Hey everyone,
I’m writing this a bit emotionally, because I’ve been reading this forum for years and I keep seeing the same pattern over and over. I know ledstrain exists because people are desperate (I was too), but honestly: the endless hunt for the “perfect phone,” “perfect monitor,” or “perfect setup” is, in my opinion, largely pointless. It can become addictive — like gambling — and it often leaves you more exhausted mentally and physically, while the core problem stays.
And I don’t just mean hardware. I mean software too — I keep seeing threads like “Eye strain with iOS 16 / iOS 17 — do NOT update” or “this macOS version is safe, that one is unusable.” I get why people do it (I’ve done it too), but I think it often becomes the same trap: chasing a “perfect combo” instead of pushing toward an underlying solution.
I’m not writing this to look “above” anyone. I’m writing it because I lived that loop, and my life only started improving when I focused on solutions aimed at the problem itself (not just another device or OS version).
Why I think “finding the perfect setup” is pointless
Because on this forum everyone has different “holy grails”:
one person swears by an old IPS,
another says only OLED,
someone else says e-ink,
someone says a specific laptop from a specific year,
someone says a specific phone model is the only safe one,
and just as often: someone says “only this OS version is usable.”
And what do we get from that? In practice… nothing universal.
If something works for one person and the exact opposite works for another, that strongly suggests this isn’t simply “this monitor has a bad parameter” or “this OS is cursed.” It suggests our visual/neurological processing is what’s unstable, and hardware/software is just what we’re reacting to. Sometimes a device/OS combo “fits,” but that’s usually a workaround — not a real solution.
For me it looked like losing device after device (and even locking myself into one OS)
It got so bad that I ended up with basically one single MacBook Pro 13 Retina (A1502) that I could tolerate — but only under one condition: it had to be running a very specific OS (macOS Sierra). Only then I could use it no limit. That lasted for years.
So yes — I’m not dismissing the OS angle. I’m saying: even if an OS/version matters, building your whole life around “never update” isn’t a stable long-term solution for most people.
And only after that did I stumble on a post on this forum about using an eye patch, and it completely changed my direction.
Breakthrough #1: a post here about patching one eye
At some point I found a post here about covering one eye with a patch.
And it literally changed my life.
Suddenly I realized:
with one eye covered, I can use way more devices,
I can use them for a long time,
and most importantly: patching wasn’t only “survival mode” — it also gave me a path toward adaptation.
This detail was absolutely crucial for me:
For me there’s a huge difference between two “patch modes”:
1) Adaptation (the most important): eye covered, but OPEN under the patch
This was the real game changer. In this mode my brain/body seemed to “learn” the device over time. With this approach I could:
gradually adapt to devices,
increase tolerance,
and most importantly: over time I could extend two-eye (binocular) use up to 30–60 minutes.
And here’s a very practical detail: for a long period, it worked like a cycle — I’d get 30–60 minutes without the patch, then I’d have to put the patch on for about ~30 minutes, and after that I’d regain another 30–60 minutes without the patch again. That cycle was a huge step forward compared to “I can’t use anything.”
That was the first time in a long time that I truly believed it might be possible to live normally again. And it wasn’t just a feeling — this method helped me get stable enough to finally get a normal job and actually work.
2) Recovery / emergency mode: eye covered and CLOSED under the patch
This was for the moments when I still overdid it and my eyes got badly irritated. And here’s the most important / most interesting part for me: it wasn’t about “resting from screens completely.”
When I tried to stop using screens and just “rest my eyes,” recovery could take several days.
Instead, I put on the patch, closed the eye under it, and kept using devices normally in this emergency mode — for example, I would play on the Nintendo Switch or work on my MacBook. And often after a few hours of this controlled use, the irritation would calm down and I’d return to a “relative normal” (the raw irritation would disappear).
That was huge, because instead of being thrown out of life for days, I could recover much faster.
Breakthrough #2: Latanoprost / Xalatan
The next milestone was another post on this forum where someone mentioned Latanoprost.
For me it looks like this:
- **Xalatan Drops (Latanoprost) 1 drop in the morning and 1 drop around noon (**these are eye-pressure lowering drops)
And to be clear: I did this under the supervision of my ophthalmologist. He approved the idea, and we monitored my intraocular pressure over time to make sure it didn’t drop too low.
At first… I didn’t notice any difference. Honestly. But after about 2–4 weeks something “clicked.” More and more devices started becoming tolerable. Not perfect — but tolerable. And that difference is massive, because “tolerable” means: you can live.
What I’ve been able to regain
Over time:
I adapted to the Nintendo Switch OLED — to the point where today I can basically use it no limit.
I can work on a 13” MacBook Pro M3 Pro, which was probably the worst device I ever tried to adapt to. The screen felt brutal for me, and the keyboard backlight made it even worse — it was a disaster. And yet… after about two years of using it + applying the methods above, I adapted to it too.
Specifically about this MacBook:
It’s not perfect: I still struggle with long reading sessions, and I can’t comfortably read text on it for much longer than ~30 minutes.
But for videos, graphic/design work, browsing, and work with natural breaks (write something, look away, come back), I can do 8–10 hours of work, without the patch.
Also:
I use an 11” iPad Pro M1 (3rd gen) basically without limits now (it used to be a problem),
and I use an iPhone 16 Pro Max.
And here’s another point that ties back to the “software hunt” topic: today I’m on the latest OS versions across my devices. I’m not living forever on one “safe” macOS or avoiding updates at all costs — because for me, progress came from improving my tolerance/adaptation and addressing the underlying issue, not from permanently freezing my setup in time.
And today is my 103rd day without patching!
Again: I’m not claiming I’m “cured.” I’m saying I got my life back.
And this is where my rant comes back
This forum helps people because it proves you’re not alone. But when I see thread after thread like:
“which monitor should I buy”
“which phone is safe”
“does this model have PWM”
“which laptop is the least painful”
“do NOT update to X version”
…honestly it frustrates me, because it feels like running in circles.
At one point I believed in that too. I also thought I’d find “that one perfect setup” and the problem would end. But on this forum it doesn’t work at scale, because what helps one person can ruin another. And that means hardware/software isn’t the main issue.
We need to find a real solution to the underlying problem — something that has a chance to help more than just one individual case — not just build another shopping list or an OS blacklist.
Final thoughts
I’m still searching. I still come here almost every day hoping someone posts something that can push this further — for me and for all of you. I still feel there’s probably a “full solution” out there, and I just haven’t found it yet.
But that’s exactly why it annoys me when the forum slides back into “perfect setup hunting,” because years ago I realized that’s not the way out.
It can get better. You can adapt. You can get your life back — even when it feels impossible at the beginning.
But in my opinion, the path forward isn’t more purchases (or permanently freezing your software forever).