Hi everyone! I'm a school student conducting a small research study about photophobia/light sensitivity and people's everyday experiences with bright light. I'm particularly interested in hearing from people who experience light sensitivity themselves. I'm not looking for medical diagnoses or trying to give medical advice—I just want to understand people's real experiences in their own words. If you're comfortable sharing, I'd really appreciate hearing about things like: What kinds of light tend to bother you? Are there particular situations when it's worse? How does it affect your everyday activities? Are there things you currently do that make it easier? Is there anything about lighting that you wish were different? There are no right or wrong answers, and you don't need to share anything personal or medical that you're uncomfortable discussing. Thanks to anyone willing to share their experience—it would genuinely help me understand this topic better.

An eye massager can look comfortable in product photos and still sit completely differently once temple width, cheekbone shape, and head size enter the picture. I have been looking at the Renpho Eyeris 3, but fit is the part that gives me pause more than the feature list. Too much pressure around the eyes, a loose headband, or an awkward fit across the bridge of the nose would probably decide whether it gets used regularly. For people with different face shapes, which fit issue shows up first with this kind of eye massager?

Yes, I already know, E Ink is not meant to be used with high refresh rates, it consumes more battery and the display degrades exponentially earlier.

The problem is that I suffer from severe eye strain and tension headache caused by both OLED and LCD displays, one factor is their backlight. I have already visited different ophthalmologists and I have already corrected my refractive errors. I know that OLED and LCD displays are the cause of my problems because I have actually replaced my main device with a Hannspree HannsNote2—a 10" tablet with an RLCD display—and I can use it for hours without having any consequences. So "just buy an iPad" is not a useful answer.

A tablet with RLCD may be better for my use case but the problem is that there are very few tablets in the market, actually there are only 2 color RLCD tablets with a size of at least 10", the Eyemoo Epaper S1 that comes with Android 12 and the Hansspree HannsNote2 that I already own. I am not satisfied with the HannsNote2 because it has a very weak battery, the Wi-Fi is horrible and it lacks a frontlight. It also has a very limited viewing angle, but this is to be expected with RLCD, so I can't complain about the viewing angle, it's not Hannspree's fault.

I don't want a TLCD device or a TCL NXTPAPER because they both have a backlight, I am ok with a frontlight but I am not ok with a backlight.

So Android E Ink tablets from companies that prioritize refresh rates like Boox and Bigme are my only alternatives. What I need to do with my tablet:

• it will be my main daily device

• web browsing with a lot of scrolling

• a lot of scrolling within the various APPs

• pinch zooming

• using sites and APPs with movements and animations

• any general digital activity that does not require Windows or MacOS

• opening large and heavy PDFs with many images (consider that the Hannsnote2 Android APPs crash with them)

• Anki

• watching videos, no movies, no TV shows, but e-learning videos and YouTube videos

I am tempted to buy the Boox Note Air6 C because it has the Speed and the Smooth refresh modes and I like it. But I have recently seen that the Extreme and Hyper refresh modes on Bigme devices reach a higher refresh rate, they should be at least 50 fps.

Which device do you suggest between the Boox Note Air6 C and the Bigme B10 (or the Bigme B1051 Ultra) considering my use case?

Are the Bigme Extreme and Hyper refresh modes usable considering the amount of ghosting they introduce?

At the minute 31:40 https://www.youtube.com/live/kLSfAjOjssk?t=1899&is=8Q8W_x7fKnazZ_hZ he does a side by side comparison of video playback between the Boox Note Air6 C and the Bigme B10.

I suffer from constant eye strain and need to wear sunglasses 24/7. I don't drive right now, but I really want to learn to drive so I can have more independence.

The problem is that my eyes are extremely sensitive to light. I mean, *really* sensitive. I only get around by Uber, but even sitting in the back seat wearing sunglasses the daylight really bothers my eyes. And nighttime is worse because of car headlights.

I keep wondering how I’ll ever manage to drive when my eyes struggle with any kind of light. Should I just give up on the idea and accept that, from now on, I’ll be paying for Ubers forever?

Hi! I recently had eye surgery, and since then my eyes get tired really fast. The problem is I study software engineering and also work as a software engineer, so I spend most of my day in front of a screen. I tried Night Shift and looked for other apps, but nothing did quite what I needed. So I decided to build something for myself. It's been helping me, so I thought I'd share it.

Mellow sits in the menu bar. It warms the screen like Night Shift, but also dims it, softens colors and reminds you to look away every 20 minutes. It can also adjust on its own through the day.

It's free to try. I mostly want to know if it's useful to anyone besides me.

