Is this a dry patch?

[romeodakins]

My right eye always feels drier than my left eye. After I do the compresses and stuff, my left eye feels refreshed while my right eye still feels a little more drier than my left eye. Do I have a dry patch on my right eye? If so how do I cure it?

[MartyM1985]

Not sure what condition you are dealing with, but one eye can be worse than the other. My left is worse than my right, always (ATD).

[romeodakins]

Not sure what condition you are dealing with, but one eye can be worse than the other. My left is worse than my right, always (ATD).

My right eye also feels like it gets less tears when I yawn.

[MartyM1985]

My right eye also feels like it gets less tears when I yawn.

Same with my left. It's not a dry patch. It's probably/sadly a damaged lacrimal gland. But I'm not a doctor.

Hang in there.

[romeodakins]

Same with my left. It's not a dry patch. It's probably/sadly a damaged lacrimal gland. But I'm not a doctor.

Hang in there.

What does that mean? So my right eye is just worse than my left eye?

[MartyM1985]

What does that mean? So my right eye is just worse than my left eye?

I would think so, but I don't know what the cause of your problem is, so I can't even guess with any certainty.


I'm totally guessing here...

When we cry or yawn, we emit REFLEX TEARS. These tears are different than our normal everyday tears... those are called BASAL TEARS.

Dry eye is almost always a problem with not enough basal tears. The cause of this can be one of many things:

1. Blepharitis, which is more treatable than aqueous tear deficiency. Bleph causes the dry eye, which causes inflammation, which causes less basal tears to be produced.

2. Decreased corneal sensitivity, caused by LASIK cutting the nerves, individuals wearing their contacts too long, and other various factors. The cornea has less nerve sensitivity, which means it can't get the message to the lacrimal gland as well to lubricate the eye with more basal tears. In theory, the lacrimal gland can still function perfectly with this issue, but it's just not getting the message from the cornea.

3. Damaged lacrimal gland, caused by... well I'm not entirely sure. UV radiation might do it. Maybe certain acne medications or antihistamines, possibly? But it doesn't matter. If the lacrimal gland is damaged, then basal tears are going to suffer as well as reflex tears.


So if you have less REFLEX tears in one eye AND a dry eye problem, it probably is your lacrimal gland. Now, this doesn't mean that all is lost. Restasis has helped me a ton these last three months, and who knows what exactly is my problem scientifically.

Trust me, I'm as frustrated with the lack of scientific know-how on this stuff as you are. Just know the body can heal, and just because they don't have the medicine now to help (besides Restasis) doesn't mean they won't have it available in a year or two or five.

Not sure where you're at in your recovery, but I was sitting in the dark 3 months ago praying to recover. And today, I went to the gym and I'll watch a movie this evening. You can get better.

Be well duder.

[romeodakins]

I would think so, but I don't know what the cause of your problem is, so I can't even guess with any certainty.


I'm totally guessing here...

When we cry or yawn, we emit REFLEX TEARS. These tears are different than our normal everyday tears... those are called BASAL TEARS.

Dry eye is almost always a problem with not enough basal tears. The cause of this can be one of many things:

1. Blepharitis, which is more treatable than aqueous tear deficiency. Bleph causes the dry eye, which causes inflammation, which causes less basal tears to be produced.

2. Decreased corneal sensitivity, caused by LASIK cutting the nerves, individuals wearing their contacts too long, and other various factors. The cornea has less nerve sensitivity, which means it can't get the message to the lacrimal gland as well to lubricate the eye with more basal tears. In theory, the lacrimal gland can still function perfectly with this issue, but it's just not getting the message from the cornea.

3. Damaged lacrimal gland, caused by... well I'm not entirely sure. UV radiation might do it. Maybe certain acne medications or antihistamines, possibly? But it doesn't matter. If the lacrimal gland is damaged, then basal tears are going to suffer as well as reflex tears.


So if you have less REFLEX tears in one eye AND a dry eye problem, it probably is your lacrimal gland. Now, this doesn't mean that all is lost. Restasis has helped me a ton these last three months, and who knows what exactly is my problem scientifically.

Trust me, I'm as frustrated with the lack of scientific know-how on this stuff as you are. Just know the body can heal, and just because they don't have the medicine now to help (besides Restasis) doesn't mean they won't have it available in a year or two or five.

Not sure where you're at in your recovery, but I was sitting in the dark 3 months ago praying to recover. And today, I went to the gym and I'll watch a movie this evening. You can get better.

Be well duder.

Thanks for the explanation. So what is Restasis? I've seen it in a commercial lots of times. Is it some type of drops or something?

