Lasik Dry Eye....positive outcomes?

[thomps1]

Hello,

I had Lasik surgery 2 months ago (April 17, 2010 to be exact) and have had dry eyes ever since. I've had all four puncta plugged, been put on Restasis (for 1 month now) and started Alrex, a steroid drop just over 2 weeks ago. So far, my improvement has been minimal. I'm usually ok when I wake up (don't get me wrong, my eyes are dry, but they do tear up on their own) however as the day wears on, they get worse to the point where around mid-late afternoon, I get headaches. And worse of all, I find even having a glass of wine or a beer difficult to take (does anyone else get this??)

I now realize that my intolerance to contacts (only wore them on weekends) was a sign of dry eye going into surgery. My surgeon has said he has never had a patient in 15 years (and 10,000 procedures) that ended up with permanent dry eyes from Lasik.

So......I am staying optimistic as I have spoken with a number of people who had friends etc that had Lasik and it took them upwards of 6 months to a year to recover from dryness. I'm hoping to hear from others out there who have had a similar experience and a positive recovery (plenty available on the 'net on negative recoveries!) as this type of information is all that gives me hope at this point.

Look forward to hearing from anyone....

[Aaron77]

First few months after my lasik I spent almost 20 hrs a day in bed it was absolutely horrible and still is but not nearly as bad. The dry eyes have improved as I have given it time now punctal plugs, and use restasis, autologous serum drops, alergy drops, omega 3's - the eyes have been doing pretty lousy the last few days though, I think it may be because I have'nt been using doxy for over a week - I think the doxy made a big difference for me and I need to get back on it. Good that your doc put you on restasis and plugged you right away, it took me well over half a year to find one that would do this.

[Sammy B.]

Thomps,

Welcome to the board. I welcome a glass of red wine with open arms so I cannot speak to that directly but....

I had mild dry eye after LASIK but it got worse about a year and a half into it when my stress level skyrocketed. I wasn't sleeping and I was extremely stressed out. Dying mother in law, dying cat, work problems, you name it I was experiencing it. Once I got my stress levels under control and was sleeping again, the eyes improved.

I finally went and got lower dissolvable plugs a while back and they seem to help. I will be starting Restasis soon...I think. It burns but my trustworthy doctor recommended it so I think I will give it a whirl.

Something else that helped me was getting readers for the computer, as I am mildly hyperopic now and have a touch of an astigmatism (correctable). I was getting headaches which I thought were dry-eye related but they were from eye strain! So that was another big discovery for me.

My advice to you: Try to give yourself a bit more time before you go into full-on freak-out mode, OK? You are WAAAAAY early on in the healing process and you shouldn't be scared out of your wits at this point. I would say most if not all of the post-LASIK'ers on this board have found relief and most importantly, arrived at a place of comfort and ease. You will too, it just takes time. There is a mental game at play right now and you need to stay on top of that mental game and not let "it" win.

Rose

[thomps1]

Thanks for your encouragement. I agree that for me right now it is a mental game...I have a great wife and 2 beautiful little girls and feeling like this isn't what I signed up for when I went with lasik....will have to be patient and let the healing process do its thing. I've been told it can take at least 6 months to a year (funny, I don't remember reading that in their brochure)

[Lucy]

Thomps, you'll probably do just fine and in a few months this will be a memory. I think your doc out and out lied to you, if only by omission. Lucy

[thomps1]

Thanks for the encouragement, I really hope this will be a distant memory by end of the year. I've read throughout this site that it eventually does get better and am optimistic!

[tombuilder]

lasik dry eye....

So sorry to hear about your difficulties...I am going on 3 years post-LASIK and have seen a lot of improvement as I've unraveled the mysteries of dry eye. I'm confident you will too, and would urge you to find a good OD other than the LASIK surgeon.

Also, keep a close check on those plugs, which were exascerbating my condition as I healed from the surgery. The moment tears start spilling out of your eyes don't be afraid to get them out. Good Luck...

[Margaret]

Post Lasik - One Month

Hi there! I just had Lasik done a month ago and I too have young children, so the idea of having severe dry eye is very depressing to me too! My only advice as a novice is to find a good dry eye doctor that also has done Lasik so they have expert knowledge in both areas to draw upon (but not your surgeon). I went to see a dr. that has not done Lasik and they gave me info that really wasn't accurate. I found a great dry eye dr. through this site in Washington State. He's been incredibly helpful and just having him reduces my stress. A good dry eye dr. can tell you exactly what part of your eye isn't working right now and what the odds are of that improving. I will say I described my dry eye as severe in one eye and moderate in the other. I felt no difference at all, no improvement to speak of for essentially a month. One day I woke up and there was suddenly some sort of improvement. That was about a week ago. I haven't felt any more improvement (was sort of thinking it would get better and better every day), but I've read about other stories where they had similar experiences of sudden improvements then a couple of weeks of setbacks and then more improvement, etc. and then eventually they look back on months past and say that they are in a much better place. I can't really live the complete life I had before and I still think about my eyes every day but I'm hopeful that by Christmas this year we will be able to look back and say we're better! Good luck and I have found this site to be a wonderful, supportive place.

Margaret

[lasikdryeye04]

I never have dry eyes before lasik.
I had lasik 6 years ago and had dry eyes right after the surgery. It lasted for 1 full year after lasik.
I did not know how my eyes were recovered from dry eyes last time.
Unfortunately, I am having dry eyes again for the second time. It started 6 months ago.

[Aaron77]

Also, keep a close check on those plugs, which were exascerbating my condition as I healed from the surgery. The moment tears start spilling out of your eyes don't be afraid to get them out. Good Luck...

What was the issue with your plugs? I'm thinking I need to get mine out to but I'm just to scared that my eyes will go back to the way they were before.

[thomps1]

Dry eye specialist in Toronto area?

Hi,

Wondering if aonyone has had any success with a dry eye doctor in southern Ontario, Canada, in particular Toronto?

Thanks in advance!

thomps1

[Raginator]

I had Lasik back in August 2006 (almost 4 years ago).

The first 6 weeks were awful!
I recovered quite a bit during the first 9 to 12 months.

I still have it, but it's not as bad as it used to be.

It's now a chronic "irritation" that flares up from day to day.
And I seldom use drops or anything nowadays.

Find a good doctor.
Good luck.