Offer of Dr Holly's drops

[stella]

Hi everyone - anyone want Dr holly's drops to try - for free?
Unfortunately i sem to be allergic to the "light" preservative in them
It's a curse being soooo allergic ,so little is open to me to try
Evathey probably wont suit you for same reason
I'll pop them in the post to anyone who wants to give them a go
The pack consists of Dakrina(opened 2 days ago and only 2 doses out of it) Dwelle (unopened)Nutra tears (unopened)
I know pretty well immediately (have a lot of experience) when drops dont suit me - v itchy lids and eyes which burn , so i dont persevere with them
I'm a bit unusual and plenty of people have found these drops brilliant !(See Rojzen's posts)
Am dissapointed but would like to think someone out there - particularly in GB would use them

[eva b]

you knew I would immediately spot this!

So sorry to hear this Stella - I know you're as desperate as me in this regard...

I do recall seeing a comment from Rebecca somewhere (I think on the shopping page which talks about the eyedrops) where she says that sometimes one has to persevere to get over the initial discomfort. May be worth asking a question about it?

What amazes me in all this intolerance issue is that it's the eyelids which cause the problems...not the corneas themselves, at least as far as I can tell...my eyes sometimes don't feel particularly dry, but the lids,both upper and lower are extremely irritated. Do you get the same?

I am tempted by your offer....but....

[Rebecca Petris]

Unfortunately i sem to be allergic to the "light" preservative in them

Stella - I'm just curious - what is it that makes you conclude in these cases that it's the preservative? Some people are allergic or have intolerances to the polymers in lubricants. (there's been some discussion here before about methylcellulose which a few people seemed to react that way to.) For example a sensitivity or allergy to iodine would do it with these drops because of the povidone. Just scratching my head over this because I'd be quicker to suspect the higher concentration ingredients of causing the problem than the preservative if someone has a reaction.

[stella]

Eva Exactly as you say - the lids prickle and itch and i feel like pulling at them all the time when they are bad The eyeballs only burn and become light sensitive + foreign body sensation in your eye if the lids are irritated
I always thought the lids was blepharitis (MGD) - followed by evaporative DE ( though Dr Holly calls it de-wetting or something like that)
to me it is in that order but then i strongly suspect there is an underlying allergy problem causing the blepharitis
I think you and I have very similar problem - although i note you say that it takes a day or so for your allergy to drops to click in
Maybe i am too impatient but i know very quickly after the application as the eyes are so irritated
I might have perservered with Dr Holly's drops if they did not contain preservatives - in this case labelled- edetate disodium and polyquaternium-42
I have had the first ingredient before in drops and they did not agee with me 'so i groaned when i saw that !
I will certainly send them to you if you want to try them
I would far rather do that then have them stuck into my bathroom cabinette with all the other drops i have tried
Send me a pm with your address and i'll pop them in the post
My next quest is to locate a source of PF Zaditen allergy drops
I was sooo pleased to see that Toril from Norway has got them
I researched allergy drops and there seemed no PF ones on the market
It would be just our luck that they dont supply to UK
I intend to phone Novartis who produce them
What drops can and do you use?
I can and do use sparingly celluvisc and minims artificial tears(single units) --Also i would never be without claramist liposomal spray to the closed lids It suits me very well and i cant count how many times i have been using this over the last couple of weeks(you get it in Tesco)
I'll just stick with those tried and tested till this flareup passes
Have you tried oral Doxycillen ? Worked very well for me last year but i keep it in reserve and try not to abuse it
Meanwhile i never let up on eyelid hygiene at least once a day - at night
Take care
Stella

[Rebecca Petris]

I have had the first ingredient [edetate dissodium]before in drops and they did not agee with me 'so i groaned when i saw that !

Edetate disodium is used as a preservative buffer in lots of drops so an issue with that would certainly rule out many products.

[Annekee]

Zaditen drops

Hi Stella,
I live in the Netherlands and also have problems with allergic eyes/eyelids including blepharitis and MGD. I used last year for several months Zaditen preservative free drops. They were easily available here! As you know, Holland is very close to the UK... Hope you manage to get them!

