IPL success!!

[KittyCat]

Hi gilles!

I'm doing well, thank you! How are you?

I think the IPL is really helping me, as well as the expression afterwards. I know this because I have to admit, sometimes I forget to do the eye compress, and every time I go to my eye doctor, she says I'm improving after each IPL treatment. I need to state though, that I do not have 'severe' disease (my eye doctor said moderate) so I am fortunate enough that IPL, along with supplements and eye compresses might just be enough to help me manage this.

Sometimes I don't need eye drops at all during the day (but my eye starts to sting in the evening after a full day of work, using 2 screens (proofreader).

I'm on no medication for dry eye (no Restasis, Xiidra etc) as I don't need to be. My eye doctor wishes that IPL was available on the NHS and actually thinks that it should be much higher up on the treatment ladder (ie before commencement of daily medication), and I have to agree. It might be that all I need is a maintenance treatment every 6 months (£150), and that's it.

I have my 4th treatment booked in on October 20th, so I'll report back then!

I definitely feel and am better, though

Stay safe.

Cat

[gilles]

Hi gilles!

I'm doing well, thank you! How are you?

I think the IPL is really helping me, as well as the expression afterwards. I know this because I have to admit, sometimes I forget to do the eye compress, and every time I go to my eye doctor, she says I'm improving after each IPL treatment. I need to state though, that I do not have 'severe' disease (my eye doctor said moderate) so I am fortunate enough that IPL, along with supplements and eye compresses might just be enough to help me manage this.

Sometimes I don't need eye drops at all during the day (but my eye starts to sting in the evening after a full day of work, using 2 screens (proofreader).

I'm on no medication for dry eye (no Restasis, Xiidra etc) as I don't need to be. My eye doctor wishes that IPL was available on the NHS and actually thinks that it should be much higher up on the treatment ladder (ie before commencement of daily medication), and I have to agree. It might be that all I need is a maintenance treatment every 6 months (£150), and that's it.

I have my 4th treatment booked in on October 20th, so I'll report back then!

I definitely feel and am better, though

Stay safe.

Cat

That's so great and motivational to hear for all of us!
I started using the Thermalon eye compress (similar to the Bruder mask, and from the same company), which you heat with a microwave and have to admit it has been a big difference over the Blephasteam I was using (which does not get that high a temperature, which is a bummer!). Difference is flagrant: blurry vision for over 10 to up to 30 minutes after the compress. My vision improved and I don't use eyedrops/gels at nighttime and almost none during screen time.
I know that every specialist said that my case looks mild, and that I have thick oil which does not get out easily; so my best guess would be that I need a higher temperature to get the oils out.

On another hand: I tried Lipiflow, and found it to be a waste because no manual expression was done afterwards. The automatic massage was so soft, it was a joke (jokes aside, I bet it's just to cover from risks of damage and to meet the average person eyelids), so manual expression should be demanded by the patient after the treatment. But to be honest, I did not even get blurry vision after the treatment which I have with a good warm compress though.

Next week I'll go for a diagnosis for IPL and manual expression (I feel lucky that in Belgium the prices are quite fair: 680 euro for both eyes Lipiflow and 152euro per IPL treatment with manual expression; and I think that's the price that it should be everywhere; or even cheaper with health assurance finally covering it - because on the long run they paid more in all the doctors I visited and which the assurance company had to reimburse).

[KittyCat]

Hi everyone! I just wanted to check in and give a little bit of an update!

I had my 4th IPL treatment 2 weeks ago, and honestly, my eye doctor and I are INCREDIBLY happy with my results! My tear film has gone from unstable to stable (I can't remember my specific numbers, but when I went for my first consultation, there was a very faint green line all around my eyes when scanned, on my most recent scan 2 weeks ago, it was MUCH thicker, and I'm officially out of the danger zone!).

My glands in my right eye are now completely functional, to the point that when my eye doctor did a manual expression, a tonne of oil came out and ran down my face!
My left eye (my stubborn eye) is much better, the oil is flowing and clear and nothing is blocked, but the consistency is still a bit thick. But I can live with that.

