Guide · body · 3 min read
Tired eyes after a long day of screens — what works and what does not, when you want to finish something
Eye strain is mostly about distance and blinking, not about blue light glasses.
Start here
Here is what tends to work, in the order that helps most.
Wanting to finish something is a better motivation than wanting to relax.
If you only do one thing from this page, do the first point below. It is first because it removes the most friction for the least effort.
What helps
Your eyes focus at one distance all day. Look at something far away for twenty seconds every twenty minutes — out of a window, not across the room.
If your eyes feel gritty every day, get them tested. An uncorrected small prescription causes more strain than any screen.
You blink about a third as often when reading on a screen. Deliberately blinking a few times re-wets the surface.
What to do when it does not work
Warm, dim light in the evening is more comfortable than bright overhead light, regardless of what it does to your sleep.
Move the screen slightly further away and lower than eye level. Both reduce the work your eyes are doing.
Use a bigger font instead of leaning closer. Most people scale the font down to fit more on screen, then pay for it.
Questions people ask
Do blue light glasses work?
Evidence is weak. They are not harmful, but the bigger wins are distance, blinking and a decent font size.
Written for people who want the practical version. No accounts, no tracking, no newsletter wall.