Headache with microscope use

[dadler]

*Edit: oh, neermind. Mine has the just about exactly the same offset as yours on the right edge of the FOV. I was looking at the wrong part of the picture.

Ah! Thanks for checking this! I guess I can retire the misalignment theory.

it also sort of feels like I am crossing my eyes a bit looking through the scope.

FWIW, if I zoom in on a small dot thru just the right eye and then switch to the left from the same head position, I find I have to "look over to the left" to see the dot thru my left eye. Like my brain thinks the picture is close to my face, but the pictures are aligned so that I don't have to cross my eyes like I would if the picture were as close as my brain feels it is. Like you have to use a "100 yd stare" even when the image looks like it's inches away. It's actually the opposite of what you say you are feeling. Try this and see if you are really crossing your eyes to see.

I routinely adjust to different glasses, so this is no big thing for me. But I find I actively arrange my work so that I switch back and forth between real world and microscope as little as possible. There's definitely an adjustment going on which is a little straining.

This is entirely possible. I could be "anti-crossing" my eyes--when I deliberately cross my eyes, the associated discomfort is similar to the feeling I get after using the microscope for a period of time. I suppose the microscope is "tricking" my optical system with a virtual focal length, perhaps this is what I am perceiving as strain/discomfort.

I'll pay attention to this during my next microscope session.

[KL27x]

This sounds about right.

Using the microscope is addictive to me. I get used to not crossing my eyes, and seeing far things is perfectly ok. But it becomes a chore to focus on things up close for a while after using it.

[GraceMetcal]

Dude, this situation is very familiar to me. I work in a medical laboratory and every day I feel terrible headaches in the evenings because I try to make out small objects for analysis in a microscope. I understand that I use the optic nerve, but it seems to me that the pain should not be so strong ... This is my personal opinion ... I asked my colleagues for advice and found out that they use TGM kratom. I also decided to buy and I was surprised. After half an hour it helps me recover and I feel relaxation throughout my body. So you can try Kratom and I'm sure that this will help you too.

[uncle_bob]

Honestly, I still don't understand why to use a microscope.

Hi

... as opposed to what?

If you are doing assembly work on something small, there's nothing better.

Bob

[jmelson]

I readjusted the interpupillary distance and the diopter and it seems to have helped some.

Yes, adjusting the interpupillary distance is important to get strain-free stereo vision.  It may take some time to get it just right for you.

It is possible(likely?) that some of the headache/discomfort is from muscle/neck strain.

You may need to adjust the height of the table (easy to put a block under the microscope, not so easy to lower it) to get just the right height for comfortable viewing.  Just an inch or two difference can make it MUCH better (or worse).

After spending some more time with the scope, I suspect that the better part of the headache is from the bright light.

I have blue eyes, and am pretty sensitive to light. I wear sunglasses outside most of the time--when the sun is bright. Along with the microscope, I bought the 144 LED light ring

144 LEDS??  YIKES!  I have a homemade 8 LED ring and it is a bit glaring.  These LEDs are only running about 10 mA each.
See if you can put a dimmer on that thing!

Jon