Has anyone had this gross thing happen?

[rkralman]

I feel your pain!

Yeah, my friends look at me like I'm nuts sometimes too but they have no idea how painful this can be. What I'd give to just have a NORMAL day and not have to think about my eyes. I can't even remember the last time my eyes were white! I look like I'm "under the influence" of something illegal ALL the time (which I most definitely am NOT! Ha!). Very embarrassing! Just keep the faith and let's hope someone comes up with a solution for us all soon! Take care!

Wow, that just totally grosses me out. I do applaud your bravery in doing it yourself though, yet I agree with you it's best to do it under a doctors care.
I know how you feel too. Right now my eyes are so sandy and gritty I just want to rake my fingernails straight down over my eyes and pull out whatever is there. When I tell my friends that they look at me like I am crazy, but only those of us who have had to endure that feeling of something constantly being in our eye know the extremes we will go to to eliminate that feeling forever!
Good luck!

[Lucy]

I look like I'm "under the influence" of something illegal ALL the time (which I most definitely am NOT! Ha!).

Usually my eyes look fine. I also wear glasses which helps to mask redness, etc. People just cannot believe me when I tell them I want to pull my eyeballs out because "I look ok."

I've had an allergy problem for the past few days and have noticed it quite a bit. I was getting ready to go away today and finishing up in the mirror. I thought, gee, I match--pink blouse, pink earrings, pink eyes..........

I can tell it's ragweed season and have been under attach by pollen etc the past week or so. Tonight, my eyes were watering and that hasn't happened for awhile. Felt like old times tonight.

[Kyle]

Lucy,
You know that is something else I am SO sick of...everytime I talk about my eye condition people tell me I don't "look like I'm in pain". Should we go around crying all the time? Should we scream at the top of our lungs from frustration like most of us would love to do? That's one thing I really, really like about this site...everybody is so optimistic. Although we all have really, really bad days we still seem to find the strength to cheer each other on and sneak in some humor. I always tell those people..."I bet you couldn't last 3 days with my eyes."
As for the redness...I have had to quit my career (hopefully only temporarily) because I walk around looking like I'm stoned all the time. Yes, even in good ole LA that doesn't fly. I am the most anti-drug person you will ever meet (sorry Homes) so this is such a pain for me. I'm just waiting for the day I get pulled by a cop and try to explain that I am NOT high!
That's interesting about the allergies you have been having lately. Dr. Sall thought I was having an allergic reaction to my steroid drops because my eyes were burning like crazy and red as all get out...maybe it was just allergies, huh? He told me to use cold compresses and stop the steroids. They seem a bit better today, so who knows.
What season is actually best for us? I'm going on nine months now with all this fun...so is Winter going to be season I'm going to love? Heaters I know are my most dreaded enemy, but what about being outdoors during the Winter? Is this going to help?

[jcorbett]

Well, Kyle, your winter and my winter are two very different things! It's hard to say. Every climate brings it's own peculiar problems. Smog may be a problem for you.....we have acres and acres of trees, grasses and pollen.
But if winter is milder, that could mean less air conditioning which would be good.
Heat does not bother me too much in WI. But because we have long winters, most people have humidifiers in their homes/businesses to keep the humidity at a decent level. That may not be the case in LA, if you guys even need heat out there. Without humidifiers, heat can be very drying.
My eyes did fairly well in CA in August, which surprised me. But my in-laws didn't use air conditioning much and I spent most of my time at beaches or in the pool. And, of course, I had my protective sunglasses on almost all the time which really helps my eyes. Being in a car seemed to bother my eyes a lot more out there, though. I did wonder if it was all the exhaust and smog on the freeways.
Everyone is different. The only givens are drafts and low humidity, in my opinion. Those two will do us all in.

[homes]

Lucy,
You know that is something else I am SO sick of...everytime I talk about my eye condition people tell me I don't "look like I'm in pain". Should we go around crying all the time? Should we scream at the top of our lungs from frustration like most of us would love to do? That's one thing I really, really like about this site...everybody is so optimistic. Although we all have really, really bad days we still seem to find the strength to cheer each other on and sneak in some humor. I always tell those people..."I bet you couldn't last 3 days with my eyes."

THANKYOU.

it just pisses me off when someone tells me that as well. i mean i have seen cancer patients who seem "normal" on the outside (not to compare ourselves to cancer patients by any means), but i think it's a basic human coping mechanism. if we're depressed 24/7 how will we deal? an optimistic attitude is a must with a chronic ailment. and i admire each and everyone of you for fighting this head on!

[Kyle]

Okay, I have to comment on that. I agree with you 100%..I don't ever want to compare ourselves or our situation with people with cancer, but my best friend has had breast cancer 3 times. She had a partial mastectomy the first time, went through chemotherapy, the cancer came back, she had a double mastectomy, went through radiation, had her breasts re-done with skin taken from her stomach and her thighs...and wouldn't you know it...the cancer was actually in some of those skin cells and came back again. The woman is truly Wonder Woman (my nickname for her) and has now been in remission for about 5 years. I'm actually going to be Maid of Honor at her wedding at the end of this month.
Okay, my point to all of this is...she told me she was never in the type of pain I tell her about that I have with my eyes. She said she knew she was sick and she knew she had to fight, but it wasn't like looking out through our eyes (which we do every second of every day) and feeling the sandy, gritty, dry, sharp poking pains we all feel. She even told me she didn't know if she would have been able to last if she had felt the pain every single day.
The woman is truly a saint and is always optimistic. I draw strength from her each and every day. I called her in the middle of the night about 2 weeks ago and was bawling and I begged her to tell me how she got through the worst of her times. She replied "you"..."you got me through the worst of my times". She advised me to be the best friend to myself that I had been to her.
Talk about a wake up call! We tend to help others more than we help ourselves. I'm now trying to be my own best friend and motivate myself to get better every single day.

