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Hello all,
I am new to the forums, but I enjoy reading experiences of others who have been sentenced to a life with DES. I am a young man, age 19, one year five months post lasik. The following post was particularly helpful and encouraged me to continue fighting my dry eyes:
http://www.dryeyezone.com/talk/showt...ating-Dry-Eye.
I have worn glasses since the sixth grade, and began wearing contacts around age sixteen. I could not wait to turn eighteen so I could have lasik surgery and eliminate the need for glasses and contacts altogether! Of course that decision turned out to be the biggest mistake of my life to date.
I had lasik performed by the Lasik Vision Insititute at the cost of $300 per eye in October of 2009. One of the reasons I justified Lasik was the fact that it would pay for itself by eliminating the cost of contacts, check ups, etc (I have since decided that money is no object if I can relieve my dry eyes...). I opted for the temporary lower plugs and the final cost was $800. I followed all the instructions to the letter. I was instructed to use artificial tears once every hour, a couple other types of drops, and I was given sunglasses to wear for a week every moment I was outdoors, sunny or not.
Several months later, I noticed the dryness of my eyes. The lasik center was unwilling to help, but I have begun seeing a specialist who has been more helpful. My right eye is considerably worse, and I have a theory about that. The night of my surgery, my temporary plug in my right eye came out. I called the doc & he said that he would replace it on the next visit. I wonder if that time without it may have caused the imbalance.
I also have trouble with night vision. Driving is dangerous when it is dark and raining. The doc gave me some reading glasses to help, but they don't do much. I can live with this, but the dryness is the big problem.
Here are my treatment experiences, somewhat similar to zde2's:
1. One of the hardest things for me to accept was the reality that I would never be able to drive my truck with the window down. These sunglasses help me to do that on occassion. The eye specialist told me to avoid outdoor activities that may expose me to the sun or wind. He said it like it was easy while I was thinking, "No. You don't understand. I'm a deer hunter. I love the outdoors!"
These are a MUST for DE sufferers: http://www.activesportsunglasses.com...e-control.html
Some of the newer models from WileyX have a hard gasket. Be sure to get the softer gasket as shown in the link above. This gives you a much better seal to protect from wind or air conditioning in your car. This is most effective treatment I have found against DES.
2. Restasis. Everyone knows about this stuff. It burns sometimes, but it helps.
3. Refresh Plus artificial tears, preservative free. These stopped working for me after a while, so I started using the Celluvisc drops. They do blur your vision for a few minutes, but they help with dryness.
4. Punctual plugs. I had the permanent plugs put in my lower ducts in March, and I just had the upper ones done a week ago. The plugs make a big difference.
5. Flaxseed oil. I take two, 1000mg pills 3x per day. I've been taking these for a while, but it's hard to know for sure if it helps.
6. Sour candy makes my eyes water. It sounds ridiculous, but it works.
7. Rebecca's rice baggy. I'm still new to this one, but I'm impressed so far.
8. Bed time ritual. I usually apply some of the GenTeal severe dry eye relief drops before bed. I have recently started using the TranquilEyes goggles in addition to the drops at night. I have not been real impressed with the goggles, but I might not be using them correctly either.
9. Drinking lots of water, and eating more carrots and spinach will help.
10. As my old football coach used to say, "Half the game is mental." My faith has been tested with DES. Sometimes I think it's not fair that I have to suffer from DES, but then I think of what Job went through. I guess he didn't think it was fair either. The Bible also tells that the apostle Paul suffered from a physical pain, probably from his eyes (I doubt it was from lasik though). Paul thought that he could serve the Lord much more effectively without his ailment, but God taught him to live with his pain. I don't know what God is doing, but I'm just along for the ride. I like the old song "Trust and Obey."
Thanks, zde2 for your post. I have declared war on my dry eyes. I don't ever expect to return to a normal life, but I will stop at nothing to achieve every victory over each little battle, for that is the definition of war.
I'm headed outside to don my WileyX Climate Control Series Brick sunglasses and practice with my bow. Happy Easter everyone!
