The Ultimate Guide to Understanding Eye Strain: Causes, Symptoms, Tips for Prevention, and Treatment

Ever wondered why your eyes tend to half close and you often doze off leaving your important work behind. Well, it must be eye strain, a condition that often occurs when your eyes bear the fatigue of intense work. Even the activities of day-to-day life such as high screen-time, intense reading, or long-distance driving may cause the problem.

No matter what causes your eyes to strain, it can be annoying but the good news is that it is not a serious disease and tends to go away once you take the right steps to contain the issue. However, you need to know what causes your eyes to feel tired or if it is a mistaken belief and there is a serious underlying condition that requires treatment. Understanding the problem inside out becomes more important when changes in lifestyle do not cure the problem and you may need to examine your eyes.

Is eyestrain common?

Eye strain that remains only temporarily is common. You will find that your eyes feel tired after day’s work and tend to go away after a while when you limit the things that cause this problem. A chunk of population today suffers from digital eye strain that is caused due to long-term exposure to electronic devices.

Symptoms of eye strain

The symptoms of eyestrain are:

• Red and watery eyes with irritation
• Eyelids becoming heavy
• Fatigued and aching eyes
• Spasms in the muscles of eyes and eyelids
• Trouble keeping the eyes open
• Double or blurred vision
• Photophobia or sensitivity to light
• Lack of focus and concentration
• Itching or burning eyes
• Mild headache
• Shoulder and neck pain
• Back pain

Even if a few of these symptoms have been persisting for a while, you must visit an optometrist in Malaysia and find out if there is an underlying condition causing your eyes to strain. The optometrist can also recommend basic guidelines to eliminate the problem of tired eyes.

Causes of eyestrain

You must have often experienced that after looking into the mobile or computer screen for a pretty long time, your eyes start feeling tired. What happens is that the lens of your contract naturally during eyestrain and staring at the mobile, computer, or tablet screen does not allow the lens to relax, which causes more fatigue.

Besides, your eyes tend to feel tired when you don’t blink often. Blinking replenishes the tear layers that make the surface across the cornea smooth, which helps in sharpening the vision. So, if you stare at the screen and your eyes do not blink often, the surface becomes exposed to evaporation and air. It eventually causes holes to form in the tear film and irritates the surface of the cornea, causing the symptoms of eye strain to persist and blurred vision.

Read here to know which activities may cause the eyes to strain:

Eye strain is caused due to intense activities of your eyes when performing different tasks like:

1. Reading
2. Driving
3. Playing games on the mobile device or computer
4. Engaging in sewing, writing, and crafting
5. Doing work in poor light conditions
6. Staring at the screen of digital devices
7. Staying focused on various activities for a long time
8. Staying exposed to glare and bright light
9. Underlying problems in the eyes like incorrect vision, dryness, and refractive errors
10. Exposure to dry air from air conditioning system, heating system, or a fan

Tips to prevent eye strain

Eyestrain often resembles other eye problems, so while you need to know the tips to prevent eyestrain, get a thorough checkup to find out how to get relief from the symptoms:

• Take adequate rest and short breaks from your work. An idea option would be to get up from work and stay away from the screen.
• Placing the digital screen at a safe distance or holding the reading material away from the screen
• Try to keep the screen clean and free from dust and make sure you adjust the contrast and the brightness of the screen so that it aligns with the lighting in the environment.
• Try to reduce the glaring effect of the screen and place protectors that will allow you to reduce the harmful impact
• Wear anti-reflective glasses to make sure that our eyes don’t absorb the rays.
• Meet your optometrist in Malaysia and find out whether you need glasses or corrective lenses, especially if you are between 35 -40 years
• Use an adjustable chair when working on the computer
• Follow the instructions of the eye care provider about how to use and maintain the contact lenses
• Restrict the time for which you are planning to use contact lenses to reduce the harmful impact

Diagnosis and treatment for eye strain

Eye strain is not a disorder but a symptom that may disappear when you follow the recommendations of the optometrist. In most cases, you may not need eyeglasses and a few lifestyle changes are all you may need. Just remember the things you need to avoid and you will gradually experience relief. However, if you continue to strain your eyes and do not pay heed to them, the problems can aggravate and lead to serious conditions. Schedule an appointment with an eyecare provider and discuss these topics.

Treatment and management of eye strain

Managing eye strain usually requires no more than making a few lifestyle changes. Don’t miss getting your eyewear in Malaysia to protect your eyes when staring at the screen. Try to take short breaks from work to reduce straining your eyes. The optometrist or an eye care provider may ask you to apply lubricating eye drops to ensure that your eyes stay moist. They may also ask you to quit smoking or use a dehumidifier.

Eye strain gradually improves naturally but if the symptoms tend to persist long after you follow the instructions and stop doing those things that cause your eyes to strain, you may have an underlying disorder. If you face trouble with strained eyes all the time, get your eyes tested and see a healthcare provider, especially when it interferes with your ability to do work. To see a reputable optometrist in Malaysia, visit our website and book an appointment for tests and diagnosis.