Okay, enough of that Polly-Anna talk...on other note, I KNEW Homes, that you would have a comment about Diana's comment about Angelina. Somehow I just knew you'd have a sexual comment about her remark. Strange how we are all getting to know each other without ever actually meeting, huh?

[homes]

Okay, enough of that Polly-Anna talk...on other note, I KNEW Homes, that you would have a comment about Diana's comment about Angelina. Somehow I just knew you'd have a sexual comment about her remark. Strange how we are all getting to know each other without ever actually meeting, huh?

well she's only the sexiest creature on this planet (on other solar systems too, im sure). in angelina world anything is permissable, even being a man hungry home wrecker.

[dianat]

Angelina may be sexy, but could she possibly be as much fun as we are?!

[Lucy]

Funny thing

I recently emailed my (male) cousin in Ohio an article where I was quoted about our dry eye problems. Not for sympathy, but to let him know his cuz was "in the news."

So......he sends me back an email saying "you are in my prayers" and a Restasis website. OK. I told him I appreciated his email and thoughts. But Restasis............hmph...........I've been on it 6 months and am finished when this supply runs out. Can't see where it's helping. This does not mean that another person will not benefit from Restasis. I have given it a try two separate times and this last time for a good 6+ months which seems as though if it was going to help, it would have by now.

Another thing......when I left my job, I had to change insurance companies. Well, my drug co-pay is no longer $5 or $10. It's 20% for higher priced prescriptions like Restasis.

I don't think anyone can understand unless they have this. I can be sitting across from someone talking to them. I look normal to them. I'm thinking "I can see two of them, with 2 big floaters in one eye, while my eyes are burning........wishing for something to cool down my eyes. I'm not thinking about them, or what they're saying. I'm thinking "my God, I can't see and my eyes are on fire and it hurts." I don't think most of us verbalize our problems more than necessary. It is something to be aware of though. I always think "they must be sick of hearing about my eyes." I know I get sick of hearing someone complain all the time. That's why this bb is so valuable, here, we can say what's on our mind. To us, this has become a big (too big) part of our lives.

[Gaye]

Talking about our discomfort

You are right Lucy about not verbalizing our discomfort as much as we might like to. This past week my eyes have been killing me and I know it is because the humidity is down and the weather is cooler. Now I am suddenly very light sensitive and feel like I cannot see very well. That makes me feel somewhat unbalanced and unsteady. Driving gets very weird. Do any of you ever feel like that? It freaks me out, but I don't say anything about it because people suddenly start looking at me like I am crazy - like how can a dry eye problem do all of that?

[Kyle]

EXACTLY!! I actually had someone say to me "Oh. I have dry skin too".
Excuse me...did I say I had dry skin?! I wish there was another name for our condition because people can't understand when we say "dry eyes? It sounds so simple. Not!

I mentioned on another thread that my eyes were wacking out lately too. I guess I should attribute it to the change of seasons (according to what I read from everyone else on this site). No light sensitivity (thank God).
Hang in there Gaye. Winter is right around the corner for you folks in Virginia.
Hey, I'll be home for Christmas. Let's get together for a drink, okay?

[Rebecca Petris]

I wish there was another name for our condition because people can't understand when we say "dry eyes? It sounds so simple. Not!

That IS a big problem. And it cuts both ways. For some purposes "dry eyes" is a necessary simplification, even when it's completely inaccurate. Can't quite see my way to www.ocularsurfacdiseasezone.com or www.dysfunctionaltearfilmzone.com, yuck yuck. But many of us on the board do NOT have "dry eyes", technically, i.e. our primary problem may not be aqueous deficiency but rather some other tear film imbalance, distribution problem, mucin problem, evaporative problem due to eyelid issues, etc. We really only SAY "dry eyes" because that's easier to say and easier for those who don't know to slot into some part of their brain than the alternatives.

If you say "I have severe ocular surface disease" it sure sounds more like you're suffering than if you say "I have dry eyes".

[Gaye]

Severe Ocular Surface Disease

That is perfect Rebecca! That's what I will say from now on!

Yes Kyle - definitely we will get together at Christmas. That would be great!

[homes]

That is perfect Rebecca! That's what I will say from now on!

haha make that two of us!

diana - of course you're more fun, but it's just a different kinda fun.

[Peggy]

Glad to find this info

I had a smart plug inserted July 8th had it irrigated on July 14th it was driving me crazy I know the dr. hit it because I could feel him pushing it. It is now September and I still feel something on the left side my left eye is sore and aches. Even though the saline solution went down my throat I am not sure that the plug was removed. Emotionally I dont know if I am up to the whole irrigating thing again talk to another dr. who hates these plugs never used them who said he would irrigate again and possibly use some wire thing to see if there is something stuck. I know the nature of this plug makes it difficult to figure out if its in or out. My question for Rkralman I hope I got the name right is did you ever feel something on the side of your nose I know thats where the lacrimal system is located...did you ever see any puss before the itching? I dont have any redness just soreness.
I agree with everyone I am so sick of trying to explain my situation to colleagues and othr people even friends have a hard time grasping that its our eyes as one dr. said they are the openings to our souls this just so hard at times . Thanks everyone for helping to get through this you are the only ones who understand!!!!!!!!!Special thanks to those of you who have emailed me with support. Peggy