hey, everybody.

Most of you know, that I'm a very active part of the eyestrain discussion since from the beginning I've startet the intel thread in 2014.
I've done so much research and what can I say?! - nothing! Only I can speculate that the eyestrain problem has to do something with pwm, dithering and some weird things going on in the graphics driver. However thats nothing more than that I knew in 2014.
Also I can see that more and more people joining the ledstrain forums and are starting threads about topics some of us already discussed very intensely long time ago without any conclusion.

So, I don't give up if it's that what you would think now. I'm just trying to find connections why we can "see" things others can't see. I found some doctors who are very interested in that topic and want to help me, help us. As I result I frequently come up with new theories and explanations and try them out on me.

Next thing I'm going to do is an amygdalectomy and shortly after that a nasal cartilage operation, cause I get to less air through my nose.

Long story short. May some of you give me a brief overview about their health? Don't be afraid, its completely anonymous - I'm just interested if there are any connections. So please tell me about your general state of health. do you often get sick? what about your temporomandibular joint? what about your tonsils? do you have problems breathing through the nose? just everythin you think could be interesting.

An additionally non technical way of thinking could'n be a bad thing.

    Hello.

    You said something interesting. I have noticed that it helps a great deal keeping the migraines at bay if I do deep breathes through my mouth instead of breathing through my nose. I don't really know why. I have two concurrent theories: either it is because of a larger influx of oxygen or because the air I'm breathing hits hard the back of my throat and cools it off. Or maybe both?

    I have a deviated septum and very narrow nostrils. For unrelated reasons a couple of years ago the possibility of having surgery to widen them was put on the table, although I ended up not doing it (too many scary stories about that kind of surgeries..)

    I'm starting to think that a big trigger for my migraines may well be lack of oxygen or something of the like and that maybe that's the reason that mouth breathing helps me. On the other hand, I've also read a couple of years ago somewhere about a treatment that involved once a month have some sort of analgesic be administrated to the back of your throat. Maybe it's related? I don't know. And I've tried hard but can't find the link for that treatment.

      I have been playing with a new idea lately.

      Part of our problem is that by some reason our eyes get strained. My experience is that our eyes work as muscles and they get strained (tired).

      You also regularly end up doing a lot of stuff in front of a monitor that doesn't really needs for your eyes to totally focus on the screen. On those cases, I try to focus my eyes like 10-20cm past the monitor, even if only for a couple of seconds. That seems to give my eyes' muscles some kind of temporary relieve, and helps not allowing the migraines to build up so fast as they would otherwise. I'm at this point still not totally sure of how much of a help this actually is, but I'm positive that it really helps.

      PS: As I was writing this post, I was actually with my eyes focused past my screen. I already got used to do this trick as much as possible, and always focusing at a different distance, to try to spread out the muscle usage. You'll notice that even when looking past the monitor, you can still generally understand what's written on the display. As you get used to doing this, you'll learn how to focus optimally -- resting your eyes and still being able to read what's on your display.

        Harrison Also I can see that more and more people joining the ledstrain forums and are starting threads about topics some of us already discussed very intensely long time ago without any conclusion.

        I understand that. I would suggest redirecting them to the original thread. Even if unresolved, multiple threads on identical topics help no-one.

        Harrison I'm just trying to find connections why we can "see" things others can't see.

        I've began working on a "survey" (similar to those annoying "marketing" surveys), perhaps it will be usable as a method to identify correlations. Unfortunately I am back using my IPC2 which uses dithering (my computer with nvidia is currently in RMA..) so I'm spending much less time on the computer.
        Once that is remedied, I plan on finishing it up and maybe then we can glean some information.
        I plan to make statistics and input data (at least mostly) public so some care will be needed for anonymity, etc.

          Slacor (my computer with nvidia is currently in RMA..)

          What happened to it? 😐

            __528491__

            Thanks for your detailed information. First of all I have to say that it's not easy for me to explain this medical stuff in english, however I'm pretty sure that you guys will know what I mean.

            I've two major problems in my head/face/...
            One is burxism and as a result problems with my temporomandibular joint and strainend facial muscles around it. Those symptoms get much better with a retainer I've got for 2 years know. However the strainend facial muscles did not relax totally. So one theory is that the strainend muscles influence the eye muscles in a certain way. One possible explanation is that during night, I can't breath with my nose and cause I'm breathing through the mouth at night the lower jaw gets into a non optimal position and strains his narrow muscles.
            The other major problem is the heavy eyestrain. I've also a deviated septum and very narrow nostrils and a theory of the Neuro-ophthalmologist is that the lacrimal glands are not ventilated in the right way. Moreover it is a fact that my lacrimal glands produce too less tear fluid. Eye drops and special eye therapies onle help a little bit.

