I have been a freelance writer for more than six years. Over that time, I have spent thousands upon thousands of hours in front of the computer. Some days, my eyes are glued to the screen for 15 hours or more.
While there is nothing I enjoy more than writing, something happened to me late last year: my eyesight began to worsen and I was experiencing headaches and blurred vision on almost a daily basis.
Fortunately, I scheduled an appointment with my eye care practitioner and soon found out that my problem could be easily corrected. However, I needed to make some changes to the way I approached my career.
Take More Breaks!
Gone are the days of spending long periods of time in front of the computer without taking a break. Instead, I have followed the advice of my eye doctor: take a break of at least 10 minutes for every hour of work.
As annoying as this can be at times (there is nothing worse than walking away in the middle of a story), it has really helped improve my vision and cut back on painful/bothersome symptoms.
Wear Your Glasses!
One of the first things my eye doctor said to me was “wear your glasses more often!” I found this surprising, as I thought it would be better to wear my contacts all day long. I was completely wrong. My doctor suggested that I only wear my contacts for 8 hours per day, at the most.
Back Up!
I hate to admit it, but I used to be one of those people who hunched over the keyboard and sat 6 to 8 inches from the screen. Not only did this harm my eyes, but I can only imagine how silly I looked.
Nowadays, I have better posture and sit at least two feet from the monitor. In addition to improved vision, my back and neck also feel better at the end of a long day’s work.
Even though my eye doctor has changed the way I approach my career, it is safe to say that these adjustments to my daily life will allow me to work at the career I love for a much longer time.
Chris Bibey is a full-time freelance writer and blogger who helps consumers buy cheap contact lenses via the internet.
I was similarly changed, but it was when I got some Gunnar Optiks gaming glasses. I bought them primarily to support them as Pittsburgh LAN Coalition sponsor. I know that my eyes get tired after long gaming sessions, so I applied the same principles and tried wearing them at work. Lo and behold, my headaches have gone away!
Haha, I hope I wasn’t the only one hunched over my keyboard to get closer to the screen when I read this.
Still, even if I fail to take breaks regularly, I hope to try and keep better posture after reading this.