Relearning how to properly blink and few other questions.

[mattb88]

(Sorry long post below. TL;DR: Was told I'm partially blinking. Trying to relearn how to blink but having no success and hoping to find any answers to my questions below. )

Hi everyone, I'd love to go into details on my issues stemming from dry eyes, but to make a story short, I've recently been diagnosed with severe (3/4) and moderate MGD (2/4) in my left and right eye after having LipiView. I did proceed with getting LipiFlow, but before this, the doc actually told me that I have an issue with partial blinking which has led me to developing MGD in the first place. She stated that the main thing I need to worry about is learning how to properly blink, so she prescribed blinking exercises to help relearn the process.

It's now 2 months after, and I'm still completely unsure how to actually blink. I've done numerous exercises that I've seen from different websites to the paper that the doctor gave me, but I still for the life of me can not find a way to blink that feels natural after attempting to relearn something I've being wrong for the past 16 years.

The main thing I've been reading is that blinking mainly comes from the muscles above the top eyelid, and that those are the only muscles we are supposed to use to complete a natural blink.This has been a huge hurdle for me because I feel like I'm unable to consistently utilize those particular set of muscles and those alone, finding myself still using the side muscles when I'm attempting a blink. I'm also getting a lot of eye strain from the pressure when I initially start the blinking process and then the squeezing of my eyes they say to do after closure to help develop the blinking muscles. It's been a giant obstacle for me, and my eyes do feel and look better, but I believe if I could just get this down I'd be in much better shape

I come here with a few questions that I hope anyone can enlighten me or even provide feedback on, or possibly provide tips or other bits of knowledge. Some of the questions feel a bit weird asking, and I'm not sure if they make sense, but I'll try to put them into words the best that I can:

• Are you supposed to just kind of let your top eyelids drop down by relaxing them, or physically force them down to the lower eyelid. If you are supposed to force them down, do you just let them gently glide down the eye, or utilize a bit of force to get them to hit against the lower lid?
• What amount of pressure am I supposed to use when I actually make contact between top and bottom lid, if any at all? When they hit, is it supposed to be a gentle tap, or more of pressured hit to push out the oils? Are the eyelids supposed create enough force to push out the oil from the glands just by the blink itself or is this done by squeezing the eyelids on contact?
• What speed are natural blinks supposed to be? Is it supposed to be fast or a bit of a normal speed without much exertion?
• Am I supposed to feel any sort of liquid on my eyelids after a blink (sometimes happens) or not?
• Are your bottom eye lids supposed to move at all when you begin to close your eyes?

I have so many more questions, but this is all I want to ask in the mean time. Any and all feedback is appreciated !!

[Guest]

I just wanted to give you some perspective on what might be going on. Blink issues can have many origins. It may not be as simple as trying to learn to blink again. Then again, it may very well be that simple. It could be a small lifestyle change life less computer time. But the key is to get an accurate diagnosis so that you can start the right treatment immediately. I say the right treatment because if you’re following a plan and it’s not bringing you relief, and you’ve really worked that plan, it’s probably not the right treatment.

As for the blinking exercises. At my worst, it would t matter how I tried to blink. My eyes needed medicine and without that medicine, there was absolutely no way I could blink properly. I couldn’t even close my eyes when I would sleep. That said, the exercises I found explained it this way...

allow the lids to touch closed lightly for a second, give a squeeze for a second, release but keep them closed for a moment, then open and repeat about 10 times. The key is to put your fingers on your temples and feel for the muscles. You don’t want to feel them contract. You only want to use the eyelid muscle, not the surrounding muscles. I would also suggest lube your eyes good before you do this. Doing this is dryness can actually hurt or cause damage.

I hope you get some relief.

[woodart]

Learning to blink will take a very long time from my experience. A little different as I had a birth defect. I had seen so called specialists and was told that blinking was just not going to happen. But being stubborn I just kept on working on it each and every day. I had a metronome and when home I would adjust the timing to what I felt it should be. For me it just boiled down to practise and it took over 2 years to get it to the point of doing it on it's own. Even now I have to think about it. I basically use my forehead to move my eyelids. I had gone to see a specialist after this and sat in a chair while the doc brought in other doc showing them I taught myself to blink. This was maybe 25 years ago. I had also developed a habit of closing my eyes when not needed to protect them. People kept asking me if I was tired. I have had dry eyes since birth and I am over 70 now. I don't feel any liquid from blinking. But the bottom line is it will take time. I probably didn't really answer your question except for the part about it will take time. Keep working at it.

[mattb88]

Sorry for the late response yall, I truly appreciate the feedback and your stories on similar situations. It does make me feel better knowing it's not something that will happen over night, as I was expecting to already be blinking normally again after a month or two. I feel like I'm getting better at naturally blinking everyday, and overall, today was a really good day as my eyes were significantly less dry and less strained from the blinking. I'll update later as I continue to work on this, but I truly have faith that I can find some comfort once I get the proper blinking motion down. Thank you both for taking our time from your day to respond and giving me hope !