Dry eye strain...help plssss !

Eye care
1

hi guys,

The doctor said i m suffering from dry eyes...i m using eye drops and gel given by doctor for about 15 days...but d problem still exists as i m not able to watch tv or laptop or read for even more than 10 min continuously  eyes and head starts paining after 10 minutes...one of my online friends said that he used 'aqueous humor content enriching drops' and got cured...is there any aqueous humor enhancing drops in shops because i m nt able to find one online ? if so please link me to the drops or provide a solution please ....

2

do you have the kind of dry eye that your eyes feel like razor blades they are so dry, or do you have the kind i have that water constantly?  i have never heard of those drops but i would do some research before using them.  ask your doctor about plugs to see if that will give you so releive .  if you are still having these problems find another doctor and keep looking.  i am on my sixth so don't give up. you shouldn't be having the headaches.

3

hi cheri,

i dont have both those types of eyes...it dosent hurt or water when seeing normally...it only hurts when seeing tv, laptop or reading books...oither times its just normal...

4

how many doctors said you had dry eyes? 

5

2 doctors...one dint say nything and just gave eye drops...other doc said its dry eyes nd eye strain nd gave drops and gel...

6

Kavin, are you in the UK or where are you?

India has a highly effective gel known as Lacrigel. You can also buy Optive there and a very effective dry-eye drop-cum-gel called Eubri. Not cheap but worthile.

There's also a drop whose name evades me right now (beings with R) that you must take for six months that is known to cure some people of this conditon.

What does your ophthalmologist say?

Do you suffer from the feeling of having bits of dust in your eyes all the time?

 

7

Hallo Kavin.   Are you in UK? and I wonder how old you are,as this problem increases with age and often shows first in your 40's.  Looking at a screen is a big problem for people with dry eyes as you tend not to blink so much . I am in Uk and have suffered with this for a long time.....first became a problem in my 40s and took me a long time to get treatment which suited me.   Now I have to use a lubricating eye ointment every night before sleep and this usually keeps my eyes in good condition for most of the day. I also have carmellose sodium 1% eye drops to use during the day as a top up if necessary.  Air conditioning and central heating will also contribute to drying out your eyes.   

I had punctal plugs put in my tear ducts,[the tiny holes in the lower lid near your nose] a few years ago and these stop any tears that are produced evaporating too quickly. I felt the benefit immediately. It doesnt hurt, they cant be felt, and they are permanent.  Just drops on their own did not do anything for me.

The problem is not usually caused by the inability to produce tears but its the quality of the tears. The meibomian glands in the eyelids produce a substance that is the essential lubricant for the eye,and these  glands stop working over a period of time. 

I have also bought some close fitting polarised sunglasses to wear whenever I am going out. These are superb and dont allow wind,grit,dust,pollen etc to reach the eye.

I hope you find a treatment that suits you as sometimes doctors,opticians and ophthalmologists can be quite dismissive.  You have to persevere with any treatment to prevent the eyes getting too dry and then possibly infected which is excruciating.   Please dont neglect the condition which does not get better on its own,the worst case scenario is that the eye can develop a tiny ulcer and this is mega painful.  

8

Hi Light...i live in India...sure i ll check out those gels

opthalmologist said i jus have dry eyes nd eye strain....the thing is my eyes are perfectly normal when i dont watch tv.or laptop or reading books...no duse feeling and all...eyes pain only when i see tv,,lap or books !

9

hi Marina..i live in India i m 25yrs old...  I m going to see the doctor again on saturday...hope i find a solution soon...thanks a lot for letting me know about your similar condition....did u also find it difficult to use laptops nd reading books ?

Sure i wont neglect the condition nd will update after seeing the doctor on saturday

10

you are quite young for this condition.  Are you using a screen too much?

You should have a break and look away from the screen and blink your eyes until they feel better. People who are concentrating on a screen will often forget to blink....odd but true. As i have said,air conditioning wont help and also sitting in the vicinity of a fan, desk or ceiling.....they all dry out those eyes.     Yes,I found screen work to be  a big problem and reading books also. Always read in a good light. 

