2 Years 8 months post Lasik. Need encouragement.

[DryEyeNJ]

Are you still using Xiidra and if so, is it working? I have had great results. Restasis, punctual plugs, lipiflow, cauterized tear ducts, fish oil, Freshkote, ....I can go on and on. Nothing has helped me until Xiidra. I get it for $60 as a 3 month supply. Anyone with DES needs to at least try it. I am so grateful to have found relief.

Xiidra does help somewhat. Definitely better than Restasis. Luckily it only costs me $10 a month.

[blefleppard]

Are you still using Xiidra and if so, is it working? I have had great results. Restasis, punctual plugs, lipiflow, cauterized tear ducts, fish oil, Freshkote, ....I can go on and on. Nothing has helped me until Xiidra. I get it for $60 as a 3 month supply. Anyone with DES needs to at least try it. I am so grateful to have found relief.

Is the Xiidra still working for you? It worked incredibly well for me for about 6 months and then abruptly stopped working. The same thing happened with Restasis.

[Guest]

Here's my extremely aggressive approach...I know it's been about a year but hopefully some of this helps you as it did help me A LOT. In order of easiest/least invasive all the way to prescriptions.

Non invasive/non drug:
mosture chamber goggles
blinking exercises (this was HUGE, I'm a partial blinker, you cannot activate the meibomium glands if they don't touch.)
warm compress
avenova spray after compress to remove bacteria and thick oil
wash pillow cases and change daily using small amounts of mild detergent (I used dreft for newborns)
wash blankets and change frequently same as pillow cases.

supplements (all the brands are third party tested and of the highest quality except the multivitamin, but the alive multi doesn't upset my stomach. I avoid anything that upsets my stomach because that's just causing more inflammation.):
10g Nordic naturals ultimate omega liquid
vital nutrients black currant seed oil 3 pills a day
hydroeye 2 pills a day
alive men's multivitamin 3 a day
vital nutrients NAC 1200mg a day
vital nutrients lipoid acid 1 tab
vital nutrients acetyl l carnitine 1 tab

drops/drugs:
thera tears PF as needed
alrex (.2% lotopredanol) 2 drops per day. very safe steroid, no pressure changes in my eyes after a month of use. It was designed for long term use in people with allergies.
Restasis 2 drops per day (I prefer restasis to xiidra, I had too many negative side effects on xiidra, just my personal results)
autologous serum drops (having mine made on the 10th so I haven't tried them yet but again, trying to be aggressive and also safe)
hormone replacement therapy, testosterone cypionate 100mg a week (this also, I have not started yet, however there's a huge connection between low androgens and dry eye. Plus, a lot of my issues started when I stopped taking bodybuilding drugs. Went in and got my hormones tested, free test was 60 and 72 was the bottom of the reference range, so my testosterone is tanked, estrogen was 40 and it should be around 30 max. So I have a feeling in a few weeks I'll feel like a million bucks overall not just my eyes.)

Diet:
i try to eat no refined sugar but that's near impossible so I limit it to maybe a brownie or a piece of cake twice a week max. If I felt it was really bothering me I wouldn't even eat that.

My diet is mainly ketogenic...I eat tons of protein and fat and limit all carbs. This reduces inflammation a ton but is very hard to follow. That's why I have the occasional cheat meal with the wife once or twice a week and eat those sweets

This regimen took me from suicidal in oct-dec of 2017 to now having a pretty normal life...and I still haven't fixed my hormones or started the serum drops so I'm actually excited about the future. I couldn't say that a few months ago...a few months ago I was thinking of ways to kill myself.

I saw people type, "it gets better, just hang in there and keep working at it" and I thought, no way will I ever be right again. Yet here I stand, hopeful and feeling pretty damn good. How long this will last, who knows, I know people regress. But I'm doing my best to not allow that to happen and if it does...I have to remain positive.

i genuinely hope this post helps you in some way!

much love!