Overall, from a clinical point of view, me and my eye doctor are so so happy with the change after 4 treatments of IPL. This is without any kind of medication (I take some supplements which I will list below), and use an eye mask once a day, EyeSeals for bed, and eye drops maybe 3 times per day max (tends to be after 5pm after 8 hours in front of a screen for my job).

In myself, I feel great! I have completely normal-feeling eyes the majority of the time, except for my period week when I definitely have more stinging in my left eye. I very rarely use any form of drops during the day now (when this was first diagnosed in May, I was using drops maybe 10-15 times per day).

I would just like to stress that my dry eye was never severe. It was moderate. It is now mild, and I can only really attribute that to IPL as nothing else has really changed. I have cleaned up my diet a bit (I eat red meat once per week, and eat more home-cooked meals) and I now exercise for 30-40 mins 5 days per week at home on my lunch break (if anyone is interested, I use Lesley Sansone's Walk at Home programme, you can find some of her videos on YouTube).

I would also like to stress for UK people, go private if you can. My NHS optometrist discharged me and told me to use eye drops and warm compresses. That was it. I never would have been offered IPL, and it's saved me. The service and care and compassion I've received has been outstanding, and I owe my private eye doctor Alison a whole lot.

The supplements I use are:

Seabuckthorn Oil
Folate (I don't metabolise folate so this is nothing to do with dry eye)
Zinc
Vitamin D
Omega-3

I'm also on 10mg Celexa for anxiety and this has had no negative impact on my eyes.

I really really recommend IPL to those who haven't tried it yet. It isn't a guarantee that it will work for everyone, but it has saved my life. I was depressed and absolutely petrified when I was diagnosed with MGD in May. I'd never had depression before but I can openly say, I wanted to end my life.
And this forum, although incredibly helpful, scared me even more when reading the stories and posts, which made it all worse.

It turns out, for me at least, all I needed was IPL, and to take a bit more care in looking after myself, and a low-dose antidepressant.

To those of you that are struggling, or viewing this forum for the first time to look for answers, or newly diagnosed: YOU WILL GET BETTER.

Please stay safe everyone, and always always practice self-care. It's so important. The chores can wait, the work can wait, your health can't wait. Do everything in your power to care for your body and mind. It truly makes a huge difference.

Lots of love to you all.

Cat xx

[gilles]

Hi everyone! I just wanted to check in and give a little bit of an update!

I had my 4th IPL treatment 2 weeks ago, and honestly, my eye doctor and I are INCREDIBLY happy with my results! My tear film has gone from unstable to stable (I can't remember my specific numbers, but when I went for my first consultation, there was a very faint green line all around my eyes when scanned, on my most recent scan 2 weeks ago, it was MUCH thicker, and I'm officially out of the danger zone!).

My glands in my right eye are now completely functional, to the point that when my eye doctor did a manual expression, a tonne of oil came out and ran down my face!
My left eye (my stubborn eye) is much better, the oil is flowing and clear and nothing is blocked, but the consistency is still a bit thick. But I can live with that.

Overall, from a clinical point of view, me and my eye doctor are so so happy with the change after 4 treatments of IPL. This is without any kind of medication (I take some supplements which I will list below), and use an eye mask once a day, EyeSeals for bed, and eye drops maybe 3 times per day max (tends to be after 5pm after 8 hours in front of a screen for my job).

In myself, I feel great! I have completely normal-feeling eyes the majority of the time, except for my period week when I definitely have more stinging in my left eye. I very rarely use any form of drops during the day now (when this was first diagnosed in May, I was using drops maybe 10-15 times per day).

I would just like to stress that my dry eye was never severe. It was moderate. It is now mild, and I can only really attribute that to IPL as nothing else has really changed. I have cleaned up my diet a bit (I eat red meat once per week, and eat more home-cooked meals) and I now exercise for 30-40 mins 5 days per week at home on my lunch break (if anyone is interested, I use Lesley Sansone's Walk at Home programme, you can find some of her videos on YouTube).

I would also like to stress for UK people, go private if you can. My NHS optometrist discharged me and told me to use eye drops and warm compresses. That was it. I never would have been offered IPL, and it's saved me. The service and care and compassion I've received has been outstanding, and I owe my private eye doctor Alison a whole lot.

