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Hi everyone!
My name is Ashley. I am 27 years old and I live in Massachusetts. I have been battling dry eye problems for about a year.
July 2014, I was due for my regular contact evaluation. The optometrist I typically see was not available that day, so I met with someone new. Everything went well. The doctor suggested I try a new brand of contacts that would provide more oxygen flow. I had been using ProClear Cooper Vision for 10+ years, but I decided to give it a try. I noticed as the months went on, my eyes would become strangely red and my left eyelid was swollen. I met with an ophthalmologist who had no idea what the problem was. I explained that I was on a new brand of contact lenses, so he ruled it as an allergic reaction and suggested I go back on ProClear after I used steroid drops. I did as instructed, however the problems continued to progress. Finally, I met with my regular optometrist in October 2014. She said it sounded like I developed dry eye. She also suggested I use Restasis drops and then go back to my contacts after I finished another week of steroid drops. I had one more incident in December, but from January to May I did not experience any issues.
I noticed by June, my eyes looked….well, swollen. They weren’t completely red, but I could tell they were not healthy. Once again I met with my optometrist and was back on steroid drops. I will admit, over the summer I did not fully allow my eyes to heal the way I should have. I maybe wore glasses for a day or two. On September 11th I had taken out my contacts so I could shower. After I showered, I went out for a few hours, returned home and took my contacts out. I was exhausted and did not put the Restasis drops in, and unfortunately I did not think it would be a big deal. When I woke up the next morning, my right eye was entirely red. Not just red like conjunctivitis, it was an alarming red, as if my eye were bleeding. I did not experience any pain aside from mild discomfort and blurred vision.
I was accepted as an emergency patient at my eye doctor’s office. The doctor told me this would happen for the rest of my life and I should never wear contacts again. I held back tears and agreed to not wear my contacts for three weeks. I treated the problem with steroid drops for ten days (when I first put the drops in, they made my eyelids look more swollen) and for three painful weeks I only wore my glasses. I had horrible migraines, poor vision and struggled with driving home at night. When I met with my optometrist last Tuesday, I asked her if she could look at my eyes because they still felt red. She looked under a microscope and said they were indeed red. I asked if this was normal, especially considering I was back on Restasis. She said “Yes”. My vision decreased significantly. I went from -5.75 in contacts to -6.50. She switched me from ProClear to Acuvue One-A-day Moist. Almost instantaneously, my eyes rejected the contacts. I tried to wear them on Wednesday, but my eyes were completely blood shot. I had a pain in my left eye that I can only describe as "a headache in my eye lid".
Prior to the Acuvue contacts attempt, my eyes just looked irritated. Even though I only tried to wear the contacts for 2 days, the sensation under my left eye lid remained. It felt heavy, sometimes painful. In August I was in a wedding party. After my makeup was applied, my eyes became very little and began to water intensely. Again, they weren't red, but looked "inflamed". I didn't realize it at the time, but my eye lids were definitely swollen. I just didn't have the pain/weight sensation until the contact incident last week.
I wrote that a few weeks ago, and my eyes are no longer in pain, but still slightly red. I have an appointment at Korb & Associates on the 16th. Please send positive energy my way if you can. Thank you!
My name is Ashley. I am 27 years old and I live in Massachusetts. I have been battling dry eye problems for about a year.
July 2014, I was due for my regular contact evaluation. The optometrist I typically see was not available that day, so I met with someone new. Everything went well. The doctor suggested I try a new brand of contacts that would provide more oxygen flow. I had been using ProClear Cooper Vision for 10+ years, but I decided to give it a try. I noticed as the months went on, my eyes would become strangely red and my left eyelid was swollen. I met with an ophthalmologist who had no idea what the problem was. I explained that I was on a new brand of contact lenses, so he ruled it as an allergic reaction and suggested I go back on ProClear after I used steroid drops. I did as instructed, however the problems continued to progress. Finally, I met with my regular optometrist in October 2014. She said it sounded like I developed dry eye. She also suggested I use Restasis drops and then go back to my contacts after I finished another week of steroid drops. I had one more incident in December, but from January to May I did not experience any issues.
I noticed by June, my eyes looked….well, swollen. They weren’t completely red, but I could tell they were not healthy. Once again I met with my optometrist and was back on steroid drops. I will admit, over the summer I did not fully allow my eyes to heal the way I should have. I maybe wore glasses for a day or two. On September 11th I had taken out my contacts so I could shower. After I showered, I went out for a few hours, returned home and took my contacts out. I was exhausted and did not put the Restasis drops in, and unfortunately I did not think it would be a big deal. When I woke up the next morning, my right eye was entirely red. Not just red like conjunctivitis, it was an alarming red, as if my eye were bleeding. I did not experience any pain aside from mild discomfort and blurred vision.
I was accepted as an emergency patient at my eye doctor’s office. The doctor told me this would happen for the rest of my life and I should never wear contacts again. I held back tears and agreed to not wear my contacts for three weeks. I treated the problem with steroid drops for ten days (when I first put the drops in, they made my eyelids look more swollen) and for three painful weeks I only wore my glasses. I had horrible migraines, poor vision and struggled with driving home at night. When I met with my optometrist last Tuesday, I asked her if she could look at my eyes because they still felt red. She looked under a microscope and said they were indeed red. I asked if this was normal, especially considering I was back on Restasis. She said “Yes”. My vision decreased significantly. I went from -5.75 in contacts to -6.50. She switched me from ProClear to Acuvue One-A-day Moist. Almost instantaneously, my eyes rejected the contacts. I tried to wear them on Wednesday, but my eyes were completely blood shot. I had a pain in my left eye that I can only describe as "a headache in my eye lid".
Prior to the Acuvue contacts attempt, my eyes just looked irritated. Even though I only tried to wear the contacts for 2 days, the sensation under my left eye lid remained. It felt heavy, sometimes painful. In August I was in a wedding party. After my makeup was applied, my eyes became very little and began to water intensely. Again, they weren't red, but looked "inflamed". I didn't realize it at the time, but my eye lids were definitely swollen. I just didn't have the pain/weight sensation until the contact incident last week.
I wrote that a few weeks ago, and my eyes are no longer in pain, but still slightly red. I have an appointment at Korb & Associates on the 16th. Please send positive energy my way if you can. Thank you!