Hyperopia and the difficulties of close work

[Shpigo]

Hello!

I am a 28 Y\O animator. My job requires computer work and using my sketchbook as well. I work 9 hours a day, and study when I come home after work. It sums up to about 12 hours a day of close work. 18 months ago I started suffering from headaches, diagnosed with +0.75 in both eyes and started wearing glasses. Today I have +1.50 with cylinder in both eyes. However even with glasses, it is extremely difficult for me to work. I am constantly tired, suffering from eye strain and having hard time concentrating and reading for more than 30 minutes.

I asked my optometrist for stronger glasses for close work (+2.00). My eye doctor advised against it saying that accommodating is good for my eyes. Wearing them doesn't make it any better - still strained..

After going to a professional eye surgery clinic, the doctor told me to try contacts in order to simulate the effect of the procedure. I tried 2 types of contacts for a week, but it made my eyes so dry I couldn't wear them at all. Apparently my tear drainage is blocked in both eyes. The doctor did not recommend the surgery after that.

I read all about using computers - ergonomics, constant breaks, blinking, drinking and lighting. Still, it is extremely difficult for me to work with a computer, and reading is a daunting task.

Any advise would be a huge help.
Thank you!

[Doreen Fazio, M.D.]

If your eyes are diverging at near, a small amount of prism in the glasses may help to keep your eyes aligned.  This may make near work more comfortable.

[TurtleJoe]

The concept of "Sitting in front of a computer" is too general a statement especially in your case. Flat screens and old style computer monitors provide different challenges for your eyes. The distance of your face (eyes) to the screen plays a role as well. The screen intensities on some computers are not easily adjustable but the effect can give you those headaches. Relative screen font and view size can be important. Lastly, the size of the flat screen particularly the newer larger screens is like sitting in the front row at IMAX.
Experiment with the easy remedies  Best of luck.

[Shpigo]

Thank you for your answer.
After another exam with the eye drops, the results were similar. The number is still 1.50.
The doctor diagnosed that my eyes has a slight outward tendency with one of the eyes slower than the other on converging and diverging. He said that my eye strain is caused due to the glasses for Hyperopia stresses the eyes to converge (inwards), therefore they are working against my eyes tendency (did I make any sense?).
I have been doing eye exercise for converging and diverging with a special computer software (cvs inet) for a couple of months now. While it is a little help, I am still struggling a lot with any type of close work, concentrating and reading. This is hurting my everyday life so much I have started considering a career change. However, since most of our day time requires computer use or reading anyway, I am a little lost.
Any sort of help will be much appreciated.

Thank you very much.

[Doreen Fazio, M.D.]

At 28 years of age, your eyes should be able to accommodate the +0.75 or +1.50 for near work.  I would see the optometrist again for a cycloplegic refraction.  This uses an eye drop to relax your eyes' accommodation, so that the true amount of hyperopia (farsightedness) can be determined.  It may be much higher than measured without the drops.  If not, there is some other reason for your near discomfort.  You mentioned dry eyes, which may be contributing to the problem.  This should be treated to help your reading problem.  Nutritional supplements such as multivitamins and fish oil (Omega 3), artificial tear supplements (Refresh, Optive, Systane, Thera Tears), lid hygiene and other therapies may be tried.  See the ophthalmologist again for a complete evaluation:  Schirmer test, tear break-up time, corneal and conjunctival staining, lid evaluation.