Update on my eye health.
Added 2019-11-02 06:21:25 +0000 UTCHello pals, this is Derek.
This is a personal announcement. My only intention is to share with you a few things that have happened over the past two months or so. I have experienced mild discomfort with my eyes for 2-3 months. The issue is that they get too dry and this causes blurry vision, headaches, trouble focusing on small details on the screen.
As some of you know, I work with a graphic tablet. So I have two screens in front of me for over 7-8 hours a day. It's just the way I have to do it but recently my eyes are collecting the toll and this is the reason why I have been working at a slower pace recently. After a while, my vision is so tired I can't focus anymore and have to call it a day.
Because my vision is essential to this line of work, I booked an appointment with a top-tier ophthalmologist and had an appointment a few days ago. The check up was fine and it turns out I am going to need prescription glasses with blue-ray filtering treatment.
This is actually great news! because it rules out any other medical condition. It's just glasses. Now, a bit of technical terms. I have 1 diopter hypermetropia in both eyes. That means I have trouble seeing things close to me. Which makes a lot of sense. But the big problem is my astigmatism, I have 0.75 diopter in each eye but the angles are 10 and 160.
Now, this prescription is actually not bad for the average person. The doctor told me that people with this prescription sometimes do not even feel the need to use glasses. But because I draw and have to look at minute details all the time, it is essential for my work.
Also, the doctor said that I probably had this condition since I was young but it only ever became an issue recently (1-2 years) because I decided to do this full-time. I guess I could adjust to the visual distortion for a while but my eyes are too tired now.
I'm going to receive my glasses next week and will still have a bit of an adjustment period. My workload will remain low for the moment to avoid any more eye soreness but I expect a full recovery and a lot of work the rest of the month. This does not mean I will not publish stuff this month, actually, my release schedule will remain unchanged as far as I can plan.
I wanted to share all this only because I seldom post personal stuff but I felt it was useful for me to vent a bit about this situation.
Thanks for reading all this,
Elven Tower (Derek)
Comments
thanks Daniel. I appreciate the comment. I'm feeling really well right now after amonth of starting with the glasses.
Elven Tower
2020-01-03 20:55:11 +0000 UTCReally glad you're okay! I know what it feels like, having to stop doing something that's really important to you, because of a physical issue. Glad you'll be able to resolve it really easily. That's awesome.
Daniel Pfleging
2020-01-02 14:00:25 +0000 UTCthanks for your comment Greg. It's a real possibility that I will slow down a bit this month at least. Or maybe longer if I have trouble adjusting to the glasses.
Elven Tower
2019-11-03 16:23:09 +0000 UTCAlways put your health and well-being first. Fortunately, you have a mild prescription, and if you've made it this many years and only need a small correction, you should be in good shape over the course of your life. Hopefully prescription lenses will help. Maybe you could try wearing regular contact lenses and using blue light filters on your devices. But you also need to give your eyes regular breaks. We all appreciate your maps and creative output, but ultimately you have to find a schedule and level of effort that works for you. If you need to slow down and reduce the volume of work, that is okay.
Greg Andrade
2019-11-02 20:14:26 +0000 UTCThey do help. I already have some computer glasses with blue filter around but they do not have any prescription lenses; only the filter. Another alternative is to use an app like f.lux to change the hue of the screen. I've used both but now I also need prescription lenses.
Elven Tower
2019-11-02 18:40:07 +0000 UTCThanks, Bruce. I actually kinda had it coming because everyone else in the family uses glasses. I got away with not having to for thirty years but it is a thing now. I actually have two very large monitors in my workstation. When I write I set the sized to 220% percent so the fonts are BIG. But illustrating maps I can't do that all the time. There's also the blue light hitting my eyes all the time. The new glasses should fix al this, though.
Elven Tower
2019-11-02 18:38:52 +0000 UTCThank you Richard. Your kind words make me feel better. I'm considering slowing down until I get the glasses, for sure.
Elven Tower
2019-11-02 18:36:17 +0000 UTCMe too, I kinda had the feeling it was only that because my father and sibling use glasses. I was the only one that didn't need to, until now.
Elven Tower
2019-11-02 18:32:39 +0000 UTCMe too, Chase.
Elven Tower
2019-11-02 18:32:27 +0000 UTCMe too, I kinda had the feeling it was only that because my father and sibling use glasses. I was the only one that didn't need to, until now.
Elven Tower
2019-11-02 18:32:19 +0000 UTCYou are correct, Luis. I'll take good care of my eye sight now.
Elven Tower
2019-11-02 18:31:50 +0000 UTCI will Tom, thanks for replying. I should get my glasses next week.
Elven Tower
2019-11-02 18:31:20 +0000 UTCThanks Juliana I appreciate it. I plan on it
Elven Tower
2019-11-02 18:31:05 +0000 UTCGreat to know there's a solution! I only recently heard about such glasses and am going to look into them, too - especially after reading your email. I am glued to screens all day long, too. Glad you're taking care of yourself and caught this early-on!
Randy George
2019-11-02 18:24:10 +0000 UTCIt's good to know that you're taking care of your health! I have been wearing glasses since I was about 7 or 8 and I am near sighted. My prescription is up there (20/400 or 350) but it hasn't changed in like 10 years . I also have a slight astigmatism but it isn't that bad. I just wanted to let you know that it isn't the end of the world! If need be you can just get a gigantic monitor and work from that!...LOL
Bruce Meyer
2019-11-02 18:16:12 +0000 UTCDerek, health ALWAYS comes first (after family, of course). YOU take care of YOU. The work you do for us is fantastic, but we care more about you than the service you provide. Just know, we care and appreciate you. Get better soon, and don't feel as though you have to rush to please us. You've already been doing that for ages, and I'm sure when you get your eyes corrected, you'll be back, better than ever. Best of luck, my friend!
Richard H Adkins Jr
2019-11-02 17:16:18 +0000 UTCSending you love and positive vibes Derek! So glad it's not as bad as it could have been. Gotta look after yourself. :)
BR1NA
2019-11-02 16:33:51 +0000 UTCThat's great news, glad you found a solution. Health is number one.
chase_dagger
2019-11-02 14:39:52 +0000 UTCI'm so glad this is nothing more serious.!
Daffy Price
2019-11-02 13:48:33 +0000 UTCGlad to see you make the effort to take care of your health before any real damage could be done. People nowadays seem to forget that your life and health should be priority above all
2019-11-02 09:20:38 +0000 UTCLook after yourself Derek!
Tom K
2019-11-02 07:13:33 +0000 UTCDerek, I am quite happy that you found out the issue and I hope the changes you are making with the glasses allow you to continue to give us great content for our games. Bless you and yours.
Juliana Broam
2019-11-02 06:29:25 +0000 UTC