11

Hi,    My name is Hermina I live in USA, and I just start having these razor blades ssenzations in my right eye all day long yesterday and I got really scared of the future what it might developed with damaged nerves . Please let me know if these Indian medicine will help this type of dry eye , mine started from air conditioning in the car from driving  a long ride my eye was pooring overflow of tears then when I got of the car it stopped but a week later I was swimming and I got a sharp stab in my eye then in the evening it was pounding pain and red half of the eye with a Cornea  like a baloon of the pea siza . the next day I went to doc who did not know and gave me antibiotic which it clear the infection but 3weeks later I drove again with air condition and the next day I got razor blades all over my eye even today is still  In my lower side of my lid . Please let me know if these indian meds will be good for me and if u remember the one with R starting to cure  it will be extraordinary info thanks a lot God Bless you for writing !    Hermina

12

It sounds like I have the same problem. Does your pain feel like it is on the eye? My pain is behind my eye and a little above them. My doctor says it is dry eyes, but drops do not help. I'm sorry I can't help but if you find an answer I would be grateful to hear it.

13

Hi Hermina,

Anything other than straight dry-eye symptoms (extreme burning, occasional stabbing pains, a feeling like you have sawdust in your eyes) should be taken to an opthalmologist or at least your GP immediately.

Other than that...

I cannot tell if my meds would work for you, of course. All i know is that I'm allergic to the preservative in most eye drops & gels so these ones work for me.

There is only your own experimentation. I went through about 10 eye drops till I found what suited me.

A very good ointment available in the UK (and probably the US) but not in India is called VitA-Pos.

You use it mainly at night, as you would Lacrigel.

Both of these leave some kind of residue on the lashes, Lacrigel particularly.

As for the AC...

It does sound like the car AC is affecting you and you must always have some kind of drops to hand otherwise you will increasingly get infections like the one you mention.

Here's what I was advised and it worked for me, though it may sound a little odd...

First, I stuffed my nostrils will vaseline and then added lavendar oil around them. On an eight hour flight I did that three times.

I would do the same for a long car trip with AC, and always, but at all times, have some drops that work for me handy for an emergency.

In the plane, I kept my eyes closed as much as possible. I used the drops frequently. I stayed very alert to when my eyes began to feel hot and dry and used the drops/gels. I didn't wait till it was unbearable.

It's vital you keep your eyes lubricated at all times.

The European name for Eurbi is Hydro-Tears or Hydro-Colom (?!).

If you look up the active ingredients of the following five drops you can check their equivalent in the US.

(These are the five I rotate.)

Lacrigel

Vit-A-Pos

Eubri/Hydro-Tears

Cell-u-Visc

Optive

But if you are not allergic to preservatives your task may be easier.

A note of caution:

If any doctor gives you steroid drops (corticosteroids), it is vital you use them only for the prescribed period and dosage. They will create much relief, so don't be tempted to continue using them. In prolonged use they are dangerous for your eyes.

None of the above are corticosteroids.

All the best to you!

 

14

I must support 'light' 100% in the comment about steroids. I once had a very painful eye when in Egypt [this was before I had finally diagnosed what was wrong with my eyes]  The Doctor I saw gave me steroid drops and cream which I used. When I got back to UK and saw my eye consultant,he was appalled that I had been given steroids,and told me to stop immediately. Steroids will eventually thin and weaken the tissues of the cornea.     

15

Yes, that doesn't surprise me. They can come over as a quick fix and 'developing' countries really like the easy way out!

But don't be totlly scared off them either, because they can have their uses too. No need to avoid them if they have been prescribed by a dependable doctor, usually after you have tried alternatives that haven't worked.

The normal length of time to take steriod drops is 4 or 5 days, no longer than that, as far as I recall.

16

Yes,Light...I agree with everything you've said there.

17

With dry eyes, the first place you'll really start noticing it is in looking at any screen because we tend not to blink enough when the eye is fixed in one place...

I also found difficulty in reading on paper because of not rotating the eye and blinking...

The best you can to help is to put your screen with a view behind it and try and remember to blink, rotate the eye ball and look outside as often as possible. Get up, walk around, do something that doesnl involve too much focussed staring at one thing.

I also am in India right now and the drops Ive listed above, apart from VitA-Pos, are all available here.