redness

[radiohead1983]

Before my dry eye problem i had the clearest eyes around. I noticed however that i have some redness in my eyes that seem permanent. I think this because it does not go away with eye drops or sleep as opposed to some of the other redness i have. It also looks like it has a different texture and its darker(redder). My doctor said it was part of my anatomy. Stupid answer since i developed it in the last 2 months. What could have caused it? i am concerned because it is becoming more noticeable around the white of my eye

[Rebecca Petris]

Hi there and welcome to Dry Eye Talk!

You posted in another thread:

Hello there everyone. I am new to this web site and am glad i found it. I have had a rough time with my dry eyes as well they started late last year. I never quite undestood why i had chronic dry eye since i was only 21. My doctors all seem shocked when they find out my age. I didnt know there were others so young with this illness. I know its hard and no one understands. I'm glad to be speaking to people who understand for the first time.

Yes, there are several other young people here with dry eye. - Do you have any specific diagnosis? Any comments from your doctor about test results, etc? - And, I almost hate to ask it but this wouldn't by any chance be related to use of Accutaine, would it?

[radiohead1983]

the only diagnosis i have received is dry eye syndrome and blepharitis. The only thing that would pop into my mind is the extensive time i spent in front of my computer(I was taking my research methods classs) while my chronic dry eye was developing. I did not know that it was possible to have chronic dry eye (my ignorance) im thinking that maybe that period of no treatment caused it but not so sure since it has continued to grow since i started treatment also.

[Delilah]

Welcome to the site

Hello Im Delilah and welcome to the site, you can see many of my posts on here. I have many eye problems I won't even go into right now, but I will try and give you some advice on your red eye problems. If it just started it could be a number of things, first what medications are you on and any new ones? If you do take medications can they cause dry skin or dry eye? Any new pets or foods, perfumes or laundry detergents? Even if you've used the same soaps you can develop an allergic reaction, its weird but it happens.

Any new pillows or bedding? Feathers are huge factor to sinus trouble and dry red scratchy eyes in many people, including myself The biggest most important thing Im going to ask you is if you smoke? Do you live in a home of smokers? Are you around smokers? I have been smoke free for 2 months now, I smoked for 10 years!!! Im only 30 years old but during these 2 months I've noticed a huge change in my dry eyes, including the redness that has dissapated. If your in front of the computer all the time try having a humidifier by your side and in your room at night when you sleep. Dont forget to take breaks from the computer and blink!!! The more humidity the better and if you live in a dry state like I do it can get progress so humidifiers are of need

I wouldn't advise Visine just try some preservative free eye drops, just to soothe and wash out your eyes, Visine can make your eyes worse, you'll find that many on here are not fond of Visine lol, especially me, I hope some of this has helped you, don't forget to try to do warm compresses with a hot wash cloth, get a wash cloth, run it under hot water, hot as you can take it but not to burn and cover your eyes with it, do this as many times as you need to throughout the day to get the natural oils flowing in your eyes and you'll feel a lot better. Again welcome to the Dryeyezone and take care. Ciao D

[mef]

welcome

Hi there,

I too am a new member and have been diagnosed with dry eye and blepharitis too! I also work on the computer a lot, so we have a lot in common... This site has been extremely helpful and informative for me and I hope it will be for you too!

[indrep]

Gald to see y'all on here!

Studies show that people who use computers for work or for extended times do not blink often enough, by about half. This causes dehydration of your tear film which leads to the increasing osmolarity of your tear film which is the beginning of a very bad road to be on. When woriking on the computer try this trick, every 10-15 seconds at least, close your eyes and count to three, open and then close and count to three do this about five or six times. You should notice a little moisture on the eyes. And just try to blink more often when sitting at the computer.

A good artifical tear helps, punctal occlussion can be beneficial especially early on in the disease as it can help decrease the osmolarity of your tears. The blepharitis needs to be addressed with twice daily cleaning of your lid margins.

I hope this helps and you can relief soon.

[neil0502]

The other thing I always think about --though I haven't personally tried it--is whether people could, practically, put a humidifier right by the workstation.

As you and I have each posted--that relationship between humidity and tear evaporation is serious. If people work in office buildings with high heat and air-conditioning, it's likely to be very dry. I would think that raising the humidity (to the extent that the I.T. guys don't shoot you ) would probably help....

[SusieD]

Im working in a warm, dry hospital - suicide??

Seriously though - what jobs are dry eye friendly, I mean I know if I give this up I would have to go back to computer work as Im not trained for anything else and it would literally murder my eyes - so its not even an option for me.

[indrep]

As many of you know my wife has super severe dry eyes. Now with age and lipitor I am fast learning the discomfort. I use discomfort because my situation is very mild compared to many. This past week I had to spend five days in a car in Florida, AC running wide open. I have a pair of Cacoon(sp?) wrap around sunglasses that I use for fly fishing and they happened to be in my travel bag last week. What a difference they made in the car on the 2-5 days. I have now acquired my wife a pair of the Panoptix sunglasses to wear in the car.

The reason for the above story is there is a company, EagleVision, or at least there used to be, that made clear preformed silicone sheets that could be used with your regular spectacles and really were hardly noticeable. I'm wondering if any of you have tried these in your daily routines?

[Rebecca Petris]

there is a company, EagleVision, or at least there used to be, that made clear preformed silicone sheets that could be used with your regular spectacles and really were hardly noticeable

THANK you - I saw that product once when someone at a Sjogrens support group meeting was wearing it and haven't been able to figure out who sells them! It's tucked away on the Eaglevision site, here. What a great idea. "Regular Moist Eye Moisture Panel".

Re blink rate when using a computer: Please click here to get a blinker - one way of reminding yourself to blink more frequently.

[sarahj3j]

wacky, or not?

This may sound wacky, but I saw it on a web site and tried it. It is very soothing to the eyes. Put 1/2 teaspoon baking soda in a cup of sterile water (I like it cool) and dip lint free pads or cloths in it and put them on your eyes for 5-10 minutes. I also then use it to wipe the eyelid (for blepharitis). It isn't a long term solution, but feels really good.