[MartyM1985]

Thanks for the explanation. So what is Restasis? I've seen it in a commercial lots of times. Is it some type of drops or something?

Ah I see you're new to all of this. Hope it is just temporary for you.

Restasis is an eye drop you use twice a day, 12 hours apart. You use only one drop. It's sole purpose is to reduce inflammation so that the eye can get back to creating basal tears.

One common theme with most of all dry eye is that when your eyes get dry, they become inflamed. Inflammation is not only a symptom of dry eye, but also a cause... so it can be an awful cycle.

I had battled some moderate dry eye last summer, but in January, my eyes took a sh*t and practically bottomed out regarding tear production. Causes for this... cold air, overuse of acne medication, use of antihistamines, running a heater in a closed room, working on computer for 12-16 hours a day, dehydration, & drinking wine during all of it. So you could guess my eyes got dry due to all of that mess AND the wine is inflammatory. A perfect storm I guess. So my eyes got REALLY dry and REALLY inflamed.

Restasis works over a course of 6 months or more. It takes a while for the drug to reduce the inflammation on a cellular level. Once the inflammation goes down, your eyes are then free to produce more tears as usual.

However, if your lacrimal glands are completely busted or you have no corneal sensitivity, you can be out of luck and the drug won't work. This is kinda rare though, though a lot of people on this board are botched-LASIK sufferers and are evidence that Restasis is not close to a cure. But back in January, I was sitting in the dark, thinking my life was 100% over and my eyes were broken. Restasis has helped me recover. I'm just beginning month four of my treatment, and I'm slowly getting better.

Will I get back to being a 100% normal person with 100% normal eyes? Eh, I doubt it. But up until January, I was living a normal life with my dry eye, just putting in OTC drops 2-3 times a day and living life as usual (working on a computer 8-10 hours a day and even wearing contacts). So if I can get back to close to that, I'll be fine.

FYI, Restasis has a kind of stigma on this board, as it does not help many people who try it (reports say it only works on 15% of people, but who knows). All I know is that it is helping me, and I would never tell anyone NOT to try it if they have a severe dry eye problem. Right now, there is no alternative anyway. I think in the next five years we'll see 2-3 more new drugs, but for now, all we have is Restasis.

[romeodakins]

Ah I see you're new to all of this. Hope it is just temporary for you.

Restasis is an eye drop you use twice a day, 12 hours apart. You use only one drop. It's sole purpose is to reduce inflammation so that the eye can get back to creating basal tears.

One common theme with most of all dry eye is that when your eyes get dry, they become inflamed. Inflammation is not only a symptom of dry eye, but also a cause... so it can be an awful cycle.

I had battled some moderate dry eye last summer, but in January, my eyes took a sh*t and practically bottomed out regarding tear production. Causes for this... cold air, overuse of acne medication, use of antihistamines, running a heater in a closed room, working on computer for 12-16 hours a day, dehydration, & drinking wine during all of it. So you could guess my eyes got dry due to all of that mess AND the wine is inflammatory. A perfect storm I guess. So my eyes got REALLY dry and REALLY inflamed.

Restasis works over a course of 6 months or more. It takes a while for the drug to reduce the inflammation on a cellular level. Once the inflammation goes down, your eyes are then free to produce more tears as usual.

However, if your lacrimal glands are completely busted or you have no corneal sensitivity, you can be out of luck and the drug won't work. This is kinda rare though, though a lot of people on this board are botched-LASIK sufferers and are evidence that Restasis is not close to a cure. But back in January, I was sitting in the dark, thinking my life was 100% over and my eyes were broken. Restasis has helped me recover. I'm just beginning month four of my treatment, and I'm slowly getting better.

Will I get back to being a 100% normal person with 100% normal eyes? Eh, I doubt it. But up until January, I was living a normal life with my dry eye, just putting in OTC drops 2-3 times a day and living life as usual (working on a computer 8-10 hours a day and even wearing contacts). So if I can get back to close to that, I'll be fine.

FYI, Restasis has a kind of stigma on this board, as it does not help many people who try it (reports say it only works on 15% of people, but who knows). All I know is that it is helping me, and I would never tell anyone NOT to try it if they have a severe dry eye problem. Right now, there is no alternative anyway. I think in the next five years we'll see 2-3 more new drugs, but for now, all we have is Restasis.

Oh wow I'm gonna ask my doctor about Restasis. Does it cost a lot?

[MartyM1985]

Oh wow I'm gonna ask my doctor about Restasis. Does it cost a lot?

Without insurance, yup. It's pretty pricey.