a computer screen is that we have incorrectly learned to read only the document in front of us, and not to pay attention to our eyes. If we have bloodshot eyes, we go to an ophthalmologist and get eye drops, thinking that fatigue does not affect the eyes adversely. But once it begins to accumulate, nothing will go right with your vision. And this could be prevented by managing that fatigue. It’s very important to take a day off sometimes. During that day, don’t use a computer; instead, do some eye exercises. It is also beneficial to take time off during each day and not look at a computer screen; designate times for using your computer and times when you won’t be using it. Naturally, this will vary with the individual, and whereas some people prefer to enjoy their day, using their computers only at nighttime, others will prefer just the opposite. Once you have decided on the hours you will not be working, you can revive yourself from use of the computer by doing other things and by paying more attention to everything it kept you from using, like your peripheral vision or your weaker eye. Otherwise, by looking from near you can strain one eye; looking from far, you can strain the other.

In conclusion, value your eyes as much as you value the material with which you are working. Similarly, value your breath just as much as you value your project. The moment you make these decisions, the computer will never harm your eyes. If your decision is to ignore them, however, the computer can harm your eyes big time. And never believe people who tell you that a computer can’t damage your eyes, for their advice alone can damage you as well.