those who glands manually expressed by doc

[jenny2008]

Ok. I go to my doc every month to have my meibomian glands manually expressed -the doc does this with long q-tips.. i always feel so much better for like 2 weeks... after it has been about 3 weeks i am so clogged up again and suffering.. also, i do daily warm/hot compresses with the thermoeyes beads and massage.. I also take doxycycline and tons of fish oil (even tried the fancy doctor recommended brands they advertise -they didnt help more than the regular ones)

anyway, i was just curios to those of you who do a similiar routine to mine -how soon do your glands get clogged up again after having the doctor express them?? is it about every 3 weeks or so? is this normal???

thanks in advance!!!

[irish eyes]

.....how soon do your glands get clogged up again after having the doctor express them?? is it about every 3 weeks or so? is this normal??? ....

Jenny

The consultant I see now doesn't agree with expressing the glands; he sees it as a waste of time because they just fill up again. OK, this might be true but if the goal is to provide relief, then why not do it?

I've only had mine (properly) expressed by a doctor once; he said it would hurt and it did - but he did it quickly. As far as I recall, the relief lasted a few weeks. My attempts are a bit on the feeble side but I get there. The relief is short lived - mainly I think because I'm not doing it as efficiently as that first consultant.

My lids are very sore just now; the top left lid is swollen and the glands look blocked but they will not yield to pressure at all. I have this mental image of oil being produced and a massive traffic jam is building up inside the lid.

[jenny2008]

hey there..thanks for your response..now i know i am definitely not alone.. my relief is for about 2 to 2 1/2 weeks as well.. i also have sjogrens so sometimes it is hard for me to know whether i am having a sjogren's flare or if it is my glands clogging up.. or both!!!

i think it is good to get them expressed even tho it only lasts a few weeks. i know when i come home from the doc my lids are so nice and soft without all that built up oil.. gets me so frustrated..

well i even had probing done like 4x and it too only lasted several weeks so my doc stopped that.
i would love to hear other replies on this..

[dryasadesert]

i express mine every night with the mastrota paddle i bought. they are clogged every night....i can see the toothpaste coming out.

[irish eyes]

Dryasadesert

A predictable question ......

I know how the Mastrota paddle works; isn't it very awkward to use if you are expressing your own glands?

[GinaJ]

First I think everyone is different in what helps and what does not. For me when I have had them expressed it seemed to cause some infection. I also remember when I had my blepheritis sores drained it started almost a wild fire and so many more came. In some ways I also think it did not teach my body to do it by its own. Not sure if I am making sense. At the end of the day one has to do what is working for them as long as it is safe. I just wonder in the long run what works the best.

[jenny2008]

Gina--you made a great point.. everybody is soooo different.. what works for one of us may not work for another-even if we both have the same disease ,etc...

for me. getting my eyes expressed helps so much.. but i can never express them like the doctor does...

Dryasadesert--how do you use the paddle on your upper eyelids without poking your eye? can you explain please? i would be willing to try it if i thought it would help me.. do you use it on the inside of the eyelid like the doctor does with qtips or on the outside fof the eyelid above the eyelashes???thanks!!!