Zero tears?

[Mawsky]

I have heard a lot of people say they have dry eyes, but no one has mentioned my problem of having no tears, when I cry, or should I say try to, whether from sadness or joy, I feel as tho my tears are welling up but alas nothing, I long to feel real tears roll down my checks...funny what you miss. I also experience tired eyes, at times it is so hard to even open my eyes, I asked the dr. About it and he just said, I needed to understand, my dry eyes are severe. duh, not really an answer. Can most people with dry eyes produce tears? Am I alone in this? Wish I had answers.:confused

[indrep]

Mawsky, this happens most often in people with Sjogrens, severe rheumatoid arthritis, graft vs host, etc.

[Rebecca Petris]

Can most people with dry eyes produce tears?

That's actually not a simple question to answer because there are different kinds of tears. Basal tears are what your eyes produce all the time to provide the tear layer necessary to protect the eyes and see. Reflex tears are triggered in response to an irritation in your eye and they are different - more watery. Same with emotional tears. Many people here have really poor basal tear production but still have plenty of reflex tearing. Others - esp. with autoimmune diseases like Indrep said - can't produce reflex tears either. So you're definitely not alone, but probably in the minority.

[Mawsky]

I had tests for sjogrens which came back neg. Also no other symptoms such as dry mouth, really pretty scary, wondering what could be wrong with me.

[bp77]

I had tests for sjogrens which came back neg. Also no other symptoms such as dry mouth, really pretty scary, wondering what could be wrong with me.

I know how u feel, I do not have sjorgens but i have sever dry eyes and i missed crying. sometimes i want to cry so bad but no tears come out .i also have plugs. did u check ur hormons? maybe age related?

[Mawsky]

I know how u feel, I do not have sjorgens but i have sever dry eyes and i missed crying. sometimes i want to cry so bad but no tears come out .i also have plugs. did u check ur hormons? maybe age related?

Im on HRT, hopefully getting enough estrogen, as I know this can be a problem, I had surgery at least 7 years ago, but maybe my levels have changed, I don't have any symptoms ie hot flashes. I'm sorry you have no tears to cry either, but glad I'm not alone, I too want to have a good cry, my eyes feel like they are welling up, but nothing happens. What do the doc's say to you about not being able to cry? What has helped? Have the plugs helped? I'm using restasis and it may be helping. What have you tried that was useless? Sorry for so many questions,

[bp77]

Im on HRT, hopefully getting enough estrogen, as I know this can be a problem, I had surgery at least 7 years ago, but maybe my levels have changed, I don't have any symptoms ie hot flashes. I'm sorry you have no tears to cry either, but glad I'm not alone, I too want to have a good cry, my eyes feel like they are welling up, but nothing happens. What do the doc's say to you about not being able to cry? What has helped? Have the plugs helped? I'm using restasis and it may be helping. What have you tried that was useless? Sorry for so many questions,

I tried steroid, made me worse. I can not use restasis. I have 2 plugs on the bottom that r helping. maybe i get the upper too. do u have mgd, bleph? do u have inflammmation on the lids?

[Mawsky]

I tried steroid, made me worse. I can not use restasis. I have 2 plugs on the bottom that r helping. maybe i get the upper too. do u have mgd, bleph? do u have inflammmation on the lids?

Hi I do have swollen lids, but no blepheritis, the only crustys I get are from the drops I use. Do you have MGD? The steroids made me worse too, not at first, but after a few weeks they were so irritating. The Restasis is a bit irritating too, but can use them, I had punctual occlusion and had surgery two years ago, so my lower punctums are too big to plug, I have plugs in uppers, I'm seeing the surgeon today to see if he can do anything more to correct this. Wish me luck, this may sound weird but what has the Drs told you was the reason we have no tears? Is there some way that our tear glands can become blocked like my punctum's did, if so is there a way to open them? I'm just so frustrated and looking for something that will help, is yours manageable? Thanks

[bp77]

Hi I do have swollen lids, but no blepheritis, the only crustys I get are from the drops I use. Do you have MGD? The steroids made me worse too, not at first, but after a few weeks they were so irritating. The Restasis is a bit irritating too, but can use them, I had punctual occlusion and had surgery two years ago, so my lower punctums are too big to plug, I have plugs in uppers, I'm seeing the surgeon today to see if he can do anything more to correct this. Wish me luck, this may sound weird but what has the Drs told you was the reason we have no tears? Is there some way that our tear glands can become blocked like my punctum's did, if so is there a way to open them? I'm just so frustrated and looking for something that will help, is yours manageable? Thanks

I think the reason is we are very dry. I do not have a doc right now, she clearly said she can not help me. that has made me so sad.

