" is especially important for people with migraine because research shows they have more neck dysfunction than the general population," shared Ali Ladak, PT, DPT, with the American Migraine Foundation. Gravity slowly draws your shoulders downward while you sit, which makes slouching tempting, especially over the course of many hours at a desk. Try to check your posture throughout the day to make sure that you aren't slouching.
Staging your workspace correctly (see No. 4) will help you sit in a comfortable, upright posture. Finally, make sure there is no glare from another light source on your screen. A screen that is too close or too far can lead to eye strain. Set up your monitor 20 to 40 inches away from your face. Next, make sure the monitor is at eye level so you don't have to slouch or strain. Adjust your chair so that you are looking straight ahead at the screen. It's important to protect your neck, especially if you are dealing with cervicogenic headache.įirst, make sure your computer monitor is directly in front of you so you don't have to twist your spine to focus. The right setup will encourage you to sit comfortably and be relaxed without straining your neck. 4. Properly Stage Your Workspaceīefore you even sit down at your computer, notice how your desk is arranged. How: Go to System Preferences > Display Properties > Scaled and adjust to your personal preference. Your eyes won't need to work so hard to read, reducing the risk of computer headaches. If you catch yourself squinting to make out text or notice that, by the end of the day, your face feels tired or strained, you may need to adjust your font size. Squint much? It's not necessary since most computers allow you to change the default font size you see, just as phones now do. How: Go to System Preferences > Display Properties > Advanced Settings. You'll want to set this rate as high as it will go to reduce eye strain and prevent a computer headache. The refresh rate frequency is measured in hertz. When rates are set too low, monitors can imperceptibly flicker, causing your eyes to strain more than necessary. The refresh rate indicates how many times per second your computer screen renews its image. How: Go to System Preferences > Display Properties > Scale and adjust brightness to your personal preference. If it is not, consider toning down your screen brightness and investing in a desk lamp. Your office should provide a well-lit workspace. The key is to limit eye strain, which can lead to a computer headache that aggravates migraine. Digre explains: "Many of the people that I see like to be in a midlit room and have their computer screen away from the window, and for sure not have Venetian blinds or striped blinds in their offices." If you work in a dim office and stare at an ultra-bright display, your eyes are being forced to operate under two seriously contrasting environments. The brightness of your computer screen should blend with the brightness around your computer screen. Here are some essential tips for those who frequently experience a migraine attack or computer headache at work: 1. Balance Your Computer Screen Brightness If headaches and/or migraine attacks are common after you spend time on the computer, you'll want to be proactive in managing your workspace and screen exposure. Pretty ironic, right?ġ0 Tips to Switch Off the Pain and Avoid a Computer Headache As migraine patients ourselves, the only way we can produce and publish this website, our newsletters, videos, and podcasts is by staring into the invasive glow of a computer screen. What's worse, you need the job to pay for the health insurance and medical bills that help to manage the migraine pain. Can't finish the work, can't tolerate the pain. It's an all-too-familiar scenario: You need to work on a brightly lit screen that triggers a computer headache that leads to a migraine attack - which makes it tough to keep working.
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She learned how to flip the switch on her computer screen headaches and migraine disease. So why would she think of signing up for a job that required her to gaze into annoyingly bright screen light all day? Ironically, she had been forced out of her work as a park ranger in the great outdoors of Yosemite and was living on disability at the ripe age of 26.
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What doctors say, plus practical tips to save your eyes and your head.Īngie Glaser was already four years deep into a chronic migraine cycle when she accepted a job at Migraine Again as content editor. Screen time can lead to an eye strain headache that can lead to a migraine attack.