Headaches w/ Dry eyes?

[mylittlem]

Headache pain constantly

Not that this will be of much help, but I am convinced that the doctors truly do not have any understanding of the connection going on between dry eye syndrome and headaches. So with that being said I don't have any hope about asking my eye doctor. I have already gone the neurologist route and they try meds to treat atypical migraines. My concern is that too much medication can run the risk of further drying out the eyes; so many seem to.

I do agree with the blurbs concerning squinting in response to the eye pain and discomfort. That seems to be the headache connection.

Unfortunately I have nothing positive to share. The only relief that I have discovered is to close my eyes. I seem to be doing that far too often each day, but I have no other ideas about dealing with the constant pain.

[Debraellen]

I'm sorry, I do understand what you mean...been there, did that.

It wopuld be easier for us to deal if we at least knew what we are dealing with.

[Lucy]

For my 2 cents on my situation. After Lasik almost 10 years ago, I began to have pain in my left eye. I also had extreme dry eyes from the Lasik. The doctor(s) could not offer any advice except that it was caused by the dryness. Funny it was only in the eye that was butchered during Lasik.

I was still working then and spent all my off-work time in bed with an icepack on my eyes and taking pain meds. I had to have a medically necessary surgery on this eye (cataract) and this made the pain worse.

Seven years after Lasik, I was diagnosed with Sjogrens. I had the disease for a long time, but no way of knowing exactly how long. Within the past year, my rheumatologist told me to try Lyrica. I'd tried neurontin, and many, many others like it but nothing helped. I'd taken Lyrica for a few months and finally realized the pain in my left eye was 50% better. The Lyrica also helped in some of my other Sjogrens problems (neuropathy). I do believe Lyrica is worth a try, but I think it's more likely to work if the pain is of a neuropathic nature. I also think dry eyes can cause extreme pain and make you crazy. Well, nearly crazy. Lucy

[shells]

I also have severe dry eye from lasik. I dont have the nerve pain that Lucy described, but I do get severe headaches often when my eyes are very dry. What helps sometimes for me is taking Excedrin Migraine, filling my eyes with genteal gel and icing. If its really bad, Ill use ointment (otherwise I try to stay away from ointment, but when the gel seems to disappear after only 5 minutes in my eye, I turn to the ointment!).

I generally get these headaches when I am REALLY dry, and I can tell because I am double plugged so it is pretty obvious to me when I have no tears, and this is usually when the headaches are at their worst. If only one eye is really dry, I will only get the headache above that eye. I have no doubt that there is some relationship between the headaches and the dry eye.


-Shells

[Moonraker]

Since my dryness started to worsen three months ago, I've had slight headaches. It may be because my eyes are having to work harder or because I'm screwing them up every now and then to induce what tears I can muster. I've got some Paracetamol in the house so have taken the occasional tablet (something I hardly ever do).

Moonraker

[marcalans]

Headaches after LASIK

I've had a headache every day since my LASIK-induced dry eye started 3.5 years ago. For the most part, I think the headaches are caused by tension related to squinting in an attempt to deal with vision fluctuation and to keep bright light and air out of the eye. Most of the tension I experience is across the brow; not at the temples. In general, there are at least two days per week during which the headaches are totally incapacitating.

I asked by doctor for some kind of analgesic, but he said that most would be ineffective for dry eye related headache pain and they would most likely make the dry eye worse in the long run. The only thing that he could recommend for excruciating dry eye induced headache pain is a topical steroid, which I don't want to take long-term because of adverse side effects (cataract and glaucoma).

Someone had mentioned taking a benzodiazepine. Benzodiazepines make dry eye worse in most cases and, therefore, may be a contributing factor with regard to headaches. I frequently take Ambien-CR (which is not technically a benzodiazepine, but is a benzodiazepine mimic or "atypical benzo") to help me get through the night due to severe insomnia since LASIK, but if I take it more than three nights in a succession, my dry eye gets much worse.