I am new to the forums, but I enjoy reading experiences of others who have been sentenced to a life with DES. I am a young man, age 19, one year five months post lasik. The following post was particularly helpful and encouraged me to continue fighting my dry eyes:
http://www.dryeyezone.com/talk/showt...ating-Dry-Eye.
I have worn glasses since the sixth grade, and began wearing contacts around age sixteen. I could not wait to turn eighteen so I could have lasik surgery and eliminate the need for glasses and contacts altogether! Of course that decision turned out to be the biggest mistake of my life to date.
I had lasik performed by the Lasik Vision Insititute at the cost of $300 per eye in October of 2009. One of the reasons I justified Lasik was the fact that it would pay for itself by eliminating the cost of contacts, check ups, etc (I have since decided that money is no object if I can relieve my dry eyes...). I opted for the temporary lower plugs and the final cost was $800. I followed all the instructions to the letter. I was instructed to use artificial tears once every hour, a couple other types of drops, and I was given sunglasses to wear for a week every moment I was outdoors, sunny or not.
Several months later, I noticed the dryness of my eyes. The lasik center was unwilling to help, but I have begun seeing a specialist who has been more helpful. My right eye is considerably worse, and I have a theory about that. The night of my surgery, my temporary plug in my right eye came out. I called the doc & he said that he would replace it on the next visit. I wonder if that time without it may have caused the imbalance.
I also have trouble with night vision. Driving is dangerous when it is dark and raining. The doc gave me some reading glasses to help, but they don't do much. I can live with this, but the dryness is the big problem.
Here are my treatment experiences, somewhat similar to zde2's:
1. One of the hardest things for me to accept was the reality that I would never be able to drive my truck with the window down. These sunglasses help me to do that on occassion. The eye specialist told me to avoid outdoor activities that may expose me to the sun or wind. He said it like it was easy while I was thinking, "No. You don't understand. I'm a deer hunter. I love the outdoors!"
These are a MUST for DE sufferers: http://www.activesportsunglasses.com...e-control.html
Some of the newer models from WileyX have a hard gasket. Be sure to get the softer gasket as shown in the link above. This gives you a much better seal to protect from wind or air conditioning in your car. This is most effective treatment I have found against DES.
2. Restasis. Everyone knows about this stuff. It burns sometimes, but it helps.
3. Refresh Plus artificial tears, preservative free. These stopped working for me after a while, so I started using the Celluvisc drops. They do blur your vision for a few minutes, but they help with dryness.
4. Punctual plugs. I had the permanent plugs put in my lower ducts in March, and I just had the upper ones done a week ago. The plugs make a big difference.
5. Flaxseed oil. I take two, 1000mg pills 3x per day. I've been taking these for a while, but it's hard to know for sure if it helps.
6. Sour candy makes my eyes water. It sounds ridiculous, but it works.
7. Rebecca's rice baggy. I'm still new to this one, but I'm impressed so far.
8. Bed time ritual. I usually apply some of the GenTeal severe dry eye relief drops before bed. I have recently started using the TranquilEyes goggles in addition to the drops at night. I have not been real impressed with the goggles, but I might not be using them correctly either.
9. Drinking lots of water, and eating more carrots and spinach will help.
10. As my old football coach used to say, "Half the game is mental." My faith has been tested with DES. Sometimes I think it's not fair that I have to suffer from DES, but then I think of what Job went through. I guess he didn't think it was fair either. The Bible also tells that the apostle Paul suffered from a physical pain, probably from his eyes (I doubt it was from lasik though). Paul thought that he could serve the Lord much more effectively without his ailment, but God taught him to live with his pain. I don't know what God is doing, but I'm just along for the ride. I like the old song "Trust and Obey."
Thanks, zde2 for your post. I have declared war on my dry eyes. I don't ever expect to return to a normal life, but I will stop at nothing to achieve every victory over each little battle, for that is the definition of war.
I'm headed outside to don my WileyX Climate Control Series Brick sunglasses and practice with my bow. Happy Easter everyone!
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