Avoid the aura: Computer-induced migraines

If you’re a migraine sufferer and you spend as much time as I do in front of a computer, you know… eye strain can trigger a migraine.  Here are a few tips that can help.

First, take frequent breaks.  You can use the 10-10-10 rule, which basically says that every 10 minutes you should look at something 10 feet away for 10 seconds.  There’s also a free program for the Mac called Time Out, which provides reminders to rest your eyes at regular intervals. If you’re using Windows or Linux, you can try WorkRave.

Next, make sure you don’t spend all day looking at black text on a white screen.  It’s incredibly hard on the eyes.  White text on a blue background is what I shoot for.  Depending on the program you’re using, this might be an option.  For settings on Microsoft Word you can check out the following blogs: turning it on & turning it off.

When you’re browsing the web, things can be a little tougher because websites define their own color schemes. You can use the following bookmark-let to reset your current page to white on blue if there’s a particularly long piece of text you are reading. Right Click on Me and select “Bookmark this Link”.  Then add the bookmark to your favorites bar and you can click on it to change the style of any page you visit.

If you’re lucky enough to be using a Mac, you can also press ⌥-⌘-^-8 simultaneously to invert the colors on your screen. This switches you into white on black mode.  I usually do this a couple of times every hour throughout the workday… switching back and forth between white on black and black on white seems to help reduce eye strain for me personally.
I would also suggest adjusting the brightness of your display.  It can make a big difference as many laptops and monitors seem to default to retinal-scalding intensity for some reason.  In any event you’ll probably have to play around with these techniques and figure out what’s right for you.

These are the simple things you can easily do and change in your environment; however, if you’re fortunately enough to have more control over your environment and would like to do more, you can check out 22 ways to reduce computer eye strain.