Neck Pain? It Might Be Your Eyes

The overlooked link between screen time, vision strain, and chronic upper body tension.

If you sit at a screen all day and your neck is constantly tight, you might assume it’s your posture—or your lack of stretching. But what if it’s actually your eyes doing the heavy lifting?

One of our most loved posts this month explored this surprising connection. And the science is worth seeing.

How Your Eyes Pull On Your Neck

Let’s talk foveal vision. This is the tiny part of your retina responsible for clear, detailed sight—about the size of a quarter at arm’s length.

In order to keep that little visual hotspot locked on your screen, your neck muscles make thousands of micro-adjustments per day to keep your head perfectly positioned. It’s like your body is threading a needle for 8 hours straight.

This strain gets worse when:

• You’re hyper-focused on small text or detail

• Your screen is poorly positioned

• You’re not taking visual breaks

• You’re already under stress (hello, nervous system tension)

This combo is known as Computer Vision Syndrome, and it’s not just about blurry eyes or fatigue—it’s a whole-body chain reaction.

Symptoms of Eye-Neck Overload

You may experience:

• Persistent neck and upper back tension

• Headaches behind the eyes or at the base of the skull

• Dry, irritated eyes or blurry vision

• Jaw clenching or shallow breathing while focused

Why? Because the muscles that move your eyes are linked via fascia and neurology to the muscles that stabilize your neck. Overwork in one affects the other.

5 Quick Tips to Break the Cycle

Here’s what we recommend to clients (and practice ourselves!):

• Raise your screen so the top is at eye level

• Keep the screen 20–26 inches from your face

• Enlarge your text to reduce squinting and foveal strain

• Follow the 20-20-20 Rule: Every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds

• Try eye mobility breaks:
  → Trace a figure 8 with your eyes
  → Switch between near/far focus
  → Practice soft gaze and slow blinking

These practices not only ease eye strain, but regulate your nervous system and reduce the buildup of muscular tension over time.

Posture Is a Relationship

Posture isn’t just about alignment—it’s about how your body, breath, and eyes work together.
So if your neck pain isn’t going away, it’s time to look upstream—literally.

Your eyes are small—but mighty.
Give them care, and your whole body will thank you.