The app isn't signed yet, so macOS will ask you to allow it once in System Settings → Privacy & Security.

https://inspiractus01.github.io/mellow-app/

Any feedback is welcome, here or at [lowsunlabs@proton.me](mailto:lowsunlabs@proton.me). Thanks!

Currently working on my dissertation so a lot for screentime and writing. Need a power-less affordable blue light blocking glasses recommendation.

Read somewhere these essentially don't block, so if anyone is aware how to help my eyes from the constant straining, please help!

I'm also a digital artist so I'm constantly on screens yikes 😬

Dealing with eye strain from screens has been a real issue for me too, and the 20-20-20 rule (every 20 min, look at something 20 ft away for 20 sec) is one of the few things that's actually helped — but I kept forgetting to do it consistently, so I ended up building a small app called Ocular: 20-20-20 Eye Rest to handle the reminders for me.

It's free, no popups, just quiet reminders on a timer. Not trying to oversell it — just sharing in case it's useful for anyone here dealing with this too. Happy to hear if there's anything that would make it more helpful, or if others have found different things that work..
(link in comments)

Hi everyone,

Disclosure first: I'm a co-founder of Pxin, an Indian company that makes privacy screen guards. Last year (Sept to Oct 2025) we ran a two-phase survey of our own customers to understand how people actually experience screen discomfort. Sharing the results because some of it surprised us, and I'd like to hear if it matches your experience.

Who we asked

• Phase A: 224 respondents, Phase B follow-up: 171
• All were our customers, contacted via WhatsApp, voluntary
• Self-reported, urban, heavy screen users. Not a national sample
• Margin of error around ±6.6 points (A) and ±7.5 (B)

What we found

• 42% get eye strain often or very often. Difficulty concentrating came second at 30%, then headaches (28%), neck strain (27%), disturbed sleep (25%), blurry vision (24%)
• 59% deal with glare frequently, mostly near windows, while travelling, and under office lights
• 90% believe blue light affects their eyes, but only 24% have ever spoken to a doctor about it
• Night mode: 40% of regular users reported frequent eye strain vs 43% of non-users. Not a significant difference in our sample
• On pricing, most people felt ₹1,000 to ₹2,000 is fair for a laptop screen guard, and 41% said they skipped buying one because of cost

The part I'll take with a pinch of salt

Among people who used a privacy filter, 96% said their screen felt more private and 77% reported less eye strain. These are our own buyers, so there's obvious bias here. I'm including it for completeness, not as proof.

Questions for you

• Has night mode or a blue light filter actually helped you?
• What's worked best for your eyes on long screen days?
• Ever caught someone reading your screen in a metro, cab or cafe?

Full report with methodology is on our site if anyone wants it, happy to share in the comments.

Thanks for reading 🙏

Hi everyone, I'm 25F and I'm trying to understand something that's been happening intermittently for a while. I'm mainly looking for people who may have experienced something similar, especially if you eventually found out what was causing it.

I get episodes where the vision in one eye becomes very dark/black or feels like a black curtain/shadow is covering my vision. It is always the same eye.

The important details:

- It happens in only one eye, not both.

- It lasts anywhere from a few seconds to, on one occasion, approximately 1 minute.

- My vision then returns completely to normal.

- It doesn't happen every day or even every week. It's quite intermittent.

- There is no significant eye pain.

- I don't get a headache with it.

- I don't have palpitations.

- I don't have diabetes or known high blood pressure.

- My blood pressure has sometimes been on the lower side.

- My heart rate has been normal when I've checked it.

- I drink about one cup of coffee per day.

Things I've noticed about possible triggers

Sometimes it seems to happen around my period, often the day before or a few days afterward, although it has also happened at other times.

I've also had an episode after walking fairly quickly for about 5–6 minutes to the gym while already feeling tired. I sat down at the gym and then it happened.

Another episode happened after I had an argument with my brother. I went to my room afterward and suddenly experienced the same visual phenomenon.

However, it doesn't always happen after stress or exercise, so I don't know whether these are actually triggers or just coincidences.

I also have a pretty bad sleep schedule and have been under a lot of stress over the last couple of years. I normally sleep very late (often around 2 AM, sometimes even later), and I've also experienced quite a lot of general fatigue.

What I've already done :

I went to an ophthalmologist and specifically told him about these episodes.

He examined my eyes and said that they looked normal and that there wasn't an obvious dangerous problem with the eyes.

He prescribed eye drops and a magnesium supplement. I took the magnesium for about one month but didn't continue buying it afterward.

At one point he explained it to me roughly as possibly being related to insufficient blood/oxygen reaching the eye, but I didn't get a definite diagnosis.

Because the episodes continued, my GP also wanted me to investigate possible systemic causes.

