Does winter make things worse?

[Ccoughlin]

Hi - I had LASIK surgery in Apr'12, so I'm about 8 months along, with MGD dry eye. It was starting to get noticeably better in the past few months, and now - with the cold and the heat turned on - I feel like I'm backtracking.

~ Is the first winter after LASIK the hardest, hopefully?

~ I sometimes wonder if it's getting better, or I'm just finally accepting this level of reduced vision (slightly blurry at times - always at night, but also inside in lower lighting situations - I guess my question is, am I right to hope that this will someday be better, and I don't have to do a million drops everyday?? Here's hoping. I just don't see many post-LASIK success stories here.

~ I wonder if my vision was degrading by nighttime, when I had contacts and glasses, and I just didn't notice it b/c the prescription "covered" it?

~ I hope that I see things better in the Spring season, when the warmth/humidity comes back

~ My TBUT was better - about 4-6, instead of a previousd 1-2, so MGD and lipid oil production/blockage is my problem. Should I get my plugs taken out soon -

~ Also, do you think I can leave off of Restasis? I don't know that it's helping me much - - very expensive too

~ I just started doxy - hoping that can help some

If you have any other recommendations, I welcome your input - - thanks, Chandra

[Lucy]

Hi - I had LASIK surgery in Apr'12, so I'm about 8 months along, with MGD dry eye. It was starting to get noticeably better in the past few months, and now - with the cold and the heat turned on - I feel like I'm backtracking.

~ Is the first winter after LASIK the hardest, hopefully?

~ I sometimes wonder if it's getting better, or I'm just finally accepting this level of reduced vision (slightly blurry at times - always at night, but also inside in lower lighting situations - I guess my question is, am I right to hope that this will someday be better, and I don't have to do a million drops everyday?? Here's hoping. I just don't see many post-LASIK success stories here.

~ I wonder if my vision was degrading by nighttime, when I had contacts and glasses, and I just didn't notice it b/c the prescription "covered" it?

~ I hope that I see things better in the Spring season, when the warmth/humidity comes back

~ My TBUT was better - about 4-6, instead of a previousd 1-2, so MGD and lipid oil production/blockage is my problem. Should I get my plugs taken out soon -

~ Also, do you think I can leave off of Restasis? I don't know that it's helping me much - - very expensive too

~ I just started doxy - hoping that can help some

If you have any other recommendations, I welcome your input - - thanks, Chandra

Hi Chandra (love the name).
First, no you should NOT have your plugs taken out. Not unless there is some overbearing reason to do so, Also, the reason so many bad Lasik stories on here is --it's the Dry Eye Zone and there are many with dry eyes, including Lasik, but many other causes too. The ones with Lasik are the one's you (and me) are interested in. People who do not have dry eyes do not come on here.

Doxy may help you, it will take awhile to know, like everything else. Darn. About leaving off Restasis, that's something you should discuss with your dr. Go over the pro's and con's and ask he/she what they think. If you are sure it's not helping, there isn't much reason to continue. But, if you're still not sure, you may want to keep taking it depending on how long you've been on it. I tried Restasis twice. Once was six weeks and later on for six months, but it did not help either time.

Your vision likely was not "cloudy and smeared" when you wore glasses and contacts. Perhaps if your glasses were dirty, and only then. Good luck. Lucy

[Rebecca Petris]

~ Is the first winter after LASIK the hardest, hopefully?

Yup. Winter is the hardest time (at least for anyone in a cold climate) and the first year after LASIK is the hardest so the combination is nasty.

~ I sometimes wonder if it's getting better, or I'm just finally accepting this level of reduced vision (slightly blurry at times - always at night, but also inside in lower lighting situations - I guess my question is, am I right to hope that this will someday be better, and I don't have to do a million drops everyday?? Here's hoping. I just don't see many post-LASIK success stories here.

Yeah I wish everyone who HAS gotten better would come back and post. Sigh. But that's life. Lucy summed it up perfectly.

Whether or not you're getting better vs just accepting - those are both good things Also at ONLY 8 months along, there is every reason to believe you WILL have improvement in the future. You're just 'a baby' as post LASIK problems go, if you know what I mean. Nerve healing continues for years afterwards.

I wonder if my vision was degrading by nighttime, when I had contacts and glasses, and I just didn't notice it b/c the prescription "covered" it?

Hard call. We all obsess with the changes after LASIK. And in a period of heightened stress we notice stuff that we might not otherwise. However, a lot of people have quite legitimate night vision issues after LASIK that have to do with the diameter of the treated area of the cornea being smaller than their pupils get in low light situations, while others really do benefit from a slight Rx at night that they don't need during the day.

~ My TBUT was better - about 4-6, instead of a previousd 1-2, so MGD and lipid oil production/blockage is my problem. Should I get my plugs taken out soon -

I'm with Lucy on that one. Never quit things during the winter that seem to be helping.