Combat Eye Strain: Best Practices for Musicians

May 1, 2025

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Musicians can suffer from a number of on-the-job injuries from repetitive practice and playing—carpal tunnel, tinnitus, and neck strain. However, the muscles behind the eyes are commonly overworked and overlooked.

Your eyes were not designed to scan sheet music with tiny figures for extended periods. For wind instrument players, high-pitched notes can double eye pressure—possibly causing severe eye strain. Over time, bad habits overwork the muscles in the eyes to the point where they begin to spasm and cause vision to blur. This type of eye strain can sometimes lead to ocular migraines.

Musicians should always get an annual eye exam. Consider taking your music stand and a page of sheet music to the appointment to demonstrate how hard your eyes must work to read the music comfortably. If you can take the instrument, that’s even better.

A Balancing Act

Many musicians play in chronically asymmetrical positions. In fact, eye strain develops because of the uncomfortable positions musicians sit or stand in when playing, especially in a band or with an orchestra.

Maintaining a neutral head and neck position is key to reducing eye strain. If you practice with a music stand, adjust it to eye level or slightly below eye level and place it where you won’t have to contort your body and neck to play. When tracking an object, in this case notes on the page, eye and head movement should be balanced.

Since space issues are a common problem in orchestras, work with your stand partner to find the best placement of the music, where it’s comfortable for both of you. Sometimes, simply turning a chair at a different angle is preferable to twisting your pelvis, core, or neck. The most important thing is figuring out your head and neck angle and how you are tracking the music. (Resolving this issue will help to avoid other injuries to your spine and shoulders.)

During rehearsals and performances, be mindful of proper lighting, and take a break when your eyes begin to feel tired.

Nature’s Eye Drop

Blinking naturally cleanses our eyes. On average, an adult blinks between 10 to 20 times per minute. Each blink only lasts about a tenth of a second, but it’s crucial for keeping eyes moist, clearing away irritants, and forming a fresh layer of tears over the eyes. When the cornea becomes dry, the eye begins to ache. Infrequent blinking can also lead to dry eye syndrome.

For such a simple involuntary act, blinking is a series of complex elements that include different tear types, oil-producing glands that maintain the tear film, and the muscles that facilitate blinking. There are multiple points where complications can arise. If you’re struggling with dry eye or eye strain—despite your efforts with blinking exercises—contact an ophthalmologist for a professional consultation.

Eye Strain and Contact Lens Wearers

Overwearing contact lenses depletes your eyes of essential oxygen, causing severe damage. How much is too much when it comes to contact lens wear? You should be giving your eyes sufficient rest, which means going at least 18 hours a week without contact lenses.

When your eyes don’t get enough oxygen, neovascularization can occur. Blood vessels begin forming in parts of the eye where it should remain clear and unblocked. New fibrous tissues often form afterward, between the new vessels, which can decrease vision. Neovascularization in your eye can cause inflammation and scarring and may result in loss of vision.

Follow proper contact lens hygiene to prevent potentially serious, vision-threatening problems. Always replace your contacts in the appropriate time frame, based on the modality (daily, bi-weekly, monthly). The timer starts when you open a new pair of lenses, regardless of how many hours or days you wore them. After the specified time period, they need to be replaced.

Sleeping in your contact lenses is extremely unsafe. Even wearing them for a short nap during the day prevents oxygen and hydration, which can lead to vision-threatening infections. Overuse can result in corneal abrasions or scratches on the surface of the eye causing eye pain, light sensitivity, and excessive tearing.

Even if you’re meticulous with your lenses, having contacts does not mean you should not wear your glasses. Even with gas permeable lenses, you can deprive your eye of oxygen if you wear them for extended periods and/or every single day. Studies have shown that wearing your glasses instead of contacts, even just a few times a week, can significantly reduce the chance of developing problems.

Exercises for Eye Health

• 20-20 Rule: After 20 minutes of focused screen time, shift your focus to an object at least 20 feet away. Maintain this focus for at least 20 seconds.   
• Near and Far Focus: Hold your thumb 10 inches from your face and focus on it for 15 seconds. Then, shift your focus to an object 20 feet away for 15 seconds. Repeat the exercise to improve focus and flexibility.   
• Pencil Pushups: Hold a pencil at arm’s length and slowly bring it towards your nose while maintaining focus. This exercise helps train eye convergence.
• Eye Rolling: Roll your eyes in a circular motion, first clockwise, then counterclockwise. 
• Palming: Rub your palms together, gently cover closed eyes for about 30 seconds. This helps relax and reduce irritation.        
• Figure Eight: Imagine a figure eight about 10 feet away and trace it slowly with your eyes. Then, reverse direction.

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