My dry eyes story

[brudni]

First of all I want to thank you for this site. It has helped me so much.

My eye history is quite different as it first started 20 years ago when I had a severe case of Stevens Johnsons syndrome. Luckily my eyes and life were saved and I coped with some dry eye and finally infections stopped. I have had other health problems, none life threatening due to Stevens Johnsons, but my eyes were spared for years.

I did develop Rosacea, and have had it but could not tolerate antibiotics and it has not bothered me too much as I am not that fair skinned and always protect myself from the sun and wear make-up. Now no eye make-up though and I am a little vain but that's life. I just want to be able to go outdoors and live a normal life.

I started back again with eye infections last September. I saw 3 different eye specialists, optometrists and opthamologists during this time and they just gave me an antibiotic drop.

I was well all winter. This spring I developed eye infections again that would not clear up. They kept giving me the same antibiotic. Finally I went to your site and another one agingeye.net and I diagnosed myself with MGB and ocular rosacea. Not one eye specialist ever asked me if I had rosacea. I went back yesterday and they said I was correct in my diagnosis and put me on restasis and I am still waiting for the panoptyx which I ordered 3 weeks ago. I have a difficult prescription -6 and a small head so I don't know if they will work.
Meanwhile your rice baggy is incredible and that and eye massage and cleansing helps the most. The sterilid really irritated my skin but it cleaned it thoroughly. I would like to try the Ocusoft foam. I have the pads but I liked the Sterilid foam.

Meanwhile I have not been able to be outdoors until I get my panoptyx.


If any one has a good eye specialist in the Chicago area, preferably northern suburbs I am looking. The opthamologist who saved my eyes, canceled all my appointments and seems only interested in lasik patients or cataract patients.

I need someone who really understands dry eye and the different kinds of dry eye who will really work with me long term.


Thank you again for your site. No one knew about your rice baggy there.

I had just read an article a month or 2 ago about physicians assuming, not questioning, or listening to patients. It is sad that I had to diagnose the cause of my infections.

brudni

[Rebecca Petris]

Brudni,

Welcome to DEZ!!

I hope that the Panoptx work out well for you. It's tough with a high prescription. If you get too much distortion you might want to try the EagleVision 'moist eye moisture panel' (see eaglevision.com, bottom of the products page). There's another manufacturer coming out with a sort of similar side panel, but removeable and in an opaque flexible material. And more eyewear products are, finally, in the pipeline. The clear product from Tranquileyes which you'll be able to wear under glasses (coming late summer) I am hoping will be a big help to people with high prescriptions who can't get suitable wraparounds.

Glad the Rice Baggy is helping. Most doctors don't know about it to be fair, though some doctors suggest some other form of warm compress. We just exhibited the rice baggy at an ophthalmology conference for the first time a couple of weeks ago and it was very well received so I hope the idea becomes more popular.

For an end-of-the-line option, Scleral lenses have been used successfully in many Stevens Johnson patients.