[stella]

Just saw your post Rebecca - To tell you the truth i really have no scientific evidence that it is preservatives - In fact i hav'nt a clue - ???This i do know - The less i put in 'near or on my eyes the better
As to the ingedients they are all so compicated and varied
I take your point that the more main ingredients are more likely to be the culprit -- so it could well be the polymers in Dr Holly's drops
I would have to say that i can just about tolerate celluvisc - especially when i have a flair -up, immediately on application i get a foriegn body sensation which passes and leaves them comfortable - but it is very viscous
I take it celluvisc does not contain polymers - Leaflet info -- carmellose sodium 1%,sodium chloride, sodium lactate,pottasium chloride ,calcium chloride and purified water
The minims artificial tears which i can use but are virtually ineffective
- info- hydroxyethylcellulose 0.44%and sodium chloride 0.35%
So where does that leave me - I HAVE become paranoid about what i put in on or near my eyes (out of unpleasant experience)so do you think i should persevere with Dr Holly's drops ??I suppose i was doing OK with my old regime and during my 10 weeks of remission(bliss) despite having a mebomian cyst i hardly used celluvisc at all and just minims as a wash at night after lid hygiene
The one consistantly helpful thing i use all the time is claramist - but i sort of dont count it as an eye drop - I can tolerate that very well

[calli66]

Hi Stella,
For me, Dakrina is the LEAST compatible with my tears and type of dry eye. I seem to do OK with Dwelle and NutraTear. So you might consider trying out the other ones before giving up.

Also, the polymer type drops are incompatible with water, saline solution and to a leaser degree, the mellose PF vial drops. So if you're rinsing your eyes or getting any of these things in your eye, wait till they've dissipated before using the Holly products.

I also have trouble with the polymer drops--more than the mellose type formulations. They don't give an initial feel of comfort---rather there is some stinging and foreign body sensation at first. It's only later that I notice that my eyes feel less dry, and that I haven't put drops in for awhile.

Another thing is this: the dryness and overall eye condition goes through changes over time. I have found that certain type drops that I couldn't stand a year ago, don't give me problems now. My tear layer is more stable now and there's less inflammation, I guess.

Calli

[eva b]

Stella,
you and I indeed seem to have similar problems, except I can tolerate even less! I tried minims artificial tears and they gave me a flare up (admittedly last year) and celluvisc was not much better.

I used no drops at all during spring and summer, and my eyes felt pretty good just with the daily compresses, which I do unfailingly, until the heating went on in October, and all the grittiness etc came back.

BUT, it wasn't until I went to the A & E and had a full eye exam, with fluorescein drops and all, that the trouble really started. I haven't put anything (or allowed anyone else to do so either) in my eyes since,and just like you am pretty much paranoid now about trying anything. It seems to take all my effort just about to keep the status quo - and that's not every day.

Rebecca may well be right, it may not be the preservatives aggravating you, I know the cellulose stuff irritates a lot of people. It's all soooooooo confusing

nevertheless, very interesting to swap experiences.

[Rory]

Stella,

I just ordered Dr Holly's drops yesterday!!!!...so you are just too late with your offer for me

I am sure that you know your eyes and what they can tolerate...However can you really dismiss these drops after one go, or are you perhaps as you say being a little over cautious and understandably paranoid about them?

I am also firmly in the camp of putting as little in my eyes as possible...and I am tolerant to just about everything...dont think I have ever reacted badly to any drop ever...and I have tried just about everything.

The reason that I avoid eyedrops as much as possible is that nothing comes close to my own tears....I really only use Refresh soothe and protect (when not wearing protective glasses in aircon/heating) and Refresh contacts (when wearing daily contacts). I only recently discovered Refresh soothe and protect...a simple off the shelf drop in Boots....its actually been the best drop I have had for years.

I am however hoping that one or a combination of Dr Holly's drops can help further.

[stella]

Sorry about that Rory - could have saved you time and money
I'm sure Dr Holly's drops will be fine for you,since you are not allergic
I am v dissapointed but scared to persevere as it can "banjax"(is that an Irish expression i wonder?) my eyes for a week if i persevere with something that irritates, and then i get depressed so i dont want to chance it
I may have to go back on the old oral doxy - which worked for me really well last year ,if things dont improve.
Meanwhile i'd better continue with the tried and tested and ride out this flare- up
I have got a project in mind (I always feel better if i am DOING something)To try to get hold of the non preserved version of the allergy drops - Zaditen -available in Norway and Holland
I have a number for Novartis and will call them

[lisiamc]

Hi Stella,

If you truly don't want the drops, I'd love to try them, and I'd be happy to pay for them. I'm in Northamptonshire.

Lisa

[stella]

Sorry Lisa - someone got in before you with a pm + address - so they are promised

[lisiamc]

No problem!

I hope you find some other lubricants that will work for you.

Lisa

[stella]

Anekee - thanks for telling me about PF Zaditen available in Holland
I phoned Novartis this am - An office in UK and it is available here so i am off to a local pharmacist to make enquiries