I am new to this website. Was diagnosed with bleph 3 months ago.
Mine is probably not too offensive, No crusting or flaking but eyes are very sore and the eyelids painful. I clean eyes with baby shampoo. After washing my face I wipe it with paper towels to void reinfection. I take Omega3 2000mg plus evening primrose and multivitamins.
I've been always appearance oriented. So not wearing eye make up is upsetting. My eye doctor who is also an eye surgeon stated that bleph
is not CURABLE but could be controled. Forgot to say I am also using erythromicin ointment.
The only relief I get is from very warm compresses. I warm up a small bag with flaxseed in a microwave for 1 min. then I put it on the plastic bag that cover compress. It gives me entire 15 min. of a very warm compress.
When I miss a day of compress I am miserable.
What am I doing wrong or what should be added ?
Any suggestion will be appreciated.
I tried using manuka honey and after 6 months had two eye doctors tell me they see no trace of blepharitis. The eye doctors do not have a cure, they only manage the disease. But that does not mean a cure is not out there. I have absolutely no symptoms and wear eye makeup.
Hi Rita, I think as you are relatiely new to bleph, I myself have had it just three years, so still something of a nube,its important to get it under control as soon as possible, so you may like to try an anti histamine such as cetrizine, 30g daily, obviously speak to your specialist about this if unsure but I find them invaluable, they take off about a good 65% of my symptoms, and also blephagel, the GEL rather than blephasol is so extremely cooling applied generously whenever I have a flare, that I don't know where I'd be without it, try to leave a lot of the gel in and around the eye for as long as you can bear without wiping with a tissue, then it will really do its job and thirdly, and I now use this nightly, lacrilube ointment, along the edges just inside the eye, best nightly as it does blur the vision somewhat being an ointment, is also having great long term benefits.
The only other advice I can give is that sometimes less is more and to scrub away at this complaint "cavalier fashion" does more harm than good, it can really be counter productive and damage the layers of the tissue you are desperately coping with, if you get my drift, so gently does it with any routine, hope this helps, Fiona
PS I forgot to say, that with the cetrizine and the blephaGEL and lacrilube my symptoms generally are down about 80%, no exageration, and flare ups are reduced by about 75%, so obviously I can't claim its gone and conversely I've had doctors tell me they can't see any bleph in my eyes but it very much depends when they actually see you, but I know I still have it, just with my particular routine, drastically reduced so worth thinking about trying some of it, I feel.
I do my hot compress with a folded washcloth and hot water. I finish up with an aggressive massage of my eyelashes with the washcloth. Very soothing and if I get a stye I knock it out with minocycline.
Good luck.
My only thoughts on this is that as you say "aggressive" you could well be knocking out the "good" oils along with the bad, up to you of course.
Manuka honey? Internally or on th lids?
Thank you for the response.
Thank you, dear Fiona for the response to me and other entries on this sight. I will certainly follow your advice coming from your long experience: three years!!! That's a very long time.
Thank you , very kind of you
I do my heated eye bag treatment twice a day after washing with baby shampoo. After the heat treatment I wipe each eye separately with tea tree oil facial wipes. My bleph is completely under control now and this is my maintenance regime. I also use eye drops for dry eyes. Some people use wet ones wipes torn into narrow strips ... I used to use these when my bleph was active.
i take a strong antihistamine tab per day, 6000 msg of omega3 capsules per day and both of these meds help enormously with inflammation, itching and eyelid twitching. Check out clinical trial on omega3 and bleph on line.
as I also have photosensitive eyes caused by bleph (worse cos I have blue eyes) I wear specs with drive safe antiglare coating and they also react to sunlight. These glasses have meant that I am much more comfortable in artificial light I.e., shops, computers, concerts, theatre etc. For some situations I use Polaroid sun glasses.
good luck and Happy New Year.
all the best Pamela
I get great relief from Azasite drops. They are prescription only and are expensive but worth every cent to me. Refresh Liguigel eye drops also help. Get the kind that have no preservatives in them. Use only for one day, then toss if there is any left. Good luck.
Hi Rita,
I use it on the lids and let it go into the eyes......If you go to Blepharitis discussions on this site.....scroll down until you see "Using Manuka Honey to Cure Blepharitis?" Read that discussion. I go into detail. Also, I ordered Nail Tees by Fran Wilson on Amazon for application instead of using q-tips. It made application easier. If you cannot find the discussion or need help in any way, let me know. Dawn
Dear Pamela,
Thank you for the response. I will certainly use your advice.
Tea tree wipes. Are they sold or you create them yourself?
If they are solld OTC what's their brand name?
Thank you.
Dear Becky,
Your advice is very much appreciated. Thank you.
Dear Dawn,
This site is full of the kindest people.So many responses.
All of you are my dear friends.
I send my love to all of you.
Happy New Year to all of you.
May we all have a year free of blepharitis.
looks as though my previous reply has been blocked as I included a link.
i get the tea tree wipes from Sainsbury's. They are their own brand. You can check their uk company web site on line.
Bleph isn't ever cured but in time you can minimise your symptoms by being aware of what aggravates them, whether it is a product, an allergic reaction to pollen, spoors in the air from trees or fungi or light. Always be gentle with the tissue round your eye and read as much as you can on line about variants of the condition to eliminate what doesn't apply to you. Everyone is different and it's important to remain self focused and use treatments which may help whatever you are experiencing at any given time. Good luck x
Thank you VERY MUCH.
I don't know how many ladys would be interested in the following info. I've just discovered that the only eye makeup I can tolerate with my bleph is:
ULTIMATE ALL-IN-ONE mascara by Revlon. No problem with it. But of course remove it ASAP when you are back home.
Hi Rita
as I get greasy eyelids due to bleph I use No.7 Stay Perfect cream eyeshadow as it stays in place and there is no risk of powder getting into my eyes. No.7 mascara works for me too. My bleph kicked off after a makeover with Clinique so I'm sticking to No.7
Thank you Pamela,
I will try cream eyeshadow No.7 Every bit is helpful.