            In my case it's also a discussion for years if I should do a nasal septum surgery or not. Otorhinolaryngologists are discordant if this surgery is really necessary, however I decided for me that I'll do it even if there is only a little chance to palliate my problems.

            Just think about, that even if you suppose that you are at full health, it is possible that you don't notice things like bruxism or the fact that you are a mouth breather.

            Also the chronical inflammation of my tonsils wasn't recognized by experts till now, however it is high time to get them out. Moreover the high inflammation markers in my body couldn't be good for the eyes.

            Of course I think that we have some kind ouf "faster eyes" and maybe our eye muscles can react faster to flicker, but don't ignore other factors in your body which can influence the eye system in a bad way - even if experts say different things to you.

            So I figured I'd chime in here. Draw whatever conclusions you want but I'll try to elaborate on the onset of symptoms as well as severity.

            I'm 41. I'm overweight. I have in the past couple years made some concerted efforts to lose weight and hit my target goal. I practice kenpo karate and will never reach second black if I don't lose like another 25lbs. so there's that.

            When I am more fit, I notice my eye problems less. Although that isn't a universal truth - some screens hurt NO MATTER WHAT. It's possible that my tolerance is higher for discomfort in general when I'm more fit. Or, it's possible that fitness brings with it less time spent in front of screens.

            I have high cholesterol, but it goes down with weight loss so once I reach my goal weight the numbers should be good for that also. No other abnormal blood work.

            I have mild anxiety. Martial arts helps. So does getting enough sleep.

            I have a fast heartbeat. Have had it since I was a kid. It's hereditary/congenital. And harmless.

            I have TMJ and Bruxism. However, I've worn a nightguard for TMJ - and had TMJ flareups - for years. And never had a problem with any screen of any kind before 2012. Maybe the very tail end of 2011. But I was treated for TMJ long before that. How severe my TMJ is bothering me doesn't seem to correlate at all with my eye issues.

            I suffer from allergies. Both seasonal and specific. I'm sensitive to sulfur compounds (found in natural gas exhaust) as well as molds and grass and tree pollen. Again, there seems NO correlation between allergy symptoms and eye problems.

            I have tinnitus. Inflammatory, not nerve damage. It's related to the TMJ. It also seems to not correlate with eye issues.

            I consume caffeine (a couple big cups of coffee a day) and alcohol (a drink or two a couple nights a week) but neither in excess and neither seems to correlate.

            I don't smoke, consume drugs, or even take very many over-the-counter medicines (although I used to be a bit of a vitamin junkie, I gave that up once the science started coming in on it).

            I see a chiropractor for neck/spine alignment issues (years of computer work combined with a midlife fascination for getting my ass kicked in the dojo). How well my spine is doing also doesn't seem to correlate.

            I do go through swings. In late 2012 and very early 2013 it was the worst. I had nights where my eyes were so strained I simply COULD NOT SEE. Parts of 2015 and 2016 were much better. Late 2016 has seen a return to form. Nothing in my life - fitness, activity level, illness/injury - really seems to correlate.

            I do wear progressive glasses. Beginning in 2015 these were needed. My prescription is roughly -5/+1.5, or -4.75 if wearing standard lenses. No astigmatism.

            In 2001-2002 I became dreadfully ill from food poisoning. Long story short I "starved" for about 8-12 weeks. During this period my tinnitus/inflammation flared up badly, as well as my vitreous layer in my eyes separating. This is a normal thing that happens to everyone, but usually not at the age of 26. Usually more around 40-45. The illness might have been a trigger, or it might be coincidental. Either way I recovered fully, and had no visual issues (other than floaters in the vitreous layer) for a decade.

            If anyone sees anything in here they'd like clarification on, or that they think might help, let me know.

              Gurm

              Well, bruxism is a connection and I also guess that you have high inflammation markers in your blood. Thanks for your detailled answer - every story and tale of woe will lead us to an conclusion. At present I think that just looking at technical specs brings us to nowhere. Too manifold are the technical reasons for the eyestrain.

              • Gurm replied to this.

