New here and desperate

[littlemermaid]

Dominorose, Max Ehrmann 'Desiderata' might keep you going until you see your counselor today...

'Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals; and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul. With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.'

Also, important that you tell your Eye Doc what's happening and get some more treatment advice.

[dominorose]

Anyone ?

I really think my main problem is MGD. My ophtalmologist told me my secretions were "too thick" : what does it mean?
When I look at my eyes it seems the tears are clogged into the inner corners of my eyes, am I the only one with this?

[dominorose]

Thanks littlemermaid, you're really helpful and so supportive... I really am depressed and have a hard time trying to cope with this

[dominorose]

Hi there

I really need help to know what to do. My ophta told me my secretions were too thick, I have an appointment with Dr Doan in one month but would really like to know what to do to ease the pain in the meantime. What does it mean if my secretions are too thick? They're too oily?

[dominorose]

No one?

[spmcc]

What did your ophthalmologist tell you to do? Usually when an ophthalmolosigst sees thick secretions and diagnoses blepharitis, he/she will give specific instructions on how to treat. You need to follow those instructions to the letter in order to start to feel better.

Instructions usually include
* lid hygiene
* warm compresses
* manual expression
* drops/gel/ointment

The goal of the treatments is to clear the thick secretions from the glands and allow nice, clear oil to flow. It may take a little while for the treatments to work so that is why you must follow the directions exactly, *not* quit, be patient, and schedule follow-ups with your doctor.

You can read a lot of very helpful articles on The Dry Eye Zone homepage: http://www.dryeyezone.com/.

There's also an encyclopedia where you can look up terms such as blepharitis: http://www.dryeyezone.com/encyclopedia/index.html.

Good luck.

[dominorose]

I dont know if its a blepharitis. Ive been told it could be sjogren, and that it was blepharitis, conjunctivitis, ocular rosacea and mgd. I have everything!

[André Pereira]

I was reading your thread and decided to post some things that I know here .
I'm not a scholar like many here, but I've been through many experiences in 07 years of dry eye .

I went through more than 10-12 ophthalmologists until someone told me I have dry eye .
The doctors looked at my eyes and told me : " go ahead , your eyes are normal ."
But my eyes were very sore and red .
Most doctors are lazy when you have a different case of normality for treatment.
A great day I found a doctor willing to help me and follow the progress of my eyes .
Even through various specialists , he always helped me to deal with the variables of my eyes was .
As you are noticing are many variables to arrive at a correct diagnosis .

From the moment you learn the real problem of your eyes, it becomes easier to use the various tools for the treatment.
I read that once here on the Forum and liked the term.
As a dry eye has different causes, not all tools that will work for you.
The important thing is: Have a custom toolbox.
To get to that point there are two important factors:
1-a LOT of READING (I know, it's ironic to ask a lot of reading for those who have pain in the eyes)
2-trial and error.

You read enough to choose a suitable tool not bring too much risk (or to be aware of the risk).
This has been my workflow with dry eye.

A second point is to take care of the mind. As you already noticed, anxiety, depression can affect the quality of our eyes.
I do private therapy here in Brazil. I don't know how it works in France. But I think it's worth trying.
One thing that helps me a lot are also friends I made here on the Forum. Whenever I need to talk they are available (thanks Eduardo e Rute).
If you need to talk, you can send me a private message or an email.

[dominorose]

Thank you André. Yes its really hard these days, yesterday at work the pain was so severe I couldn't open my eyes at all. I wish I could live with my eyes closed sometimes...

I have an appointment with Dr Doan on the 25th of June, and really hope he will give me cyclosporine. I am afraid he won't give me enough time bc I got this appointment through the emergencies of the hospital, but my mother will come with me just in case.

In the meantime, I have to cope the best I can (with Celluvisc, saline, and my antihistamine treatment). Sometimes its hard bc Im so afraid to make things worse: I have to use lubricant drops to protect my cornea but if I use them too much my eyes will get used to it and stop "working" for me. How often is too much?

[André Pereira]

Honestly I can not say which often can cause dependency.
I use eye drops when found necessary.

I read that you think your problem is the Meibomian glands.
I think you're just at the beginning of your diagnosis.
You did Schirmer's test? Tear break-up time (TBUT)?
And as suspected Sjogren?

Try to look carefully at your diet. Good nutrition can bring improvements to your eyes. As you had eating disorders, I believe that you should pay special attention to this too.

Having a trusted doctor is good, but never discarded through several doctors to get a second opinion.

About your work. I spent two years working on the air conditioning using the churada glasses - 7eye. Maybe some sunglasses help you down until you find another solution.

[spmcc]

I have to use lubricant drops to protect my cornea but if I use them too much my eyes will get used to it and stop "working" for me. How often is too much?

I've never heard this before. Who told you this would happen?

[spmcc]

I have an appointment with Dr Doan on the 25th of June, and really hope he will give me cyclosporine. I am afraid he won't give me enough time bc I got this appointment through the emergencies of the hospital, but my mother will come with me just in case.

