A similar setup more or less saved my PhD 15 years ago. I got RSI to the point that it was debilitating: any arm movement that required bending my arm would be

A similar setup more or less saved my PhD 15 years ago. I got RSI to the point that it was debilitating: any arm movement that required bending my arm would be painful (shaving, brushing tooth, etc.). I considered stopping my PhD. What likely saved me was using workrave on my linux workstation: this is a software that forces you to take 30 sec break every 10 mins, and 5 (or 10 ?) mins every hour. It does so by disabling the keyboard (there is an escape hatch ofc). The hourly break, I would stand and walk. I've been working as a SWE since then. Last few years, I started typing less (moved to management), but I am now > 40 and can still use keyboard w/o much trouble. It is very easy to try workrave, so I would recommend people taking a look.