New; trying to decide whether to manage dry eye with contacts or glasses...HELP!?!

[spmcc]

RE: contacts

**This may sound harsh - I don't mean it to be - but it will get my point across.**

This discussion reminds me of a situation when someone is diagnosed with lung cancer, but doesn't want to quit smoking. The person knows the answer to their question of whether they should continue smoking or not, but is looking for some kind of validation/approval to continue.

Having said that, I admit that I have never worn contacts. Two years ago, I went through the process and bought scleral lenses. But they weren't for me.

Even though they didn't work for me, maybe you should consider them. There are plenty of people here on DEZ who could tell you about how they love their scleral lenses and how they help with dry eye.

Good luck with everything,
Sheila

[jchcollins]

This discussion reminds me of a situation when someone is diagnosed with lung cancer, but doesn't want to quit smoking.

I don't disagree, Shelia. If that were the case, then I'm somebody who basically gave up cigarettes 2 years ago who is having a sudden strong urge to have them just during the day.

I said I was giving up contacts for good in January 2010. For the most part I have. I would agree that based on my current symptoms and history with them, they really need to go.

I have read a little bit about schleral lenses and would not be oppposed to trying them after discussing with my doctor. Just haven't had a chance to get that far down the road yet.

Thanks for your advice!

[littlemermaid]

Just in case, if anyone has agony on removing contact lenses, may be a medical emergency needing control with steroid. Got corneal hypoxia from overwear on removing earlier-generation contacts, agony, resulted in opacity in superior limbus. Less likely to get hypoxia these days with modern lenses but worse inflammation pain on removing them has to be worrying. We know about: reduced corneal sensation, lessens tear prompt, surface osmolarity, meibomian gland dropout (mine are capped on the uppers now), decreased immune response, increased bacterial bonding to eye surface, increased risk of difficult to treat microbial keratitis. Optoms who promote contacts to dry eye patients are worrying; I'd be listening to ophthalmologists.

[Rebecca Petris]

Retaining functional vision/comfort sufficient to be able to focus at work is important and I totally get that (having spent some years without either). I agree with Calli that there comes a point when pain trumps everything - including aesthetics of moisture chambers - and that tolerance point is different for every one of us. It's easier for all of us to look back with the wisdom we've acquired over the years but when one's in the earlier part of the struggle it's hard to give up those little double-edged swords like contacts or vasoconstrictors that help us get through today but might ultimately contribute to crippling us further. We just want to help you avoid having to look back with more regrets about the choices along the way

[tearless2]

Have you had any blood testing to see if there is a thyroid, hormone, other reason for your dry eye?

[jchcollins]

Well, today at work was better. Put my contacts in this morning determined not to let pain win the day. About 10 am was noticing that my eyes still felt pretty rotten and I could tell they were dry under the contacts. So took the lenses out and got my glasses out of my bag (I carry everything with me everywhere anymore these days). I managed to get through the day without the same level of pain I had for awhile last week. Went out at lunch and got some preservative-free saline to use as a rinse with the drops I had at work (B&L Soothe). Found the saline pretty soothing. I could tell a while after using it that my eyes were getting dry again, but no burning or stinging was associated with it. Also made the B&L drops (which I was using about every hour to hour and a half instead of every 10 minutes) more tolerable. Then met my family out for dinner tonight and actually noticed that my eyes felt pretty good for more than an hour. Granted, I was not staring at the computer, but I'll take what I can get.

I guess trial and error - every day is different!

[jchcollins]

Have you had any blood testing to see if there is a thyroid, hormone, other reason for your dry eye?

I have not. I come down pretty strongly on the side of the fact that contact lens abuse (24-7 virtually for somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 consecutive years) is to blame. You've got a point though. I will ask the OD about it here in a week or so. I will admit I'm down to trying to consider other options....thanks!

[jchcollins]

Don't forget to look through all the advice on computer use with dry eye. Every little bit helps. There's a wealth of experiences here in the archives. For me, looking down on my screen (not straight or up) makes a big difference as it reduces the exposed area of the eyes, and I have to consciously blink frequently, and I use the f.lux automated background color adjusting program which another member introduced us to.

Good point, I will start researching. I did do two things at work today - one, I moved my monitor (a nice wide angle flat screen) back from where it was sitting on my desk by a foot or more. I can still see it fine due to the size, but wondering if it being further away from my eyes might help with the close-range focus thing. Second I switched one of the hue settings on the monitor from regular to "cool" which muted the colors a bit. Also reduced the brightness, but the image is still sharp. The way my desk is setup, there is not much hope of me trying to "look down" on the monitor (unless I can convince someone to get me a chair that's at least a foot and a half taller...) but will be interested to see if I can tell a difference in the coming days in the other changes I made.

[Adam22]

Strange enough this sounds exactly like my predicament even down to the job field except I'm 23. My dry eye started last year and was horrible....constant pain using drops probably 15 - 20 times a day stuck in glasses all the time. I really do believe time is the most important thing to keep in mind. A year has passed and while I can't wear contacts regularly I can wear them when I go out with friends. The pain has subsided exponentially and I'm down to taking 1 drop of Systane Balance in the morning when I wake up.

I believe my dry eye came from persistent contact wearing as well. I didn't sleep in them but wore contacts every day and did not change them regularly enough. People I met in college didn't even know I wore glasses until recently.

If I can offer any advice it's to accept what has happened and work on coping with it. There is no magical cure but with treatment you can get that "normal" feeling back again. At least that is what has happened to me. I do get flare ups every now and then but for the most part I feel great.

Good luck and hope you get better.

[jchcollins]

Strange enough this sounds exactly like my predicament even down to the job field except I'm 23. My dry eye started last year and was horrible....constant pain using drops probably 15 - 20 times a day stuck in glasses all the time. I really do believe time is the most important thing to keep in mind. A year has passed and while I can't wear contacts regularly I can wear them when I go out with friends. The pain has subsided exponentially and I'm down to taking 1 drop of Systane Balance in the morning when I wake up.

I started on Systane Balance again (had some trial size at some point last year but never stuck with it) probably 2 weeks ago, and my eyes have gotten somewhat better since I first started this thread. Going to the doctor next week and will attempt to find out if I really have MGD or not. I'm guessing I do since the Balance seems to help a lot. I still have to use regular drops like B&L Soothe after the Balance occasionally (especially in the afternoons) but using the Balance has cut down on the frequency, and while my eyes don't feel great all the time, the pain and headaches have come down as well as using the other drops every 10 mins. or so.

I saw where someone said every day with dry eye is different - I would have to agree to that thus far.