Long periods of close work can leave your eyes feeling tired, dry or slow to refocus. This discomfort is often connected with the way we use screens: we concentrate at one distance, blink less often and may sit in a position that encourages glare or tension. A short break changes that pattern. It gives you a moment to look away, blink normally and notice whether your setup still feels comfortable.
Eye Care includes five guided activities: Focus shifting, Blinking, Palming, Figure eight and Circular eye movements. They are designed as gentle wellness breaks, not as treatment and not as a way to improve a prescription. You should never force a movement or continue through pain, dizziness, double vision or a sudden change in sight.
1. Focus shifting
The app asks you to focus on a nearby object for a few seconds, then move your attention to something farther away and hold that focus briefly. The sequence is repeated ten times. Choose stable objects that are easy to see, keep your head relaxed and let the change happen without squinting. This activity is best understood as a break from maintaining one fixed working distance, not as a test of how sharply you can see.
2. Blinking
When people read or work on a screen, their blinking can become less frequent or incomplete. The Eye Care routine uses a short period of blinking followed by twenty seconds with the eyes comfortably closed, repeated several times. Keep the eyelids soft rather than squeezing them. If your eyes remain persistently dry, irritated or red, an eye-care professional can help identify the cause and advise whether additional care is appropriate.
3. Palming
For palming, rub your hands together until they feel pleasantly warm, close your eyes and rest your palms lightly over them while breathing normally. The app suggests about two minutes. The important word is lightly: do not press on the eyeballs. Think of this as a quiet pause that blocks visual distractions and helps the rest of your face and shoulders relax.
4. Figure eight
Imagine a large horizontal figure eight several metres in front of you. Trace its outline slowly with your eyes for around thirty seconds, then reverse direction. Keep the imagined shape broad enough that the motion stays comfortable. Small, smooth movements are preferable to trying to reach the extreme edge of your gaze. Stop immediately if the exercise causes discomfort or makes you feel unsteady.
5. Circular eye movements
The final activity guides the eyes slowly in one circular direction and then the other. The app uses thirty-second intervals and repeats them two or three times. Move at a relaxed pace and keep breathing. This is not a challenge to make the largest possible circle; the useful version is controlled, comfortable and easy to stop.
Turn the exercises into a useful break
- Step away from the screen rather than performing every exercise while still reading notifications.
- Relax your jaw, neck and shoulders and adjust your posture before starting.
- Use comfortable room lighting and reduce reflections that make you squint.
- Keep the screen approximately an arm's length away and slightly below eye level when possible.
- Choose one or two gentle activities if a complete routine does not fit your day.
Timing matters as much as the exercises themselves. Short, regular pauses are usually easier to keep than one long session at the end of the day. Some people link a break to a natural moment, such as finishing a meeting, sending a report or refilling a glass of water. Remembering to blink fully during focused work can also help the eyes feel less dry.
A good visual break should feel calm and repeatable. It should not feel like a workout you need to push through.
Breaks can support comfort, but they do not diagnose the reason for ongoing symptoms. Arrange an eye examination if blur, headaches, dryness or difficulty refocusing continues, and seek prompt medical care for sudden vision loss, new flashes or floaters, severe eye pain or a curtain-like shadow in your vision. Eye Care can help you build a routine; it cannot replace an examination of your eyes.
