diff --git a/equinox/_config.py b/equinox/_config.py
index 0d4c5c6e..25aa019a 100644
--- a/equinox/_config.py
+++ b/equinox/_config.py
@@ -19,7 +19,9 @@
 
 
 EQX_ON_ERROR_BREAKPOINT_FRAMES = os.environ.get("EQX_ON_ERROR_BREAKPOINT_FRAMES", None)
-if EQX_ON_ERROR_BREAKPOINT_FRAMES is not None:
+if EQX_ON_ERROR_BREAKPOINT_FRAMES is None:
+    EQX_ON_ERROR_BREAKPOINT_FRAMES = 1
+else:
     EQX_ON_ERROR_BREAKPOINT_FRAMES = int(EQX_ON_ERROR_BREAKPOINT_FRAMES)
 
 try:
diff --git a/equinox/_errors.py b/equinox/_errors.py
index 0ffb4cf0..be7debe5 100644
--- a/equinox/_errors.py
+++ b/equinox/_errors.py
@@ -199,10 +199,10 @@ def error_if(
             permanently fixing this value is not recommended.
         - You will need to also pass the `-s` flag to `pytest`, if you are
             also using that.
-        - This will sometimes raise a trace-time error due to JAX bug
-            [#16732](https://github.com/google/jax/issues/16732). (Bugs whilst debugging
-            bugs, eek!) If this happens, then it can be worked around by additionally
-            setting the `EQX_ON_ERROR_BREAKPOINT_FRAMES` variable to a small integer,
+        - By default this only allows you to see a single frame in the debugger. This is
+            to work around JAX bug [#16732](https://github.com/google/jax/issues/16732).
+            (Bugs whilst debugging bugs, eek!) In practice you may like to set the
+            `EQX_ON_ERROR_BREAKPOINT_FRAMES` environment variable to a small integer,
             which specifies how many frames upwards the debugger should capture. The
             JAX bug is triggered when taking too many frames.
 
diff --git a/equinox/_jit.py b/equinox/_jit.py
index 81a4899e..42a711ed 100644
--- a/equinox/_jit.py
+++ b/equinox/_jit.py
@@ -114,10 +114,9 @@ class XlaRuntimeError(Exception):
 -------
 This error occurred during the runtime of your JAX program. Setting the environment
 variable `EQX_ON_ERROR=breakpoint` is usually the most useful way to debug such errors.
-(This can be navigated using most of the usual commands for the Python debugger:
-`u` and `d` to move through stack frames, the name of a variable to print its value,
-etc.) See also `https://docs.kidger.site/equinox/api/errors/#equinox.error_if` for more
-information.
+(This can be interacted with using most of the usual commands for the Python debugger:
+the name of a variable to print its value, etc.) It is recommended to read
+`https://docs.kidger.site/equinox/api/errors/#equinox.error_if` for more information.
 """