That's great that your mother is going with you. For years, I was in so much pain that I wouldn't even remember what happened during my appointments. Having someone - an advocate - with you is very helpful.

I strongly recommend that you read a few articles that can be found on the Dry Eye Zone homepage: http://www.dryeyezone.com/

If you scroll down on that page there is a section called "Practical advice on living with dry eye" (aka Rebecca's Coping 101 series). Please read - and have your mother read - those articles in preparation for your appointment with Dr. Doan.

Also, just below those three articles, there is an article called "How to get a better diagnosis"? Please read that one too.

All the best.

[LyndaT]

Hi,

I have Hashimoto hypothyroidism. When the chemical meds were not working for me I switched to Armour (It is taken from the pig) It has T-3 and T-4 in it.
I feel so much better. The chemical meds worked for about 5 years.

I also had Blepharitis and was able to kill it.

Here is the research info.
A friend and I have killed Blepharitis and many are having the same success using the WET ONES, antibacterial hand wipes that have .03% Benzethonium Chloride or Benzalkonium Chloride and do not go into the eyes. They go on the eyelash areas to kill it. Only people who are allergic to hand wipes, shampoo, detergents, fabric softeners or spermicidal jellies should not use them. They also contain Lanolin, so anyone allergic to that should not use them.
People are using BAK (Benzalkonium Chloride) as a preservative at .01% in steroid meds and quite a few eye drops, even lubricating drops. The wipes do kill it and do not go in the eyes. Here is a very condensed version of research to explain why.

What causes blepharitis?
There are three main types of blepharitis: staphylococcal blepharitis, seborrhoeic blepharitis and meibomian blepharitis. All three types can cause similar symptoms.
Staphylococcal blepharitis
This type of blepharitis is thought to be caused by a bacterium (germ) called staphylococcus. This bacterium commonly lives in low numbers on the skin without doing any harm. However, in some people, it seems that this bacterium causes a localised infection of the eyelids, resulting in blepharitis. Exactly why this happens in some people is unclear.
Benzethonium Chloride and Benzalkonium Chloride are called Quats. These are the ingredients in WET ONES, antibacterial hand wipes that have killed Blepharitis for several people. Below is the TOX report I found.
Quats are effective in destroying a broad spectrum of harmful microorganisms. They are effective in killing the following microorganisms while cleaning the surfaces upon which they reside – all in one simple step.
1. Gram negative and gram positive bacteria like salmonella typhi, staphylococcus aureus, streptococcus epidermidis and pseudomonas aeruginosa,
2. viruses like HIV-1, Herpes simplex 1 and 2
3. Antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria including methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).
4. and fungi like trichophyton interdigitale (athlete’s foot).
International Journal of Toxicology
3 Final Report on the Safety Assessment of Benzethonium Chloride and Methylbenzethonium Chloride
Abstract

This is the last paragraph of this small document.

In clinical studies, Benzethonium Chloride produced mild skin irritation at 5 percent but not at lower concentration. Neither ingredient is considered to be a sensitizer.
It is concluded that both compounds are safe at concentrations of 0.5 percent in cosmetics applied to the skin. A maximum concentration of 0.02 percent is safe for cosmetics used in the eye area.

Hope this helps you get relief.

LyndaT

[dominorose]

Hi all,

So my eyes are a bit better these days. Im waiting for my appointment with Dr Doan on the 25th of june. In the meantime I really try to understand the cause of my dry eye problem but that's really hard to understand. Any help would be really appreciated

My symptoms:

- when i blink hard i can feel "something" coming out
- painful inner corners sometimes
- pressing on my nose with 2 fingers, just above the lacrymal sac, helps a lot
- relief when i clean my lids
- sticky eyelids
- when i look at my lid margins very closely i can see tiny little white bumps near my lashes
- lashes stuck on lid margins
- sticky inner corners
- sometimes i get sudden pain in one eye only (right or left it depends), it is really painful and stings (and located on the inner corner area mostly)

I think it really looks like blepharitis but im not sure?

[André Pereira]

Dominorose

Because of these symptoms :
- Relief when i clean my lids
- Sticky eyelids
- When i look at my lid margins very closely i can see tiny little white bumps near my lashes
- Lashes stuck on lid margins
- Sticky inner corners

I think you really have some dysfunction of the Meibomian glands .
Look for some photos on the internet about MGD and compare with your case .
I can not say about blepharitis , because I never read enough on the subject .

I've had these symptoms , but now my glands are clogged . I have no sticky feeling .

The funny thing is that until a while ago my Meibomian glands were functioning better. It's a big puzzle .

With what you are cleaning the edges of your eyelids ? I am using BLEPHAGEL ,

Perhaps a more viscous eye drops help to keep your eyes best while you wait to consult a doctor. Prefer the drops without preservatives . As Hylo gel or tears Oasis Plus (there are others).

A big problem I had is that when the eyes are in a box big inflammation, eye drops do not have much effect , it was necessary to cut the inflammatory cycle before .

Also try to perform an examination to know the levels of vitamin D. Low levels of vitamin D may be correlated with the ease inflamed eyes ( and various other things . )