The supplements I use are:

Seabuckthorn Oil
Folate (I don't metabolise folate so this is nothing to do with dry eye)
Zinc
Vitamin D
Omega-3

I'm also on 10mg Celexa for anxiety and this has had no negative impact on my eyes.

I really really recommend IPL to those who haven't tried it yet. It isn't a guarantee that it will work for everyone, but it has saved my life. I was depressed and absolutely petrified when I was diagnosed with MGD in May. I'd never had depression before but I can openly say, I wanted to end my life.
And this forum, although incredibly helpful, scared me even more when reading the stories and posts, which made it all worse.

It turns out, for me at least, all I needed was IPL, and to take a bit more care in looking after myself, and a low-dose antidepressant.

To those of you that are struggling, or viewing this forum for the first time to look for answers, or newly diagnosed: YOU WILL GET BETTER.

Please stay safe everyone, and always always practice self-care. It's so important. The chores can wait, the work can wait, your health can't wait. Do everything in your power to care for your body and mind. It truly makes a huge difference.

Lots of love to you all.

Cat xx

Really glad to hear you are doing so well!
Would it not be possible that the warm compresses were also responsible for the improvement; even a bigger influence than IPL? You had dry eye only since may, so maybe it took some time before your glands could start function normal again after some months of heat treatments. Just trying to fully understand the impact IPL made in comparison with eye compresses.

[Penny_lane]

Hi KittyCat ,

Thank you so much for posting this. You are giving me hope! I been following this thread and it's one of the reasons I decided to try IPL. I have 4 sessions scheduled, the first one is next week.

Did your doctor say about needing maintenance IPL treatments and how often? I have heard various lengths of time on this and curious about what your doctor thinks.

Also are you willing to share what dosage you are taking of the Seabuckthorn, Zinc, Vitamin D and Omega-3?

Thanks again!
Penny

[andriy81]

maybe staying on anti inflamatory would be helpful à

to prevent glands from being reblocked while they heal.

[Notsure]

Really glad to hear you are doing so well!
Would it not be possible that the warm compresses were also responsible for the improvement; even a bigger influence than IPL? You had dry eye only since may, so maybe it took some time before your glands could start function normal again after some months of heat treatments. Just trying to fully understand the impact IPL made in comparison with eye compresses.

Hi, gilles ! So do you think the warm compresses routine takes several months to work? I'm trying to understand if there's a long-term effect. Warm compresses helped me to reduce the usage of eyedrops during the day to zero, but I've been using them for less than two weeks. And some dryness still remains, it's a bit disappointing

[gilles]

Hi, gilles ! So do you think the warm compresses routine takes several months to work? I'm trying to understand if there's a long-term effect. Warm compresses helped me to reduce the usage of eyedrops during the day to zero, but I've been using them for less than two weeks. And some dryness still remains, it's a bit disappointing

Warm compresses are needed to people who have malfunctioning meibom. glands, in order to not get blockages. In most cases it is a thing you will have to keep doing to maintain your situation (if your skin type is the cause of the malfunction).
It might be that it takes several weeks for the warm compresses to take effect (firm blockages that need a lot of heat and or unplugging via massage/expression), and that by doing it over a prolonged time the glands start to function normally again; but this topic is still in research, so even for so called experts I think a lot is still hypothesis. Myself, I found doing warm compresses and massages helps, but it is really a journey of experimenting which compresses/heat and massaging has the best effect.

[Notsure]

Warm compresses are needed to people who have malfunctioning meibom. glands, in order to not get blockages. In most cases it is a thing you will have to keep doing to maintain your situation (if your skin type is the cause of the malfunction).
It might be that it takes several weeks for the warm compresses to take effect (firm blockages that need a lot of heat and or unplugging via massage/expression), and that by doing it over a prolonged time the glands start to function normally again; but this topic is still in research, so even for so called experts I think a lot is still hypothesis. Myself, I found doing warm compresses and massages helps, but it is really a journey of experimenting which compresses/heat and massaging has the best effect.

