Slow and steady recovery. Tips and experiences.

[Joey2616]

Well, it's been more than 3 years now of having chronic Blepharitis and dry eyes. Things have really been better for me. They used to be so very bad. Since I've been through it all, I wanted to share some of what I think are valuable tips for other chronic mixed Bleph sufferers. It's taken a long time but I've gone from almost constant suffering and emotional stress from the appearance of the condition, to a place where things are extremely stable. Less redness of the eyelids and the white of the eyes, less dry feeling, obviously improved meibum. I spent so long looking down or away from people. It feels great to look my peers in the eye again, without that discomfort or embarrassment.

There are a few things that I found can turn a bad flare-up day right around pretty quick. Some exercise and sunshine can do wonders. Adding some extra potasium and healthier fats to my diet makes a noticeable difference. Eating more Fish and vegetables and less meat has made a diffrence also. The hugest tip I'd like to share is to blink. It sounds silly but remembering to blink is critical. Especially at the computer, or driving, or while reading. Also I've been very careful about rubbing my eyes or pushing on the Meibomian glands.

Some of the information out there should be taken with a grain of salt. Especially the whole baby soap thing, which I did for more than 2 years. It brought me nothing but grief. As soon as I stopped it, my condition improved. I've switched to a non-soap facial cleanser, it works much better and there is no irritation or dryness. A quick side note about the q-tip thing. I've used many different brands and all I can say is make sure the cotton at the end is nice and tight. Getting those strands or fibers in the eye is just the worst. Hygiene can really improve the condition day to day. But if you feel like whatever you are using is bothering you, it's because it is.

In regards to the hot compress routine I have had very mixed results. Every time I did a treatment my eyes would be much worse, and sometimes they would remain that way for many days afterwards. I understand they can be beneficial to some people but in my experience they never did anything good for me. I've found that some extra time with hot/warm (not too hot) water while either face washing or shower can easily do the trick.

I feel for all the people out there going through this awkward chronic condition. I hope we all can find relief. I felt it was my duty to share the story of what has led to my slow but steady improvement over the years. If you have any questions I am all ears, and eyes

[BarbaraS]

Thank you for sharing your story. It is so nice to read that you recovered. What was your diagnose of dry eye, did you just have red eyelids or were you diagnosed to have meimboiman gland dysfunction, do you know if your meimboiman gland were working normally with liquid secretion or the secretions were blocked and thick? If I understand wright your condition improve after you stop using baby soap and start treated your eyes more carefully, like mild washing with warm water and starting to exercise and eat more healthy? What was your daily routine in this 3 years to get you better? Did you use any supplementations? In these 3 years did you use any eyedrops or night gels? Sorry for so much questions, I would just like to be sure what was the routine that help you. Thank you for your answers

[fourchimneys]

Hi Joey,

Its very good to hear your improvement.

When you have 5 minutes could you list out your daily routine as I think it might be worth me copying it.

I am 2 years in now and it seems to be getting worse.

[Joey2616]

Hello again!

To respond to BarbaraS I had gone to an opthalmologist several times and was repeatedly diagnosed with mixed posterior and anterior blepharitis, with some MGD and resulting dry eye. My meibomian secretions were thick and pasty and often blocked with styes. Using the baby shampoo would improve the appearance of the eyelids very short term, but would cause a high level of ocular irritation. Even when the solution was extremely diluted. I switched to a non-soap facial cleanser and it feels better and works better. Taking time to blink 5-20 times several times a day is really the thing that has helped the most, along with not touching or pushing on the eyelids. In terms of supplements I went though all that garbage. Nothing really did anything. Some Vit D in the winter when I was inside a lot seemed to make a very slight difference. The opthalmologist had tried several types of drops including OTC ones that never really helped. In fact most of them made things worse. The allergy eye drops I was perscribed did help. I haven't used them in a long time, which is nice because they are extremely expensive. Another thing that made a difference was that my family was drinking nothing but reverse osmosis water, because it was the only option. Switching to normal tap water, mineralized or spring water made an immediate improvement, however circumstancial it may be.

Here's my daily routine. I wake up and do a few things. Within about 20 minutes of being up I will wash my whole face and eyelids with a non-soap facial cleanser. I'll do the Q-tip thing ever couple of days or sometimes less often. I make sure to have some water and make sure to not forget to eat something. I brush my teeth and tongue well. That can help quite a bit surprisingly. I have been eating quite a bit more fish and flax lately. I am not sure if they help directly, or if not eating worse fats just hinders things less. Throughout the day if I notice my eyes are getting bothered I'll have an orange juice or something else with a high level of potassium. That seems to help pretty fast. Sometimes I feel as though my eyes or eyelids are getting or looking oily, if that's the case I will do another cleaning if I am able to. I work on the computer so I make sure to blink frequently and take breaks. When I am driving (I live in Canada) I put up the sun blocker to stop all that extra hot air going on the window from drying my eyes out. Sometimes I'll need to do a cleaning routine before bed. Sometimes not. I exercise daily which almost always get me pretty warm, that definitely thins the meibomian secretions. You might need to do a hot/warm compress if you have lots of styes on your glands, but beware it could likely make your eyes feel pretty lousy from all that extra oil getting on there. Especially if those glands are infected a bit. Watch out for vaso-dialators like alcohol. They will temporarily increase the veiny appearance of your eyes. Make sure to avoid any vaso-constrictor eye drops like visine. Those things are a disaster.

The biggest piece of advise I can offer is that in the beginning of these awful uncomfortable conditions, I was so desperate to be rid of them that tried treating them aggresively, while always looking for some magic bullet that would cure me. Accepting that this would be a long process of less aggresive treatment has been far more successful, and less stressful. There's no magic bullet usually. Changing a bunch of little things and remaining calm helps a lot. Even if your eyes look and feel bad, just tell your friends you are having a bad eye day and continue on with your life. Nothing to be embarrassed about. The stress won't help your eyes either. My routine will not necessarily help you. Everyone will need to adapt their own routine based on how severe their condition is. My was pretty severe to begin with, so if yours is too, I feel for ya. If you stay healthy and treat yourself carefully it will almost certainly get better. I could maybe even post some pictures if people really wanted to see. If you want to ask more detailed questions feel free.

Feel better

[savino]

..........

[Eileen510]

Joey2616 - Your post should be in every Eye doctor's handout to those patients with Bleph. So many of have suffered needlessly, each of your points are something that each doctor should share with a patient - it would save so many people so much grief and lost time from life. I have learned many of those points by visiting this forum and paying attention to what I do and impact - it has taken years - and you have it in one simple post.

[Muninn]

This is a great post, i've been firmly stuck in the "search for the magic bullet" phase, for a little while. So just slowly and calmly working the problem is probably the better approach. Going to sort of treat it like working out in the gym, don't expect results overnight but look for progression.

Cheers

Dave (Muninn)

[Daniel2]

I also feel worse when I do the hot compresses right afterwards, I don't know why. It's as if It melts away all the good oils in the eye too. I'm not sure if I should stop doing it because I know its supposedly beneficial for the eyes. Also, when I don't do them at all I don't feel very good either so I don't know what to do.

I notice personally that for some reason when I do the hot compresses for about a week straight and then I stop doing it. The next day I would feel great. It just lasts for about a day and then I go back to feeling this extreme burning.

Joey have you stop doing the compresses altogether? And if you, did your doctor notice the quality your tears deteriorating or it actually got better?