                Harrison I very well might have high inflammation markers. They didn't pop on my last bloodwork, but that was a while ago. I can certainly bring it up next time I go for a physical.

                41 year old, not in the greatest shape. Migraine sufferer for over 15 years. Other issue is severe, chronic sinusitis.

                One thing I have noticed is that there DOES seem to be a sinus connection to all this. It is a general consensus that the Trigeminal nerve is at the base of all our issue. Google it and you can see where the three branchs of the nerve go on your face. The Sphenoid sinnus and frontal sinus's are highly enervated and intersect with several of these branches as well. There is also nerve intersection near the TMJ

                It sounds odd, but there does seems to be a connection, when I get a triggered migraine, I also get stuffed up. The nerves around your face, forehead, sinus, and jaw are very interconnected.

                  ensete

                  Thanks for your input ensete . Well same at my side. chronical sinusitis.

                  May you explain the "sinus connection" a bit more exactly please 🙂

                    Harrison It sounds really wierd, I mean, sinuses and eye strain, WTF do they have to do with each other?

                    However, the nerves that are actually causing you eye strain also interact with your sinuses, and the nerves in your sinuses also interact with your ears, TMJ, and jaw muscles. The nerves in your face are all very highly interconnected. So when one is irritated it can effect areas you wouldn't think. In my case I was having pretty bad ear, TMJ, and jaw pain for over a year, no one could diagnose it, scans came back fine, doctor after doctor was baffled. I finally found a great ENT who did a different type of scan and found my sphenoid sinus was completely blocked and infected. I had surgery to correct the issue, and after recovering, my ear, TMJ, and jaw pain vanished. And when I get a sinus infection, the pain comes back until the infection clears up.

                    I have also heard stories of people who have had non related pallete surgery, but as a side effect, it cured their migraines.

                    I don't think it's really helpful info to have since there's nothing you can really do with it, but it helps remove some of the mystery

                    This is a bit of a stretch, but have you sinus folk or anyone else for that matter ever been prescribed oral fluoroquinolones? (ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, etc?)

                      MagnuM I have not, but I have had 2 sinus surgeries, and one of them cleared up a TMJ and facial pain issue I was having, even though they were nowhere near that sinus. My ENT surgeon was the one who explain this all to me. If you are near the Philadelphia region, I can't recommend Dr. Edmund Pribitkin at Jefferson University ENT enough.

                      MagnuM yeah, I've been prescribed Cipro a few times in the past 5 years.

                      I also suffer from Hay fever / chronic allergy to dust / dust mites, etc.

                      JTL I think just a bad card.
                      However, happy to say the RMA is complete and I have a new replacement one 🙂 (entirely new computer - not just a new card)

                      I must say, the different between the IPC Intel HD4400 (with the IPC2 I was using as backup) and nvidia with dithering disabled is a huge difference for me - despite a 8-bit non-PWM monitor.

                      In case anyone was wondering where I was going with my question, Health Canada just released an updated bulletin last week about the potential for fluoroquinolone toxicity in rare cases:

                      http://healthycanadians.gc.ca/recall-alert-rappel-avis/hc-sc/2017/61900a-eng.php
                      http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/medeff/reviews-examens/fluoroquinolones2-eng.php

                      Now I don't mean to scare anybody! Millions of these Rx's are written out every year. Like I said, rare cases, and any link is a streeeetch!

                      The mentioning of the potential for delayed side effects for days/weeks was the most interesting to me. I believe I may have read a similar FDA warning in 2013 about it.

                      I took a two-week round of Ciprofloxacin (500 MG) from Feb 11, 2006 --> Feb 23, 2006, and was also taking an anti-inflammatory called Arthrotec (75 MG) at the same time. On the morning of Sunday, March 12, 2006, I woke up to symptoms of sudden and severe brain fog, head pressure, derealization/depersonalization, and an intoxicated feeling that felt like a drug reaction (and no, I wasn't drinking the night before, lol). I stopped all Rx prescriptions at this point.

                      It's been almost 11 years since that day with the issue chronic and daily, and the cause never found. Getting such bizarre LED sensitivity starting in December 2011 just added to the mystery. I have no idea if the two issues are linked or not. I just wonder if some sort of CNS toxicity could have happened, but there is no way to prove or disprove that theory.

                      Like I said, don't get scared, because it could also be completely unrelated!

                      • JTL replied to this.
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