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Got depression, anxiety, headaches and floaters from DES. What should I do from here?

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  • Got depression, anxiety, headaches and floaters from DES. What should I do from here?

    Hi everyone. I've recently been diagnosed with dry eye syndrome, my symptoms are severe enough that I've been unable to work or study until I get better. I'd like to see if anyone here has been through the same thing as me, and I'd also like to ask for advice on what I should do now.

    I live in eastern Australia, we're heavily affected by the El Nino southern oscillation which creates extremely hot and dry conditions every 3 to 5 years. Australia is usually very hot during summer, but the El Nino years are unbearably hot and dry, if you walk outside it actually feels like you're in an oven. This year there has been the biggest El Nino on record, which I think is the biggest reason for the severity of my dry eye symptoms, although excessive computer and air conditioning use probably also contributed.

    Around April last year I noticed white discharge coming out of my eyes as well as occasional eye pains. I thought this was a bacterial eye infection, so I went to see a doctor and I was prescribed antibiotic eye drops for bacterial conjunctivitis. These drops seemed to reduce the symptoms while I was taking them, but when my prescription ended the symptoms came back. At the time, these symptoms were easy to deal with and they didn't disrupt my life, so regrettably I just left it alone and told myself that I'll just see a doctor again if it starts to get worse.

    Later on, around October last year, I started getting flu-like symptoms such as headaches, runny nose (due to increased tear production) and fatigue. This was happening for weeks at a time, on and off for a few months (looking back at weather records, I've noticed that those symptoms were worst when the climate was very dry). In early February of this year, the climate became very, very hot and dry, and I woke up with severe anxiety, depression, strong headaches, feverish flushes, eye pains, a lot of discharge from the eyes, eye fatigue and floaters all over my eye balls, it was the worst thing I've ever experienced in my life.

    Since then I've been to an eye doctor and for the last three weeks I've been taking tear drops every hour and tear gel when I go to sleep. My symptoms have improved a lot, but I'm still seeing floaters and I still get headaches as well as anxiety attacks once or twice a week.

    I'm hoping that the symptoms improve more once the climate where I live becomes cooler and more humid, but I'd like some advice from people here. Should I see my eye doctor again and see if I should get punctal plugs? Are there any other treatments you recommend? I was also studying and doing an internship before this and I'd like to get back into my studies and work as soon as I can, but at the moment I can't due to the headaches and panic attacks, does anyone have any advice on how to work/study with severe dry eye symptoms? Everyone's input is appreciated, thanks.
    Last edited by dryness1993; 15-Mar-2016, 02:55.

  • #2
    Hi, I live in Melbourne and my symptoms started around November with hay fever. I started taking antihistamines and by the start of this year I started feeling that my eyes are very dry. May be it is due the the weather? As I have never had dry eyes before.

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    • #3
      Originally posted by Jimmy01 View Post
      Hi, I live in Melbourne and my symptoms started around November with hay fever. I started taking antihistamines and by the start of this year I started feeling that my eyes are very dry. May be it is due the the weather? As I have never had dry eyes before.
      Yeah that sounds a lot like my experience, my hayfever or flu-like symptoms started around October, maybe early November. My best guess is that it's due to the weather, since I felt fine during December, which was a very wet month. I've also had dry eye symptoms before during hot and dry conditions, although the symptoms were much milder than what I'm experiencing now. I could be wrong though.

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      • #4
        Originally posted by dryness1993 View Post

        Yeah that sounds a lot like my experience, my hayfever or flu-like symptoms started around October, maybe early November. My best guess is that it's due to the weather, since I felt fine during December, which was a very wet month. I've also had dry eye symptoms before during hot and dry conditions, although the symptoms were much milder than what I'm experiencing now. I could be wrong though.

        Who did you see? I can't find someone who specialises in dry eyes. I have been to clinic in Heathmont, but I didn't find what is going on with my eyes.

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        • #5
          Originally posted by Jimmy01 View Post


          Who did you see? I can't find someone who specialises in dry eyes. I have been to clinic in Heathmont, but I didn't find what is going on with my eyes.

          I went to a doctor in west Sydney, he wasn't a bad doctor but I don't think he specialises in dry eyes, he just did some tests and told me to take Optive tear drops and tear gel. I'll give you the URL for a website and a thread on here that I found a few days ago which lists dry eye specialist doctors in Melbourne and Sydney, although both links are from 2011 so you might want to do a google search for these doctors to see where they're working. Good luck:

          http://eyestrain.sabhlokcity.com/201...e-specialists/

          http://www.dryeyezone.com/talk/forum...dney-australia

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