PLEASE RESPOND - Changes of vision after sleeping with goggles?!?

[KarlaM]

Hi All,

BACKGROUND: I have Sjogrens Syndrome and suffer from moderate to extreme dry eye as well as dry mouth.

I seem to be having trouble in that I often wake up with changes in my vision. I thought it might be the pressure applied to my eyes at night from the pads in the tranquileyes. Some days my vision is affected in one or both eyes for the entire day. The changes range from very subtle to pretty extreme.

My eyes open while I sleep and I have tried various combinations of pads at night from firm to light pressure in helping to keep the eyes closed. I have also tried no pads as well but my eyes get way too dry during the night. Yes, I use the goop in them.

In addition to that issue, I have also woken up with the feeling that one eye or the other actually feels bruised, although this has only happened a couple of times in the 5 months of wearing the goggles. I am thinking that along with the possible problem of pressure from the pads that as I move my head back and forth during sleep the goggles may pull on one side or the other also creating more pressure then intended.

I have trained myself to sleep on my back since needing the goggles but it still happens. FYI - I put my hair in a pony tail that is above the band so it will not slide up and off of my head. Can the strap possibly get traction on the pillow and pull?

I mentioned this problem to my doctor but he danced around it and never really responded.

I finally got glasses after over a year without any while we worked on getting my dryness under control. (which we did not) When I got the glasses the prescription was wrong. I went back to the doctor and was rechecked. I took the NEW prescription in and had the lenses remade. Once again the RX is wrong - I see better without them. Now I have to go get checked AGAIN! I must mention that both days I was checked I thought were good days meaning that I didn't think the goggles had been an issue the night before.

PLEASE - Has anyone else ever had problems with changes of vision after sleeping with goggles??? Thank you

[browneyesblu]

Hi KarlaM,

Get yourself tested for conjunctival chalasis. If you have this any pressure on your eyes can cause pain. I'm not sure if it can cause vision changes but maybe, it's worth getting tested for. Good luck!

[KarlaM]

Thank you for the suggestion. I will mention it but I highly doubt that is the problem. I have only had the bruised feeling 3 times and it was always when I used new pads and, I think, had the goggles too tight.
I guess my mind keeps going to the possibility that the pressure on my eyes at night might be miss-shaping my eyes just enough to change my vision slightly? I don't ever think I have them too tight when I go to sleep but - when I wake and I am fuzzy, I don't know what else to think.

[Rebecca Petris]

I guess my mind keeps going to the possibility that the pressure on my eyes at night might be miss-shaping my eyes just enough to change my vision slightly? I don't ever think I have them too tight when I go to sleep but - when I wake and I am fuzzy, I don't know what else to think.

That can certainly happen. Some people can't have anything touching their eyes at night, either for that or another reason. Do you have a better/worse eye? If you're in any doubt about pressure on your eye... to be honest if it were me, what I'd probably do is either (a) put goop in my eyes and tape them down (I really, really like the 3M Kind Removal Silicone tape) for a few days to see if that makes a difference, or (b) use goop + plastic wrap (maybe with a really lightweight mask over it), or (c) possibly something like the post lasik goggle in the dry eye shop... that product while not the most comfortable thing in the world is the one I have the most confidence in for preventing anything from touching the eyes at night, for example a lot of stomach sleepers, folks with floppy eyelid syndrome or who put their fingers in their eyes at night use it. You'd be surprised how many people are doing something to their eyes at night that they're not aware of, but have the effects of in the morning.

There are other reasons for vision to be blurry in the morning though. At this last appointment... did they test your vision? If so did the results vary from your 'normal' results? It sounds like you may be having diurnal fluctuations, and this can be caused by dry eye or other things. That might help explain why your Rx never seems to be right. Even a bit of corneal edema can change your refraction.

ALSO - I just read your second post now, oops - I'd suggest if you continue wearing Tranquileyes, trim those pads down (slicing them lengthwise) so that you can tighten the goggle without increasing the pressure. Tranquileyes' fit varies depending how prominent or deep set your eyes are, so it's easy to put too much pressure on the lids.

[KarlaM]

First - Yes, the Dr tested my vision and it was different. This is my second set of glasses in a month and still the Rx is wrong. I need to get back in asap so that the lens change won't cost me more.
Second - I have started using the thin white eye pads, 3 stacked for each eye in the goggles. They are not as dense as the black cushions so there is more give.
I am going to change the foam on the goggles today and see if I can't tighten them down with the white pads in them.
If this doesn't work and my eyes still change day to day, then I don't know what would be next.

[KarlaM]

And - thanks for replying!

[KarlaM]

Today, again, my vision is very blurry. I am beginning to think it is the fit of the goggles themselves. My eye sockets are sunk in a bit and when I put the goggles on at night I have to make sure that they are resting on the bone around my eye. I am thinking that perhaps as I sleep they slide up or even down just enough to slide into the socket area. Could this not cause some miss-shape to the eyes for several hours - enough to affect my vision for most if not all of the next day?
I know it all sounds silly, but something is causing the changes in my vision almost daily. Today I am writing this only after magnifying 200 times. Other days I have no trouble seeing the computer screen at all.
Should I try the extra large goggles to see if it covers the eye area better? I am afraid the bridge would be too wide beings my eyes are also so close together.
The doctor has no answers and I just want to see, to read, to get glasses that work for me.