Just got my lowers plugged today....

[Amyfloor]

Thank you, Grant!
I don't have a ton of overflowing, just enough for the tears to be irritating and annoying. My corneal doc asked me to keep the flow control in a little longer since my cornea looks "pristine." I wonder why the upper plugs are so much more effective than the lower?? I have a lower plug in my other eye but haven't gotten much relief. I also wear scleral lenses.

[tealeaf]

Yes, the permanent plugs work better than the temporary plugs, if only because the temporary plugs start to dissolve on the first day. You don't even know if they're still in there. The permanent ones are just slightly annoying for the first few days, until you get used to them. You can feel the "cap" on your eye when you move your eyes to the extreme left or right, but you quickly adjust to that and forget all about it. Plugs are awesome.

Hi Sean, my opth. has placed 2 permanent plugs with cap in my lower punctum. But funnily, I don't find relief from the extra tears retained. I can feel the difference within 1 day when I had the dissolvable ones in. Did you feel improvement immediately after the permanent plugs were in? or only feel the improvement after adjusting to the caps?

I supposed by keeping more tears on the occular surface, the tears will help in repairing the surface, etc. Do you feel your dry eyes improved over the years?

Thanks for your reply.

[seanrez]

Hi Sean, my opth. has placed 2 permanent plugs with cap in my lower punctum. But funnily, I don't find relief from the extra tears retained. I can feel the difference within 1 day when I had the dissolvable ones in. Did you feel improvement immediately after the permanent plugs were in? or only feel the improvement after adjusting to the caps?

I supposed by keeping more tears on the occular surface, the tears will help in repairing the surface, etc. Do you feel your dry eyes improved over the years?

Thanks for your reply.

Hi Tealeaf,

I think I felt better right away, although it did take a few days or a few weeks to get used to the plugs. It doesn't really heal your eyes over the long term, I'm afraid. It just keeps more tears there for longer.

It's not entirely surprising that you liked the dissolvable ones better. Maybe it's because the caps are bugging you, since the dissolvable ones didn't have caps. Over time, the caps become MUCH less noticeable. You learn to turn your head, I think, rather than turn your eyes. And over time some gunk builds up around them and makes them less irritable. In fact, I really have to move my eyes to the extreme (over then down) to even feel them. I seriously never ever think about them anymore. I never notice them because I've totally gotten used to them. It's as if they've just become a part of who I am. Or maybe it's like people who get used to wearing contact lenses. At any rate, give it at least a month and I'm sure you'll get used to them too. Once you get used to them, maybe then you'll start to see the benefits more readily.

Best of luck! Stick with it!

Sean

[tealeaf]

Sean,
Appreciate your kind advise and details on the plugs. Yes, the caps are bugging me now (3 days into this set of plugs), but at times, I did forget about them, especially when looking straight.
Sorry for the many questions: During the initial days/weeks of getting usd to the plugs, did your eyes feel itchy around the plugs and were your scelra around the caps slightly red? Did you feel the plugs more when the eyes were drier?

Hope to get used to them soon

[seanrez]

Sean,
Appreciate your kind advise and details on the plugs. Yes, the caps are bugging me now (3 days into this set of plugs), but at times, I did forget about them, especially when looking straight.
Sorry for the many questions: During the initial days/weeks of getting usd to the plugs, did your eyes feel itchy around the plugs and were your scelra around the caps slightly red? Did you feel the plugs more when the eyes were drier?

Hope to get used to them soon

Hi Tealeaf,

Yes, they felt a bit itchy for the first few days/weeks, but then I totally got used to them and forgot about them entirely. Not sure if my sclera was red at the time... I definitely felt them more when my eyes were drier--I still do. But soon enough, the benefits outweighed the drawbacks in my case.

What's the cause of your dry eyes? Have you tried Restasis? I had Accutane-induced dry eyes, which caused inflammation when they got very dry. I've been using Restasis for 1.5 months now and honestly it worked almost immediately to reduce the inflammation and improve my dry eyes. Even my vision improved almost immediately, which was totally unexpected and awesome. Not sure if I have "more tears" now, but I don't get the cycles of dry eyes leading to inflammation leading to worse dry eyes, etc. I'm quite pleased. In fact I feel like I'm almost cured, assuming I leave the plugs in and keep taking Restasis. I call them my "magic drops". I could hardly be happier about it.

