First post - had dry eyes for 20 years

[Rachel_UK]

Just thought it was about time I made my first post and said hello. I have used this site periodically for a long time and it has helped enormously in finding out that I am not alone with this condition.

I was diagnosed with the simple statement of "dry eyes" when I was in my early 20s (currently in my late 30s) and prescribed Sno tears which did nothing but irritate. Over the years like most people, I have tried most treatments but it was not until I had an appointment with a really good optometrist that I found out that I was specifically suffering with MGD.

The warm compresses (using a rice bag) and lid scrubs have brought about much comfort. Eye drops are still problematic for me with most irritating, whether preserved or not. I find now that I often prefer to manage without using drops although I am constantly searching to find something that will provide that additional comfort that would make my eyes feel and look normal (they are always red to some degree).

I am currently trying the single dose units of Blink tears that I found on the shelves of Tescos supermarket. Only been trying them for a few days but they may be helping a bit - will have to wait and see.

[Rich S.]

Hi Rachel.

We all know what your going through, I done it all as well and like you gave up on the drops for years always made matters worse( dry eye over 40yrs) but last weekend i was so desperate after stringing at least a fortnight plus of very poor bad stinging days 24/7 that i looked in the good ole drop drawer which of course should have been thrown away by now!!

But i found 20 unused vials of in date Clinitas Soothe which i had no luck when i last used them a year or so ago because at the same time i purchased Clinitas ultra and another Clinitas product and i used all 3 in a day!

So last weekend i gave just the Clinatas Soothe a go and to be honest ive put together a goodish 4 or 5 days and in fact one day there my eyes even looked normal and that does not happen many times!!

I will try anything ,well i have done but with dry eye it is certainly unpredictable and always comes back to bite!

Best of luck Rachel your in good hands on this forum.

Rich.

[liz56]

Hi, Rachel, and welcome.

Have you tried using any kind of sleep mask at night? It seems that nighttime is a crucial time for the eyes. Sleeping must do something or a lot of things that determine how we feel the next day. I say that, because the eyes seem to dry more at night but also swell on the inside and fill with fluid, as do other tissues in the body. It would be interesting to see a study to what really happens. However, a lot of people here find some degree of relief, as you probably know, having read the boards over time, with a sleeping mask, gel at night, or warm compresses.

And, Rich, I'm really happy to hear that things are improving for you!

--Liz

[Rachel_UK]

Thank you for the responses. I have to admit, I have not tried Clinitas Soothe - just had a quick search in google and it states it contains sodium hyaluronate which is in the current Blink drops I have been trying which do at the moment feel ok. I can see the Clinitas drops have a higher concentration of sodium hyaluronate so I might give them a try!

I often wear a regular sleep mask although I do find that my eyes are normally ok when I wake, just get worse throughout the day.

Thanks again for your comments.