[bvendig]

doc said she can't help

I think the reason is we are very dry. I do not have a doc right now, she clearly said she can not help me. that has made me so sad.

hi..i just wanted to mention one thing.
i have also had doctors say they can't help.
ultimately i went to another doctor who put in 4 punctal plugs..not perfect but an improvement. i'm only mentioning that cause you might think you've reached the end of the road but possibly just need a different doctor.

as has been pointed out here before, dry eye is not something most docs want to get involved with because it's not profitable like lasik surgery. sometimes you need to keep looking and also might try an optometrist
thanks, betty

[pete0085]

as has been pointed out here before, dry eye is not something most docs want to get involved with because it's not profitable like lasik surgery. thanks, betty

I think you could almost argue Lasik has been made companies, such as Allergan and Alcon and other clinics more profitable with more individuals needing artifical tears or coming in with dry eye or other problems. I am not saying there is some conspiracy behind it. If you think about it, spend $1500 for Lasik and then a life time on artifical tears and other treatments. Someone is profiting at your expense, even if it is not intentional and is an unfortunate side affect.

[bp77]

hi..i just wanted to mention one thing.
i have also had doctors say they can't help.
ultimately i went to another doctor who put in 4 punctal plugs..not perfect but an improvement. i'm only mentioning that cause you might think you've reached the end of the road but possibly just need a different doctor.

as has been pointed out here before, dry eye is not something most docs want to get involved with because it's not profitable like lasik surgery. sometimes you need to keep looking and also might try an optometrist
thanks, betty

thanks for ur advise. do u have eyelid inflammation or mgd? I have mgd and 2 plugs on the bottom and i want to get the upper but some doc have told me because there is an inflammation in the eye i should not get it. what is ur thought? thanks

[Mawsky]

Saw the surgeon today

hi..i just wanted to mention one thing.
i have also had doctors say they can't help.
ultimately i went to another doctor who put in 4 punctal plugs..not perfect but an improvement. i'm only mentioning that cause you might think you've reached the end of the road but possibly just need a different doctor.

as has been pointed out here before, dry eye is not something most docs want to get involved with because it's not profitable like lasik surgery. sometimes you need to keep looking and also might try an optometrist
thanks, betty

Hi, the sureon said "I don't have tears because I have dry eye syndrome" He said that one thing he can do is sew my lower punctum's shut, and see if that would help me, and if I find that it helps, and I dont have tears running down my face again, he would permanently close them, basically closing the punctum's that he had to surgically open. His answer for me about the stringy tears I was having prior to having no tears, was because I had a reduction In the watery part of my tears, he explained that this is what comes out when we cry. Im going to continue the restasis, and see how that goes, the fact that I was so much better gives me some encouragement. I asked him if the new eyeliner I was usig could have caused this, he didnt think so, said my eyes would itch, eyelids too, just trying to understand how this could just come on so abruptly, also my eyes lids are swollen.

[spmcc]

RE: zero tears

Just curious... have you ever had a Schirmer's or Fluorescien Clearance Test when you also tickled the inside of your nose with a cotton swab?

I just had a Fluorescien Clearance Test (FCT) and was told to tickle the inside of my left nostril with a cotton swab. Just so you know, the FCT is like three Schirmer's in a row - strips in the eyes for 1 minute done 3 times 10 minutes apart. Results indicate the amount of tears produced each time and also your eye's ability to clear fluorescein dye from your eyes.

Anyways, my first two tests were 0s in both eyes (that's my usual Schirmer's score), but my final test when I tickled my left nostril gave me a 5 on my left eye.

I was told that a 5 on that test says that had NOT lost my ability to produce reflex tears... therefore my tear-producing mechanism still works even though my Schirmer's are always 0. I also read online that FCT helps to establish whether cautery (and I guess, plugs) would be effective for you.

This info may not be helpful... but it's just a thought...

[Mawsky]

No tests

I have not had any tests, or not sure, the surgeon yesterday did place the dye in my eyes, I know that it showed the eye surface I'm sure he was looking for abrasions, but he continued watching and asking me to blink, I did have some dye left over but not much, just a few drops of tears washed most of the orange yellow away, when you twirled the Q tip did you realize you had tears? I think my eyes are so obviously dry, you can see there is no moisture, I've even pulled my punctum's away when I felt my eyes well up but still no tears:-( having to go through the pain of having my punctum's sewn shut seems drastic a bit, but being so dry is interfering with my life so much, I guess it's no different than the plugs, I just can't do the plugs. Still going to try and see if I can get improvement again, I do have some hope, because I did get better at one point.