Dry eyes

[Irenemcwhinnie]

How to treat

[mstp]

I have had years of this and tried many things but now find wipes from the optician have sorted it out quite a bit. When my eyes were magnified he showed me debris round the lashes that were blocking my tear ducts. Xx

[Gcart]

I’ve had some improvement firstly turning down the heating . Secondly sticking to gluten free and using eye drops.

I find the best ones Thealoz duo .

Hope this helps

[Geordielass2day]

I use Systane eye drops morning and evening or more often if necessary

[pennyannie]

Hello Irenemcwhinnie

What ever lotions, potions, or drops you may use, please just make sure that they are preservative free :

You may also find, over time, that you need to switch product brands as your eyes adjust and change :

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK]

If you are not already doing so, use eye-drops regularly.

But make sure you use a preservative-free product. Many people can tolerate the preservative to begin with, but develop intolerance. I found that I needed to use them more and more frequently as they made my eyes worse!

I used Visco-Tears single dose unit and Lacri-Lube overnight.

That should make your eyes much more comfortable.

Do you have a thyroid issue?

[jamesal0]

Levo gives yo dry eyes. The only real fix is to change to Natural Desiccated Thyroid (NDT) - but that can be difficult in the UK.

[Me2U in reply to jamesal0]

is that so? I dont think it in the side effects in leaflets?

[jamesal0 in reply to Me2U]

drugs.com/sfx/levothyroxine... - look for eye pain

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to jamesal0]

Having suffered both dry eyes and eye pain, if I read a possible side effect as "eye pain", I would not think that meant "dry eyes".

Certainly, "dry eyes" can, at the more extreme end, cause eye damage resulting in eye pain.

[jamesal0 in reply to helvella]

As soon as I take Levo I get dry eyes and once or twice week I get a stabbing pain in the eye. I went to my Optometrist the first couple of times it happened thinking I was about to go blind and she said my eyes were just very dry and had an accumulation junk built up, I should use Systane Ultra eye drops. Then after I went to NDT, I just dont suffer from eye problems - other things but not eyes problems.

[Me2U in reply to jamesal0]

thankyou! I have dry eyes,sometimes.they are ok then they're tearing all the time.I struggle getting the drops actually go in my eyes!

[Fruitandnutcase]

Totally agree with all good advice you’ve had for the curse of dry eyes. Keep putting your preservative free drops in as often as you can throughout the day and you can always add the grungy Lacrimal-Lube overnight if you need that too.

The lid wipes from the optician work well.

You could try an eye-bag that you heat in the microwave or even just squeeze a facecloth out in hot - ish water and hold that over your eyes. I prefer to do that but it doesn’t stay hot for long.

I’ve got a good eyewash I got from Tesco - think it’s intended for contact lens wearers but I found it really good - Vizualize.

I discovered when I ran out of them that the Omega 3 Algae oil capsules I take for something else made a huge difference to my dry eyes so it might be worth trying something like that.

The thing to do is to keep using the products even though your eyes feel good - they only feel good because of what you are using and if you stop the problem will come back quite quickly - I know from experience.

[DoDoc]

An optometrist who specialises in dry eye syndrome explained to me that the problem usually lies with the meibomian glands that lie behind the eyelashes. They are meant to produce an oil which covers the cornea, sealing in the moisture produced by the tear ducts. However, as we age (or as a result of a condition like hypothyroidism) they produce a thick buttery substance. As a result the tears evaporate too quickly , hence the problem. She said that the only really efficient treatment is to apply a heat mask two or three times a day to release the oil, use wipes to remove debris from the base of the lashes, then apply eye drops (I prefer drops which contain some oil - at present I’m using Systane hydration lubricating drops.). I find this has definitely helped my condition, but you do need to keep up the protocol.

[Fruitandnutcase in reply to DoDoc]

Think meibomian gland disfunction is another term for dry eyes. That’s why heating the eyelids with either a hot facecloth or a heated eye bag and then massaging them gently works.I’m using an Optrex spray for dry eyes at the moment. I don’t love the smell - it reminds me of chip fat - and my optician rolled her eyes and suggested something else but at the moment it is working for me so I’m sticking with it until it stops being effective.

[C70rol]

Tried most of the above, but the best thing to work for me was taking ....Omega 7 by Pharma Nord or the British Sea Buckthorn company.........Omega 7 comes from the Sea Buckthorn berries .

[infomaniac]

I use Systane too but no matter what I do the drops leak out. I've tried closing my eyes after putting them in but still no joy. Any ideas anyone?