Addicted to Eye drops for Red Eyes

[baddabingtim]

Day 3 is tough

Worked today at home - tough day at the computer - my eyes felt like they were falling out - the price we pay

[Rebecca Petris]

Hang in there... You're doing great, I am so glad you decided to tackle this... I know it's got to be tough.

Computer use is the worst isn't it! I find "moisture chamber" eyewear a real help though on bad days, like Panoptx or Harley Davidson or Wiley-X with the foam pads. Also don't forget to blink more often! Try our Blinkers as a reminder.

I was thinking about you today because of a conversation I got into with a gentleman at an eye doctor's office (technician I believe). I described your situation and he said "THAT'S ME!" Same vicious cycle with the vasoconstrictors. I think there's a lot of people out there that this happens to.

[baddabingtim]

Thanks - yes if you read the article on Dr holly's web site about the chinese gentlemen - thats me to a tee - addicted to clear eyes from working too much - well it's day 4 and I am wearing glasses with a tint I bought for reading - helps to conceal the redness and actually feels better.

I am using nutratear and freshkote every 3 hours

I am working at home for a few weeks to weather the storm - will keep you posted...

[halfmoonbaygal]

Congrats

...and good job kicking the eye vasoconstrictor thing. I'm glad you've found ways to "survive" until your eyes get back to their normal selves--whatever that is! I'm a special ed teacher and working with those wonderful kids day in and day out has taught me a couple of things: there's no such thing as normal, and facing every day with challenges with good grace and humor is a really great (and difficult) thing to do.

[Amy09]

halfmoonbaygal, that is a really good way to look at things. good advice for all.

[baddabingtim]

Day 6 - eyes look ok in the morning but still hurt like heck - feel like someone recovering from alcohol

[halfmoonbaygal]

Day 6

One day at a time, big guy, one day at a time. It sounds like you're making progress--hang in there!

[Amy09]

it might take a little longer than a couple weeks to recover from using over the counter eye drops, especially if you've used them every day for a year or longer. great job for hanging in there, but i just want you to keep that in mind in case your not getting the results your expecting for recooperating. definately stick with it though, even if it takes a year or more to recover.

[baddabingtim]

Helping hand

If anyone comes across this and wants advice or help with a similiar condition - please feel free to contact me directly - timothycarroll@verizon.net

[howdryiam]

Update

its been 3 years since I have not used the clear eyes - my eyes are fine now - I hardly even use tears - It takes 6-9 months before your eyes improve - tinted glasses helped

timothycarroll@verizon.net

[Nanerpus]

Really good Tip!

It seems you have gotten over the hurdle, so this is a bit late. I don't use red out eye drops, but I do have allergies and my eyes get red from them. I find that keeping a few PF vials chilled in the fridge feels like heaven when my eyes are red and itchy and burning, but they also seem to whiten them up for some time as well, much like a vasoconstrictor but without the side effects!

[bryan9182]

Hey everyone. So glad I found this thread

I have been addicted to clear eyes for SEVERAL years now (about 5 years) and I cannot go without them. Is permanent eye redness from the overuse of these drops possible, even after stopping? I tried quitting cold turkey for a week or so. My eyes looked better but then one morning I was scheduled to work at 6am. Got little sleep the night before and then when I showed up to work bam, eyes were extremely bloodshot so I was forced to use the drops again. I just cannot seem to quit. What kind of doctor did you guys see/what kind of treatments did they give you to be able to live and look normally without the use of the eye drops? If I don't use clear eyes in the morning my eyes will literally be completely red. After about 5 hours the effects of the drops start to wear off and they get red again =(

[Rebecca Petris]

Bryan9182,

You posted about three years ago that you quit the red eye drops for three months but were still red. I didn't go back through all your posts but what I'd like to know is, why were you red in the first place? How did you get started using those drops?

I know the last thing you need or want right now is to be beat up about this but I can't help asking: Why go back to them when you know they're harmful? I mean, I know that it's extremely difficult to deal with chronically red eyes - we have many members, young ones too, dealing with it. But vasoconstrictors only prolong the agony and increase the risk of 'unfixability'.

