Hey everyone

[Adam22]

Hey everyone,

Well, been looking at this forum for awhile but finally decided to post. I am a 22 year old male without any real diseases except the dreadful dry eye. I had no dry eye symptoms at all until May of this year. It started with not being able to wear contacts so I just stopped wearing them and wore glasses for awhile. My eyes were getting redder so I went to an optometrist and was put on lotemax because she said my eyes looked bad in conjunction with now for the first time feeling dry eye symptoms. The lotemax made my eyes feel normal again but soon after it came back.

Annoyed I went to an opthamologist who told me to use artificial tears when needed and fish oil everyday and he promised me I would feel better. Taking his advice I did what he told me to do and my eyes got worse and ended up so bad I went to the emergency room. Went to see him again and he assumed I tried wearing my contacts again which I didn't. He then was assuming and saying that I should be feeling better. I told him no I am not feeling any better at all. He finally does a schirmer test and he finally sees how big of a problem it is. My left eye produces half of what normal people do and my right eye produces almost nothing. I don't think it even registered on the test...

He put a punctual plug in my lower eyelid and I am seeing him again tomorrow, it's been a few weeks and both my eyes have been feeling better. I no longer wake up with bloodshot painful eyes and blurry vision. I wasn't even having to use artificial tears until very late at night until one night I didn't get that much sleep and was up early and my eyes felt awful later that day and it went on to today.

What I don't understand is how a 22 year old male with no eye problems, no eye infections ever in my life gets dry eye out of nowhere and to this extremity. I wasn't the best contact lens wearer but i almost never wore them to bed, I always took them out except maybe once in a month where I spent the night somewhere i didn't plan.

A few things that make me curious is the right side of my face is almost always swollen, it's not noticeable but I can definitely feel it, my right nostril while i can breath through it feels like there is a build up inside of it, and if I attempt to cry it just swells up even more.

I do have bad summertime allergies, this summer was really bad to the point sometimes i sneezed blood but I didn't go to a doctor because that just happens to me.

Does anyone know if the tears could be blocked from going into your eye and being filtered out somehow? The uncomfortable feeling i get is far back in the upper eyelid not all the way over to the nose and if i massage that part of my eye i do feel moisture coming from it. So I'm wondering if my eye is trying to moisture itself but is being blocked and the tears are being filtered through my nasal passage which would explain the clogged nostril. I know there are no doctors here but if I've learned anything its that dry eye people are well educated with the disease and their eyes and might have a few theories.

I'm hoping I can overcome this because as my doctor said I am in the prime of my life and this disease is ruining it... I'm afraid to go to see Harry Potter on friday because I will be dousing my eyes with artificial tears and when my dry eye is at its worse I become so irritable I just want to be left alone. Suicide has crossed my mind at the worse points trying to think how can I live like this? How can I take a girl out on a date if I don't know how my eyes are going to feel?

I am getting better at accepting it but days like today set me back because it's almost like times of feeling better make it harder for you to accept when you go back to the bad days.

[Súil Eile]

Hi Adam,

When things get bad, this is a great place to turn to .

Like you, I started getting dry eyes at about 22. I also wore contacts but took pretty good care of my eyes. My first symptoms were that my contacts were a little uncomfortable to wear, so I wore them less and less until I stopped completely because my eyes were so dry. I had no previous eye problems.

What I have learnt over the past 5 years is that a lot of things can affect you eyes. So if you are having other problems - particularly around your face - you need to get it looked at by someone with experience in that area.

Having to put drops in, particularly in public places, can be a lot to deal with. But if someone is put off going on a date with you because you have to use eye drops, then they aren't worth the hassle! I met my boyfriend after I started using drops. I know that some days I must have been a horrible person to be around because I was so miserable. But he stood by me...so I know he's the kind of person that will always be there for me and isn't fazed by the things life throws at us. If someone is the right person for you, red eyes and drops will mean nothing to them.

I sometimes make sacrifices; such as going to a particular friend's house who has the heating set too high, or going to the cinema. I know my eyes will suffer for a while, but I'm stubborn and don't want them to stop me doing the things I want. Preparation is key...lots of gel and drops before, during, and after!

[Adam22]

Thank you for the response. It really means a lot hearing and reading peoples struggles, the only people I know with dry eye are older women so as a 22 year old male I'm left with how the heck? No lasik or ever having an eye infection. a sty at most.

I think I'm just shocked because nothing hinted at me leading into this. Ok maybe get a little dry eye but for my right eye to go from fine to producing no tears at all? That doesn't make sense... The night I think did it was I cried on my birthday and after crying my eyes burned and hurt really bad and my buddy said I was basically attacking my eye trying to get the lense out. I figured that might have injured my corneal sensation but I literally cannot cry anymore. My face just swells up.

After seeing my doctor again yesterday he said my right eye that he plugged up actually looked like a "normal" eye. My left eye looked a little dry but we just left it at that because I'm not screwing around with plugs and Restasis unless I can't handle it. Nights are getting easier, I find not using any gel's and just putting a drop of systane preserve free in both eyes keeps me fine.

So I've definitely been getting better, I use to wake up with blood shot eyes and blurry vision for 20 minutes but now just a little blurry vision and only maybe 1 bad day a week. It's just a hard thing to grasp because it doesn't make sense.

Oh I definitely am not pushing out dating because of my eyes it's not really the other person but more myself. I get very irritable on a bad day so I don't know. It just sucks because I'm honestly scared of flying tuesday to visit my brother that I haven't seen in a year because I heard plane's and dry eyes are bad experiences.

Thanks again for the response, nice to know people are out there.

[Súil Eile]

Planes can be tricky! When I fly, I wear a pair of wrap around sunglasses. It keeps out the air conditioning and that horrible artificial light. I think if you prepare yourself you should be fine on the plane. Remember to drink lots of water before and during the flight; get a decent night's sleep the night before; and put in eye drops regularly. If you can turn off the air conditioning over your seat it makes a big difference. I always turn off mine, and those on either side of me before I sit down. If the other passengers want them on, they can turn them on. But most people wouldn't notice if there was air blowing in their face or not. Closing your eyes and listening to music might be more comfortable than trying to read a book etc - it's all about protecting your eyes as much as possible.

I hope you have a great time with your brother