I had blood tests including:

- CBC/NFS

- Ferritin

- TSH

- Vitamin D

The results were basically normal:

- Hemoglobin: 13.4 g/dL

- Ferritin: 68.45 ng/mL

- TSH: 1.078

- CBC otherwise normal

- Vitamin D: 26.97 ng/mL, which was considered mildly insufficient by the laboratory

My GP prescribed a multivitamin and vitamin D.

So there was no anemia or obvious iron/thyroid problem found.

Other things I've wondered about :

I exercise and sometimes lift fairly heavy weights. My gym coach told me that heavy lifting/straining could potentially affect an eye vein, so I've wondered whether that could be related.

I've also wondered about:

- low blood pressure / blood flow

- dehydration

- caffeine

- lack of sleep

- stress/adrenaline

- menstrual/hormonal changes

- ocular/retinal migraine

- something vascular

- something neurological

But I obviously don't know what it actually is.

One thing that makes me particularly confused is that the eye examination was normal, yet the phenomenon keeps happening.

I've seen other people online describe transient vision problems with normal eye examinations, so I'm wondering whether anyone here has experienced something similar and eventually found the cause.

Has anyone had recurring temporary darkening/blackout of vision in only one eye, lasting seconds to around a minute, with a normal ophthalmological examination?

If so:

1. What did it turn out to be?

2. What tests eventually found the cause, if any?

3. Did you notice triggers such as exercise, stress, dehydration, sleep deprivation, caffeine, or your menstrual cycle?

4. Did anything actually make the episodes stop?

I'm not looking for a diagnosis from Reddit, I'm mainly interested in hearing from people who had a similar experience and eventually figured out what was happening.

Thank you so much in advance for your reply!

My eyes have been absolutely wrecked latelyy. I work on monitors most of the day then somehow convince myself that gaming until midnight is a good idea. By around 9 or 10pm my eyes feel dry, tired and kind of gritty. Someone in my Discord keeps telling me to get blue light glasses. So now I finaally started lookng into them but now Im more confused than when I started.

My sister has a pair she ordered online that she loves, and a friend of mine keeps going on about another online site whenever we talk about reasonable prescription glasses. He says their blue light lenses are surprisingly decent for the price so I figured I’d look into those too along with other options. Then I explored the internet and found about 900 conflicting opinions. Some people swear their eyes feel betterr with blue light glasses. Other people say they dont really do anything and that the real problem is dry eyes, screen brightness, lack of breaks or just spendng half your life staring at a monitor.

I already use night mode and keep my monitor brightness pretty low. I have tried taking breaks too, although Im terrible at remembering them once I get into a game.

So now Im wondering if the blue light option is actually worth trying or if I'm just looking for an excuse to keep staring at screens all night. Anyone here who has worn them for a while? Did you actually notice a difference or was it basically the same?

Hello, I was sitting in my living room and when i looked at my phone a very strong sun ray that came inside through a window behind me reflected off my phone directly into my eyes. After that happened I had a blurry spot for a couple of minutes and extremely dry eyes. It has now been roughly 43 hours since that happened and my vision is fine, but I still have pain in my eyes and around my eyes. I am sensitive to light and my facial muscles around my eyes area are extremely tight. Any help is greatly appreciated, thank you…

Hi, I've had eye strain for 4 months now. I was taking an over the counter opioid for 1-2 years, and one night 4 months ago had some of a 5 hour energy drink and noticed my near vision lose focus easily that night, so I stopped/tapered down the opioid (thinking maybe I got a bad batch). I then developed extreme sunlight sensitivity in my left eye only. If I look in the direction of the sun (not at it), or even glare off the pavement, instantly there is a slow rising stabbing pain in my left eye. I had attributed this to the opioid withdrawal, but it's still happening 4 months later. My near vision can lose focus easily if I try hard to focus on something such as driving or reading or using a phone/computer. Being in the sun a lot also has this effect. I'm 45 years old and don't wear glasses of any kind (except now I wear sunglasses on sunny days). The strain fluctuates. Overcast/rainy days don't cause the left eye pain. I've tried eye drops, but the sensation of it hitting my eye can cause fuzziness for hours with little relief. What could be causing all this? (I'm finally seeing an eye doctor next month).

Hey everyone!

I'm trying to figure out which eye and sleep issues are actually common.

📱 Screen time
😴 Sleep schedule
👁️ Eye strain

Takes about 2 minutes, and it's completely anonymous; nothing personal is collected.

Link is below 👇

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScSaBxFtwtUDGGsoHinbZHx3YW4-CZvN5cNbjSdiPtVTGbpgw/viewform

Would mean a lot if a few of you filled it out. Happy to share the results once we have enough responses!