I have been addicted to clear eyes for SEVERAL years now (about 5 years) and I cannot go without them. Is permanent eye redness from the overuse of these drops possible, even after stopping?

The issue with vasoconstrictors is not just the rebound redness but the toxicity from the preservative, causing more dryness which (in some people) is a big factor in redness.

If I don't use clear eyes in the morning my eyes will literally be completely red.

I know that the recovery period afterwards is really hard to get through, especially without being certain you can eradicate the chronic redness, but for the sake of your future eye health I'd start tackling it anyway. There's little point pursuing all these other dry eye treatments you've mentioned when you're taking three steps backward every day with the vasoconstrictors.

I actually find it really hopeful that your eyes looked better during that week without. That means you really have hope of getting this under control. It's going to take some real discipline though. I'm sure members here will have ideas. My suggestions would be, plenty of sleep, cold compresses night and morning, saline (unisol 4) rinses, the best lubricant you can lay your hands on, eye protection at night esp. until/unless you've eliminated any possibility of allergy, overnight dryness etc. And most of all really good diagnosis.

[bryan9182]

If I remember correctly, I started using them one night while I was doing a term paper for school. I was on the computer for several hours straight and went into the bathroom and realized my eyes were bloodshot so I used Visine. I went back to the computer for a while longer, but the redness came back from staring at the monitor so I dropped Visine in again. This happened about 3-4 times that night. Woke up the next day and they were red again and thats how it all started.

I now suffer from extreme dryness/redness after sleeping. When I wake up in the morning it is a VERY scratchy dryness to the point where I almost cannot hold my eyes open. One drop of lubricant eye drops makes it go away and then redness after just waking up dulls down a little as I start to wake up. During the day my eyes are more of a burning dry, something the lubricant drops do not help at all with and something that the clear eyes drops make worse as well. I had an eye examination a few years back, and a tear film evaporation test was done. My doctor said my tears deteriorated from the eye surface about 10 seconds quicker than a normal person. He tried punctal plugs but they didnt really do much. He also prescribed me to Restasis, but I read online that Restasis can take up to 6 months to work, and I couldnt cut it for almost $50 for a months supply. I didn't use the drops today and dont plan on using them tommorow. I have work on thursday at 7AM and I know they're going to EXTREMELY red then if I dont use them =(

If I were to make an educated guess I would have to say the main reason my eyes are still red are from the rebound effect of the Clear Eyes and the fact that the overuse of them has also made my eyes dry, although Lubricant drops only help the redness very slightly.

[Rebecca Petris]

Thanks for all the added detail....

Any contact lens history?

I now suffer from extreme dryness/redness after sleeping.

Are you doing anything for this specifically? (Lots of discussion here about night protection.)

I had an eye examination a few years back, and a tear film evaporation test was done. My doctor said my tears deteriorated from the eye surface about 10 seconds quicker than a normal person. He tried punctal plugs but they didnt really do much. He also prescribed me to Restasis

Did he say anything specifically about your meibomian glands or give you any treatment for them? (There's some pretty cheap things you can do to help this... lid hygiene, warm compresses, fish oil supplements.) Rapid evaporation may suggest meibomian gland dysfunction. Any more recent eye exam?

I have work on thursday at 7AM and I know they're going to EXTREMELY red then if I dont use them =(

Try some cold therapy... no promises but it may help and it doesn't cost anything. Cold washcloth, or a ziplock baggy with ice water in it. Saline rinse too.

[/quote]If I were to make an educated guess I would have to say the main reason my eyes are still red are from the rebound effect of the Clear Eyes and the fact that the overuse of them has also made my eyes dry, although Lubricant drops only help the redness very slightly.[/QUOTE]
Yes... though you may have had something going on like mild blepharitis or something before you even started using the clear eyes. I think that for a lot of people here with chronic redness (some of them were vasoconstrictor users and some not) the redness and the dryness become related but separate problems, i.e. addressing the dryness does not bring any immediate improvement to the redness but... any potential for improvement to the redness can only come when the dryness is addressed.