Computers, air conditionings and work...

[rosye]

Hi, I've been around the forum for some time, just reading, but this is my first message. Perhaps now I'm getting so tired and hopeless I'm finally up to talk about my condition... I've had "borderline" dry eyes probably my entire life, since I have genetic nocturnal lagophthalmos (I know because my mom also "slept with eyes open". My father has somewhat dry eyes too). I also had miopia, but I was able to use contacts - of course they irritated me after a long day, but I considered that normal. I'm also a webdesigner and heavy computer user, and all that never were a problem until last year, when I, at age 30, finally decided to go ahead with my "dream" and have lasik to correct my miopia. The result, now I have perfect vision along with painfully dry eyes. And no more hope for this ever to go away.

My right eye is dry, burn a little, but it's manageable. But my left eye drives me crazy. It stings, it burns, it's non-stop, and it's worse now that's winter (I live in Brazil) and the air is soo dry. I've tried a number of drops (Fresh Tears, Optive, Oftane - I don't know if you know these, but they're all similar to yours). It doesn't help much, plus, they overflow and irritate my eyelids, so the skin around the eye also burns. I now tape my eyes at night, that also irritates the skin. I'm on Restasis for around 5 months, it's expensive and no results so far. I take flaxseed oil capsules, I wash my eyelids with baby shampoo... and the list goes on.

About 2 months ago I got lower "smart plugs" and got a little better - I was able to stand at the wind and have reflex tears (that didn't happen before the plugs). Working was less painful! That made me hopeful for a few weeks. But then the air turned all dry and all my suffering returned. I stand in front of the computer to work all day long in pain. And I'm now just free-lancing from home, 'cause I can't bear the air conditioning of an design agency anymore (and there's NO office without an air conditioning full-time at maximum here in Rio de Janeiro, believe me). Also, at home I can use an humidifier in the room and it helps a lot.

Yesterday my doc (the one that got me the plugs) said there's nothing more to do and I just have to "think positive" about my situation. He suggested I got psychological treatment (wich I already have, by the way) and antidepressants for pain control. Well, I'll try it. I already take Ritalyn for a.d.d., anyway.

I've now been home for 4 months, but I need to get back to work at agencies. My family doesn't go for this idea of me working from home (they tend to think I have all the time in the world and do nothing all day long). Clients are hard to find, my father has been financially supporting me and I don't want this to last forever. But how do you manage to work under air conditionings?? In my last work at an agency my eye got so dry that I used sunglasses all the time. I don't have any goggles, but sunglasses were the next best thing. Sometimes I just taped my left eye and worked with only my right eye open (of course that wasn't an ideal situation for a designer) and the sunglasses helped to hide that, too. Everybody undestood, of course, but I know I looked like a freak. Sometimes the pain was so umbereable that I just went up to the bathroom, closed the door and cried (at least the tears helped soothe the eyes). I don't want to go trough all this again... so how do you manage?? Do you take your humidifiers along to work? Doesn't anybody complain about humidity near the computers? Do you actually use goggles at work? Do you think Tranquileys at night and MEGs at work would help me? I don't even know if I can get a MEG here in Brazil, but I'd try to import Tanquileys if I knew it would really help with my lagophthalmos...

Right now, I'd give anything to just be able to work without this pain. I don't know if that's possible, and that's really depressing me. I don't know what else to do.

Any insights would be very helpful. Thanks!

[Linda Rose]

Ask if you have conjunctivochalasis -- "wrinkles" on your eyes

Hi,

Please check this website. You may have conjunctivochalasis ("wrinkles" on the eyes), pinguecula, ptyrgeum (check spellings):

http://www.ocularsurface.com/clinicalservices_oss.html

It's Dr. Scheffer Tseng's website and it discusses amniotic membrane transplant surgery for dry eyes.

After experiencing the painful symptoms you're experiencing (I have Sjogren's Syndrome and also have had Lasik and also worked at a computer 95% of my workday in a dry air-conditioned office) -- it is a nightmare -- I went to Dr. Scheffer Tseng in Miami, Florida. I'm scheduled for amniotic membrane surgery on August 4, 2009 (he told me I have wrinkles on the whites of my eyes and so the tears get caught in the ridges and can't properly lubricate the eyes). I'm terrified and I actually just posted my first thread on this website today for advice on pros and cons of this surgery - safety, healing process.

Wishing you all the best.

Linda (Linda Rose)

[Rebecca Petris]

Hi there and welcome!

But how do you manage to work under air conditionings??

In a word: Eyewear. Moisture chambers of some sort, if possible. Have a look in the daytime eyewear forum - there is a ton of information about the options. My top recommendation for starters would be onion goggles. They're cheap, cute (at least compared with the alternatives) and very effective.

Do you actually use goggles at work?