Sean

[tealeaf]

I definitely felt them more when my eyes were drier--I still do.

Thanks for your reply. At least I know that is normal.

My eyes are still itchy at times but I find the plugs are gradually settling down, more comfortable than few days ago.

What's the cause of your dry eyes? Have you tried Restasis? I had Accutane-induced dry eyes, which caused inflammation when they got very dry. I've been using Restasis for 1.5 months now and honestly it worked almost immediately to reduce the inflammation and improve my dry eyes. Even my vision improved almost immediately, which was totally unexpected and awesome. Not sure if I have "more tears" now, but I don't get the cycles of dry eyes leading to inflammation leading to worse dry eyes, etc. I'm quite pleased. In fact I feel like I'm almost cured, assuming I leave the plugs in and keep taking Restasis. I call them my "magic drops". I could hardly be happier about it.

My dry eyes are caused by lasik and yes, I am using restasis. Have been using for 8 months now. Maybe the combination of plugs and restasis can help me after a while.

Do you use any OTC eye drops / gels in addition to the plugs and restasis?

It has been 6 days since I have the plugs, funnily, my eyes don't seem to feel much difference with/out them. Morning was great, but by afternoon, eyes are back to every 2-3 hour drops. With eye plugs, does the moisture in your eyes stay consistent generally or does it fluctuate? Apologies again for the many questions.

[seanrez]

On occasion, I'll use i-drop® Pur Gel (http://www.imedpharma.com/) because it doesn't have an irritating preservative, and it lasts for about 20 mins. I usually only use it once or twice per day, if that. My eyes still get dry under certain conditions. I just know that they're better than they were before plugs and Restasis.

Try taking a power nap. That always helps my eyes the most--just shutting them for 10 mins or more. Maybe try to fit that in right after you eat your lunch, if you can. It's great for resetting the brain as well.

I'm sorry about LASIK... In my opinion, LASIK should be banned in favour of surface treatments like epi-LASIK. Cutting that flap in the cornea seems to do some irreparable damage for some people...

[tealeaf]

Sean,
Thanks for the answers to my many questions. My eyes are getting used to the plugs now. I don't feel the irritation anymore, which is good news. However, I am starting to find the plugs are helping only marginally maybe my eyes are really too dry. What were your TBUT and shirmer scores?

Yes, closing my eyes for a while helps.

I truly agree with you that lasik should be ban.

[seanrez]

Sean,
Thanks for the answers to my many questions. My eyes are getting used to the plugs now. I don't feel the irritation anymore, which is good news. However, I am starting to find the plugs are helping only marginally maybe my eyes are really too dry. What were your TBUT and shirmer scores?

Yes, closing my eyes for a while helps.

I truly agree with you that lasik should be ban.

Actually, I've never seen the results of my TBUT and Shirmer scores. I think I may have had those tests done at one point, but it was quite a few years ago and I never asked to see the results, oddly...

Yeah for sure; why do we need LASIK when we can do epi-LASIK instead with zero risk of dry eyes from cutting deep into the cornea? I thought doctors were supposed to "do no harm" first and foremost.

[seanrez]

Hey Tealeaf, have you ever tried coconut oil? I just started rubbing it around my eyes and it works AWESOME!

Here's a post I made on the topic:
http://www.dryeyezone.com/talk/showt...rks-Awesome!-D

[FranciscoA]

I've plugged my lowers today. The caps are not bothering me much, maybe because I've used contacts for many years at a time when they were not as advanced as they are today. Hope the plugs will help me with my severe DES. I will also start with Restasis. Will be posting how things go from here.

[fourchimneys]

I've plugged my lowers today. The caps are not bothering me much, maybe because I've used contacts for many years at a time when they were not as advanced as they are today. Hope the plugs will help me with my severe DES. I will also start with Restasis. Will be posting how things go from here.

Hi,

I just wondered how you are getting on. I had my left eye plugged an hour ago and hoping to get hold of some restasis...fingers crossed, its been such a struggle so far.