Seeing makes me sick. Still.

[chloebear]

Yup. 2 antihistamines (Allegra & Hydroxyzine) and Singulair, and two inhalers twice daily for asthma related to my allergies, and I get 3 allergy shots per week. I am allergic to everything I was tested for except foods. So, cats, dogs, horses, cockroaches, feathers, dust, mold, hay, grass... can't remember them all. I'm hoping once I reach a maintenance level of my allergy shots that I will begin to discontinue some medications. However, I had a couple systemic allergic reactions to my shots last year so the dosage was not increased for quite a while. It is just now finally increasing again at a very slow rate.

[littlemermaid]

Gosh that's hard - are you still happy with the eyedrops you're using? any chance you're sensitive to ingredients?

[chloebear]

I'm not particularly happy with my eye drops. I really don't feel much of a difference, but I continue to use them anyways. They kind of feel like a waste of time but don't provide much relief.

[littlemermaid]

Do you need all those meds? I'm wondering how much allergy there is during the winter, and wondering if the docs are blitzing for everything without monitoring. Important to keep the eye surface good with lubricants and treat inflammation but beyond that we've done better on reducing interventions and allergens. We are really careful which eyedrops cause further changes and problems but that's a bit of a dark art.

[chloebear]

I'm not sure I need all of them, but my allergies are better now than they ever have been in my entire life. I think the allergist is hesitant to take me off medications until I hit a higher maintenance level in the allergen immunotherapy because I've experienced anaphylaxis from my shots a few times. My allergies have always been year round, so even if some allergens are less present in the winter, there are enough other ones that I've always needed to maintain my meds. I have a feeling the anithistamines may be a big part of the dry eyes, but unfortunately they are also what keep me breathing...

[chloebear]

I'm oddly excited right now. Just got a call from my ENT's office to inform me of the results of some blood work I had done a while ago. I was told that my t4 level should be below 10.9, but mine was 14.8. In the 3 other thyroid tests I've had done, one came back slightly low (not sure if that was the t4 or something else?) and the others were normal. I'm afraid to get too hopeful, but maybe we are finally getting somewhere. I'm wondering if maybe Thyroid Eye Disease is a possibility?

[Lucy]

@Little Mermaid.........Surprised (and glad) to see you refer someone to U of Mich Kellogg Eye Clinic. I live a couple of hours away and have been there a few times. Actually U of M Rheumatology Dept diagnosed my Sjogrens when a local doc said there was nothing wrong with me. The ophth clinic was unable to help my botched Lasik, but they are a good resource. Lucy

[chloebear]

Just recently got my lab results back from my thyroid testing (round 5) and everything was normal. :\
For now it looks like I am going to be purchasing some contacts that I don't really like, but they don't suck as bad as some of the others so they are the "winner." Working on getting my lenses changed in my glasses to see if a different prescription would help, but I'm not that hopeful. I'm not feeling very optimistic about anything.

[Rowanberry]

Hi, sorry you are having so many problems.

Just a few thoughts. You can get migraine that includes eye problems, I wonder if anyone has considered that.

Nausea is a strange thing; your body learns to associate it with certain things (Chemotherapy patients have been known to throw up if they meet their nurse in the supermarket!). An anti nausea drug like prochloperazine (stemetil) may help the symptom even if you never find the cause. It could break the cycle for you or at least give some relief. Vision is strongly related to balance so if your eyes aren't seeing properly, in effect, you will have constant travel sickness.

My eyes are soothed by wearing blu blocker sunglasses I was advised to get to help with migraines. A light tint can also help.

I hope you can get help for even one of your problems, it sounds as if they are all interacting.

R.

[LaDiva]

Hi chloebear,
I am on a hormone witch hunt these days, and wondering if you have had your levels checked. Too much estrogen can elevate your t4 and can generally wreak havoc with your entire system causing dry eye among a number of other things. If there is too much estrogen, your liver can have a rough time processing and eliminating it, which tampers with just about everything else in your system. Even if you aren't taking supplements, there are xenoestrogens bombarding us in disguise! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenoestrogen

Good luck to you. Hope you find relief soon!

I'm oddly excited right now. Just got a call from my ENT's office to inform me of the results of some blood work I had done a while ago. I was told that my t4 level should be below 10.9, but mine was 14.8. In the 3 other thyroid tests I've had done, one came back slightly low (not sure if that was the t4 or something else?) and the others were normal. I'm afraid to get too hopeful, but maybe we are finally getting somewhere. I'm wondering if maybe Thyroid Eye Disease is a possibility?

[chloebear]

Interesting. I don't believe have had my hormones checked. I have had a lot of lab work done, but as far as I know they haven't checked that. I will do some research. Could birth control play a role in that? Hmm... something I hadn't considered, thanks.

I got a new prescription in my glasses and still am not enjoying them. They make my eyes ache. It feels like my eyes are balloons that have too much air in them and they are going to burst. I also can't see nearly as well with this prescription as I can with my contacts. It is really awkward when someone in the distance sees you and comes to greet you, but you don't recognize them until they get closer and come into focus. Ugh.

I'm going back to my optometrist this week to look at my glasses again. I'm not really sure what they think will help. I've tried several different things already and haven't had any success.

[chloebear]

So here's the latest:

Found out the lenses in my glasses are NOT Trivex like my optometrist ordered- there was a mistake in the lab. Working on getting this fixed now to see if that helps with the discomfort of wearing glasses.

Talked with my eye doctor about my fluctuating thyroid levels and mentioned the possibility of hormones playing a role. Saw my PCP who recommended I discontinue my birth control pill to see if that helps at all. Having my thyroid levels tested in 6 weeks. She is also referring me to a neuro-ophthalmologist and endocrinologist.

Anyone have experience with thyroid-related dry eye? Possibly related to birth control?

[LisaC]

Hi,

I have no input on the thyroid portion... but... looking back at my records, my doctor noticed that there was one year (i think 2009) where my corneas were very healthy looking with no dry spots. The only thing I could think of was that was the one year I was not on birth control. I recently got off of it again a month ago since being on again in 2010. I hope in time I'll get more relief. I do not plan on going back on it anymore, since I'm hoping to be pregnant in a year or so. (although, I'm so scared of pregnancy dry eye on top of my current dry eye..)

Lisa

[chloebear]

Thanks to everyone for all the input.

I recently had my glasses lenses changed to Trivex (for real this time) but they are still very uncomfortable. Additionally, my contacts are making my eyes feel so weird. Fluorescent lights seem to really bother me, to the point that I feel light-headed and slightly dizzy, especially if I stand up. I feel like I'm losing my balance. Sometimes it feels like I would feel so much better if I just walked around blindfolded so I didn't have to see.

I saw an endocrinologist and he didn't find any sign of Hashimoto's. Ran some more blood tests to check for... I don't even know what anymore. Not feeling particularly hopeful. I have an appointment scheduled with a neuro-ophthalmologist, but they couldn't get me in until May... :\

I don't know if it's really worth going back to my optometrist to fix my glasses or anything else at this point. Not sure there is really anything else she can do for me. I've been off my birth control for a couple weeks and so far haven't really noticed much of a difference.

Ssssiiigghhh...

[chloebear]

Rebecca, were you able to get any feedback from anyone?