Lots of people do. There is a wide range of options from MEGs and custom moisture chambers to foam lined sunglasses to goggles, even swim goggles.

Do you think Tranquileys at night and MEGs at work would help me? I don't even know if I can get a MEG here in Brazil, but I'd try to import Tanquileys if I knew it would really help with my lagophthalmos...

Tranquileyes is certainly the best product available for lagophthalmos, although like anything else it doesn't work for everyone.

Regarding conjunctivochalasis: It may be worth asking about. But there are many other more common conditions that should be investigated when there are chronic dry eye symptoms. Personally, in all the years I've been doing this I've quite rarely run across anyone whose primary (much less sole) source of dry eye was addressed by conjunctivochalasis surgery.

[rosye]

Hi, Linda! Well, if I could, I'd go to this Dr. Tseng and see what he has to say... actually, I consider my current doctor very good, at least he's more careful than my lasik surgeon. If I had my surgery with my current doctor, perhaps my results would have been better. But now it's too late for regrets. I wish you good luck on your surgery!!

Rebecca, thanks for the advice! I'll look more carefully into Tranquileyes and the goggle session. I'm struggling against it because I know I'll be self-conscious at work, but if there's no other way... I'm already talking to my doctor to see if I can get a MEG in some local store (I need to try it, see what it looks like and conform myself before buying). If I can't, I'll consider the onion goggles. I really liked the Seefit models, but they are too expensive for me, at least for now!

Thank you all for your help!

[ianteddy]

your dry eyes

You could also look for an office-sized humidifier to plug in at work. I know they are for sale at amazon.com though they are expensive. If you google "travel humidifier" or "personal humidifier" you will find other small options too.
One thing I have found is that I have forced myself to overcome my shyness about wearing goggles out or inside. Think of it as wearing a cast, or something. You will get some odd looks at first but your eye comfort will compensate for that.
Hang in there.
Erika

[rosye]

Yes, I've been thinking about using humidifiers at work, too. Actually I just posted a thread at the humidifier's session asking about usb humidifiers. Have you ever tried one of those? I have a vaporizer here at home, but it will be impossible to take to work, it takes up too many desk space and warms up the environment, wich my colleagues will sure be complaining about (everyone here loooves air conditioning, because Rio is really a very hot city. Mostly nobody even notices the air con dries up the room, they stay happy as long as they're chilled).

About the goggles, I agree that eye confort comes first and in my last job everybody understood why I wore sunglasses, they used to make friendly jokes that I was in fact lying and just wanted to work stylish, looking like Bono. But then, the other day I was looking at some pictures that were taken in that time and I realized how freakish I really looked with those things on, when everybody else was "normal". I know it's a silly thinking, but it's there. I just wanted to get back working at a computer under the air conditioner with no problems, as I used to before the surgery. I did it "to get rid of my glasses" in the first place, now I'll be stuck with these freakish goggles!! Sorry, but I'm just too sad and angry, I need to let it out of my system... I'm beginning to realize that I have a chronic disabilty now... up until this moment it was all the "you're gonna get better" stuff... but now it's "there's nothing more to do, think positive and get some antidepressants" so... I'll basically have to get used to it and surround myself with gadgets to make my work bareable.

Well, at least there are gadgets out there that can be tried, so it could be worse, couldn't it?

Thanks for your support and help!

[watermelon]

I so feel your pain. I don;t have a solution for you since I am also looking for the same. Both my eyes are a problem interfering with my ability to work in the office. Even at home I am struggling to figure out the right envoronmental needs. So far, if I stay away from computers, the sun, and air conditioning it becomes bearable but still the eyes suffer.

I don't think anyone can truly understand how difficult life becomes when your eyes are compromised. I just posted a new post about my situation wondering if I am actually disabled. That's a hard pill to swallow when you don;t know what that means.

All I can say is you are not alone and thank goodness for this site where we can give each other hope, compassion, and hopefully some answers. I will be looing for those along with you.

[rosye]

Watermelon, thanks for you support, and I hope I can help you too. I managed to find some nice-looking goggles (they're actually dark swimming goggles, and they're small enough to pass as sunglasses). The problem now is that they fog up, but I still have to try some anti-fog grease, or something. I didn't look for the cool mist humidifier yet, as the goggles worked so great. But I'm using them for only a few hours at the computer at home, not under the 8-hour-every-day-under-air-conditioning-enviroment at the office, so I don't know if they'll be enough to keep me confortable at work. But I'll have to try. I got a job prposal and maybe I'll be working again in the next few weeks. I'm truly terrified. :P

Also, I went on to the antidepressant treatment. I've been taking paroxetine for 2 weeks and it really helped getting my anxiety down. I think I'll have to take it for at least 4 months. It was tough the first week, as I felt a little "numb", but I'm getting used to it. I feel it helps to keep my moods up, and that's an important part of the treatment, too.