Thx! Could you recommend a warm compress? I use a USB heated mask

[orange86]

i had lipiflow and ipl dont at BBR in Hereford in jan 2020. I had no relief as glands blocked up soon after
i dont think they could offer me much more hope sadly. I'm on a keto diet to see if that reduces inflammation.

[Member]

You are lucky. I still have not tried IPL (because of the price) maybe I should read up about it.

[KittyCat]

Hi KittyCat ,

Thank you so much for posting this. You are giving me hope! I been following this thread and it's one of the reasons I decided to try IPL. I have 4 sessions scheduled, the first one is next week.

Did your doctor say about needing maintenance IPL treatments and how often? I have heard various lengths of time on this and curious about what your doctor thinks.

Also are you willing to share what dosage you are taking of the Seabuckthorn, Zinc, Vitamin D and Omega-3?

Thanks again!
Penny

Hi Penny! How did your IPL go?

I'm so glad to hear that my posts were helping you!
My doctor said she won't send me a letter until 12 months time, but obviously if I feel I want to see her sooner then by all means I can just book an appointment. But yep, 12 months for me!

Seabuck Thorn: 2 softgels per day (not sure what the dosage equates to)
Zinc: 50mg per day
Vitamin D: 3000iu
Omega-3: 1000mg per day


Cat xx

[KittyCat]

Hi everyone! I just wanted to give another update as it's been a while. Well, I haven't used eye drops at all for over a month now! I'm working fulltime as a proofreader and my eyes are fine. I do wear moisture chamber glasses moist days, which, if you haven't already looked into them, I HIGHLY suggest you do! I think these should be one of the first things to try before any medical procedures. I'm also on a keto diet (more for weight loss and general health than anything), and I wonder if this also helps as I am consuming almost no sugar and no refined carbs.
I no longer do warm compresses as I don't think I need them, if anything I'll do a cold compress when I feel my eyes getting a bit tired.

In terms of maintenence IPL treatments, my eye doctor doesn't expect to see me for another year as she said my eyes are great now!

Apart from at the end of the day when my eyes feel a little sore and tired, I have experienced zero symptoms of dry eye for over 2 months now.
Please guys, don't think you won't get better and get obsessed with reading this Forum from start to finish like I did. It made me suicidal. I'm happier now than I've been in a long time.

I would also like to say, I'm taking an anti-depressant and this is having ZERO impact on my eyes. Don't be afraid to reach out for help if you need it.

I hope everyone is doing ok. I do understand that everyone's situation is unique, and I don't want to suggest that what has happened to me will definitely happen to you. But I'm also very mindful that the positive stories are very few and far between on this forum. So I'm trying to restore a bit of balance.

If anyone has any questions, please ask.

Cat xx

[jack1988]

Hi Penny! How did your IPL go?

I'm so glad to hear that my posts were helping you!
My doctor said she won't send me a letter until 12 months time, but obviously if I feel I want to see her sooner then by all means I can just book an appointment. But yep, 12 months for me!

Seabuck Thorn: 2 softgels per day (not sure what the dosage equates to)
Zinc: 50mg per day
Vitamin D: 3000iu
Omega-3: 1000mg per day


Cat xx

Hi Cat, would you mind sharing what Seabuck Thorn brand you use?

[Penny_lane]

Hi Penny! How did your IPL go?

I'm so glad to hear that my posts were helping you!
My doctor said she won't send me a letter until 12 months time, but obviously if I feel I want to see her sooner then by all means I can just book an appointment. But yep, 12 months for me!

Seabuck Thorn: 2 softgels per day (not sure what the dosage equates to)
Zinc: 50mg per day
Vitamin D: 3000iu
Omega-3: 1000mg per day


Cat xx

Hi Cat,

I just finished my last IPL a week ago and my eyes have felt almost normal for the past week! I was getting discouraged because I wasn’t noticing improvement until this last session but finally it must have kicked in! It’s strange though because my glands are still pretty clogged according to my doctor so I am having TearCare next week to help unclog them. I think the IPL really helped my inflammation so I’m hoping that will allow my glands to keep functioning after TearCare and help me feel even better. I will do a post on my progress after my 1 month follow up appointment next month.

thanks for sharing your supplement dosages, and glad to hear you most likely will only have to get IPL once a year. That’s great!

Penny