Does it sometimes feel like your neck, back and eyes have just spent an hour heavy lifting at the gym, when all you’ve done is sit at a computer or been out for a drive? These seemingly unrelated aches and pains may indeed be related.
Let’s try to understand this by digging a little deeper.
Activities That May Cause Eye Strain and Discomfort
Eye strain can occur for a number of reasons, but it’s usually a result of your eyes being overworked. Eye strain is especially common in people who spend an extended period of time on near-work activities such as reading, writing, looking at a computer, scrolling through phone messages or playing video games.
Eye strain from these activities can directly contribute to neck and back pain. That’s because people with tired eyes try to reduce their eye strain by tilting their head or neck, which results in poor posture. Leaning into a digital screen or craning your neck over a book may help you see better, but it’s a major cause of back, and neck soreness.
Vision and Eye Conditions
Vision and eye conditions that may contribute to back and neck pain include:
Binocular vision dysfunction (BVD)BVD is a common visual condition where even a slight misalignment of the eyes causes them to send two very different images to the brain, which then struggles to combine them into a single cohesive 3D image. BVD can cause eye strain, headaches, blurred vision and light sensitivity.People with BVD may compensate by tilting their heads in one direction or the other. While this can sometimes help them see a bit more clearly, their unusual head or neck position can cause muscle tension and soreness in the back, neck and shoulders.
Hyperopia and Presbyopia
Hyperopia (farsightedness) causes a person to see objects more clearly in the distance while nearby objects seem blurry. Presbyopia is age-related farsightedness that typically begins in a person’s 40’s. As we age, the lens of our eyes become stiffer and less flexible. This loss of flexibility makes it difficult to see close-up.Without vision correction like glasses or contact lenses, people with hyperopia or presbyopia strain their eyes to improve focus. This often results in headaches and tension in the neck.
If you’ve ever seen a farsighted person hold a book or phone at arm’s length to see the text, you’ll understand how extending one’s arms can place additional strain on arm muscles and lead to bad posture and back pain.
Neck and back muscle tension
Conversely, muscle tension in your neck and back can result in eye pain or the buildup of pain around the eyes.
Unconscious tensing of the muscles in the neck, upper back and shoulders can lead to muscle tension in the back of the skull. This, in turn, can cause headaches near or adjacent to the eye area.
For more information on how eye problems are connected to neck and back soreness, and how you may be able to prevent all three, contact in today!
At Lakeline Vision Source, we put your family's needs first. Talk to us about how we can help you maintain healthy vision. Call us today: 512-918-3937 or book an appointment online to see one of our Cedar Park eye doctors.
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Q&As
What can I do to prevent eye strain while working or playing on digital screens?
To prevent eye strain and associated neck, shoulder and back stiffness while working on computers or other devices, follow the “20-20-20” rule. Every 20 minutes look away from the screen at something at least 20 feet away, for at least 20 seconds. This allows your eyes to rest from the near-work you’ve been doing. At the same time, consciously relax your back, neck and shoulder muscles.
If this doesn’t provide the relief you’re seeking, ask your eye doctor about computer glasses that help block glare and blue light.
What can I do to reduce eye strain from presbyopia and hyperopia?
Both of these conditions can be addressed using eyeglasses or contact lenses. These may sometimes only be required when focusing up close, such as while reading or using a computer.
When it comes to presbyopia, bifocals or multifocal glasses and contact lenses can all be excellent options. You may also speak to your eye doctor about the possibility of LASIK or other types of corrective surgery.
FAQs
Conversely, muscle tension in your neck and back can result in eye pain or the buildup of pain around the eyes. Unconscious tensing of the muscles in the neck, upper back and shoulders can lead to muscle tension in the back of the skull. This, in turn, can cause headaches near or adjacent to the eye area.
Can eye and neck pain be related? ›
Conversely, muscle tension in your neck and back can result in eye pain or the buildup of pain around the eyes. Unconscious tensing of the muscles in the neck, upper back and shoulders can lead to muscle tension in the back of the skull. This, in turn, can cause headaches near or adjacent to the eye area.
What is the pain in the back of the neck and behind the eyes? ›
Irritation of an occipital nerve anywhere along its course can cause a shooting or stabbing pain in the neck, radiating over the head. Between bouts of shooting pain, there also can be a constant ache. Sometimes, the pain is referred to behind the eyes. Other symptoms can include dizziness and nausea.
