When is the best time to put steroid drops in?

[vivian3090]

I usually have been putting them in a little after I wake up, and then mid day. the problem is I don't really find relief from the inflammation until LATE at night; which is nice, but also defeats the purpose of them in the day as well.

I don't understand if it's the drops that are taking that long to "work" or is it the fact I may be at home and the enviroment is less harsh??

A friend of mine I was talking to suggested I put steroid drops in before I go to bed if they seem to start working after a while; It make sense, but will it work in my case? I use refreshe p.m. gel when I go to bed and even with that, I still wake up with extremely dry eyes.

Tips,advice, and opions are greatly appreciated!

[Tankie]

Obviously you want to get the right answer the first time, but in my opinion the only way to find out the right answer is to experiment.

If putting them in first thing in the morning isn't getting the ideal result, here's two ideas:

1. Try putting them in before going to bed for the night.
2. Try putting them in a few hours before you actually get up for the day. For example, let's say you get up every day at 7am. Set an alarm for 5am, put them in, then go back to bed, and then get up at 7am as you normally would. It's a nuisance but it might be worth trying.

Good luck!

[spmcc]

When I use steroid drops, the relief is pretty instantaneous. I'm like "ahhhhhhhhh". So, for you, it may be that the steroid drops are making your eyes worse. And it's when they wear off that your eyes feel better. Just an idea...

[vivian3090]

Tankie I'll try them out.
Spmcc,
Its like a hit or miss I feel sometimes. My eyes will FEELS better when I out drops on, but they LOOK bad until later on.
And sometimes they will work right then in inflammation, but it depends. Its not always consistent. If that makes sense.
I feel awful withoit the steroid drops honestly but you could be right. All I do know is if I don't use them my eye feel awful from moment I wake up till I go to bed.

[spmcc]

I guess I'm confused about what you're asking...

1) If you want to know: "Does it take steroid drops hours to work?", then the answer is "No" (but check with your doctor).

2) If you're asking: "When I'm prescribed something to use twice a day, should I take it 12 hours apart?", then the answer is "Usually yes" (but check with your doctor).

3) If you want to know why your eyes feel worse in the morning (with or without steroid drops), it's probably because you follow the "usual" pattern for MGD which is (a) worse upon waking and (b) improve as the day goes on due to blinking (** this improvement has nothing to do with ANY drops **).

In my opinion, anyone who wakes with pain should be covering their eyes at night. That is my #1 symptom and my #1 treatment. If you don't want to spend money on goggles (Tranquileyes, Onyix, etc.), or even 3M Micropore tape, try plain ol' saran wrap or my personal favorite - Glad Press N Seal.

Also, if you wake in pain, seriously consider that the drop/gel/ointment that you're using prior to bed may be hurting you.

My experience is that when I found the correct combination of (1) cover for my eyes at night and (2) OTC drop/gel/ointment, I woke with noticably less pain - not perfect, but less pain.

Good luck.

[Rebecca Petris]

I'm confused too...

I don't really find relief from the inflammation until LATE at night; which is nice, but also defeats the purpose of them in the day as well.

My eyes will FEELS better when I out drops on, but they LOOK bad until later on.
And sometimes they will work right then in inflammation, but it depends....
I feel awful withoit the steroid drops...

Is redness the concern you're trying to address when you talk about inflammation?

[vivian3090]

Sorry about all the confusion!! well ususally when i talk about inflammation it's my viens that are inflamed, its not my whole eye that is red, just the veins are showing all over my eyes. Vein flare ups are my main concern when I talk about inflammation, but there is also the pain/dryness factor. I have heard different variations on what the eye inflammation so maybe that is why I am confusing ya'll??

I've noticed that the results I get with my steriod drops are not consistent.

Some days when I put steriod drops in will either get these results:
1. I find relief from the dryness, but no "vein flare ups"; when this happens the veins goes away late at night, but then the dryness and and pain start kicking in.
2. I don't find relief from dryness, but my eyes will be white as day; and this diminshes once late night arrives (11pm); and my eyes get dry, painful and pink.
3. and then there are days where I just dont get any relief at all during the day in terms of dryness, pain, and veins, and my eyes will sometimes go pink as well. and at night it just gets worse
3. I do find relief from both the dryness and vein flare ups during the day, but at night I have the dryness, pain, veins and redness.

My ususal routine has been to put some PF drops when I wake up; I then put my serum drops in after maybe 15 or 30 mins, wait another ten mins, and then put steroid drops in; I put PF drops throught day. I don't actually wait 12 hours inbetween the steroid drops. I usually put the steroid drops in when I am about to start my processing shift at work. (which is about 5pm or so)

Hope that makes more sense??

I have been using Lotemax
But I have switched to Flarex a couple days ago, b/c my doctor wants me to retry out restasis.