What is the connection between the eyes and the neck? ›
The coverings along the optic nerve travel back deep into the brain and eventually make their connection to the second vertebra (C2) in the neck. Eye strain, injury to the head, face, neck, spinal cord or low back can all place unwanted tensions along this connective tissue route.
Can bad neck posture cause eye problems? ›
Eyes to Spine
In fact, poor posture can result in many health issues, including slowed circulation, shallow breathing, and blurred vision. But the relationship also goes the other way. If you have poor eyesight, you may squint, lean forward, or tilt your head into an unnatural position to see more clearly.
What neck pain radiates to the eye? ›
Cervicogenic Headache Pain
CGH usually starts as an intermittent pain and may progress to become a continuous pain. The common features of CGH include: Pain originating at the back of the neck and radiating along the forehead, area around the eye, temple, and ear. Pain along the shoulder and arm on the same side.
Are neck and eye muscles connected? ›
Control of the neck muscles is coordinated with the sensory organs of vision, hearing and balance. For instance, activity of splenius capitis (SC) is modified with gaze shift. This interaction between eye movement and neck muscle activity is likely to influence the control of neck movement.
What can be mistaken for occipital neuralgia? ›
The symptoms of occipital neuralgia are similar to migraine symptoms. There can be overlap between the two conditions; some people with migraines also have occipital neuralgia. The difference between occipital neuralgia and migraines is that migraines often are accompanied by nausea and sensitivity to light.
What happens if occipital neuralgia goes untreated? ›
The headaches and inflammation caused by chronic occipital neuralgia can be disabling if left untreated. Our network of board- certified physicians are experts in diagnosing and treating a variety of headache pain and specialize in difficult-to-treat conditions such as occipital neuralgia.
How do I know if I have occipital neuralgia? ›
Symptoms of occipital neuralgia include continuous aching, burning and throbbing, with intermittent shocking or shooting pain that generally starts at the base of the head and goes to the scalp on one or both sides of the head. Patients often have pain behind the eye of the affected side of the head.
The neck can be envisioned very simply as a pathway (or connection) between the head and the rest of the body. It is home to the proximal esophagus, trachea, thyroid gland, and the parathyroid glands.
Do neck muscles control eye movement? ›
Movements of the head and eyes are known to be intimately related. Eye position has also been shown to be closely related to the electromyographic activity of dorsal neck muscles; however, extraocular muscle proprioception has not generally been considered to play a part in the control of such movements.
What nerves are around my eyes? ›
Six cranial nerves innervate motor, sensory, and autonomic structures in the eyes. The six cranial nerves are the optic nerve (CN II), oculomotor nerve (CN III), trochlear nerve (CN IV), trigeminal nerve (CN V), abducens nerve (CN VI), and facial nerve (CN VII).
Can c5 and c6 cause eye problems? ›
Symptoms of c5-c6 disc herniation can include numbness, tingling, burning, weakness, problems with vision, and more.
What is barre lieou syndrome? ›
Barré-Lièou syndrome is a manifestation of various autonomic and secondary symptoms, such as muscle stiffness, tinnitus, dizziness, and pain in the head, neck, eyes, throat, ears, chest, and back.
Can a chiropractor help eye pain? ›
By treating the issue at the root cause, chiropractic care helps reduce or eliminate the pain and symptoms of ocular migraines. Chiropractic adjustments have been shown to be particularly effective, as they help restore the nervous system's balance, promoting optimal body function.
What causes head neck and eye pain? ›
A tension headache is the most common type of headache. It can cause mild, moderate, or intense pain behind your eyes and in your head and neck.
Why does my eye hurt when my neck hurts? ›
These are due to trigger points in the neck muscles – where a problem in one area triggers pain in another area. Common cervical muscles that can refer to the eye include the sternocleidomastoid muscle, upper trapezius, temporalis, suboccipitals, occipito-frontalis, and the splenius cervicis/capitis.
Can eye problems cause neck and shoulder pain? ›
Binocular Vision Dysfunction is a condition where there is a subtle misalignment of the eyes. Some of our patients compensate for their misalignment by tilting the head towards one shoulder, which may help to realign the images vertically, but, can lead to chronic neck pain.
