Dry eye anyone?

BlueBelle
I had exactly the same problem, and had to use so many hankies every day and wearing eye make up was a waste of time!
The cause was blocked tear ducts. I had them cleared by general anaesthetic and they are fine now.

I also use Hycosan eye drops which were approved by my cataract surgeon and certainly make a difference to the gritty sensation I get. They are expensive but last a long time. Boots had a special offer to buy one and get the other half price.

I have Carmellose on permanent prescription, I use as and when is necessary, sometimes several times a day sometimes not at all.

I use hycosan extra and a heated eye mask occasionally if my eyes feel irritated more than usual. Before using Hycosan one of my eyes would cloud over so much I couldn’t see out of it. Also would wake up to really painful eyes. The Hycosan has really helped me.

I am very very shortsighted, consequently very dry eyes and actually now only have sight in my right eye
I have used these drops for years and they are prescribed for me..

As mentioned above Hycosan drops are expensive but can be used for up to 6 months. They really work for me especially during the hayfever season and you only need a small amount. There are eye drops which expire after a month so please be careful. It’s a good idea to write the date of opening on the box.

I write the date of opening on the box as well. I wish I could get on with the Hycosan bottle and plunger but I end up with it on my cheek and not in my eye. I have tried many different ways to no avail. They last 6 months so good value even though they seem expensive.
I will give the Boots dry and irritated eye one recommended above a go and then work my way through the others.
The cold weather doesnt help and the central heating as well.

I was advised by the optician last year to use Hycosan - I previously thought my sore eyes were just because of blepharitis. I use cotton wool as a hot compress twice daily and then the Hycosan. I sometimes use Blephaclean wipes.

I asked at the GP surgery but was told eye drops and wipes cannot be prescribed, you have to buy yourself even if medically advised. This is another part of the NHS postcode lottery!

I use the Hyco saN Extra drops too. I had no idea I had dry eye until routine check at the eye clinic. They didn't advise what to use so I went to Specsavers and they have a range of eye drops for dry eye so I was bamboozled! The assistant recommended these and I have been using them regularly. She also advised used a warm eye compress to make the tears more liquid. I she. No idea if it's making a difference because I never had symptoms in the first place. It is interesting that some of us have prescribed eye drops and others don't? The cost may be a factor for some people who need them but have to choose to prioritise other things needed to get by. How to the clinicians decide who should be prescribed and who has to fund their own ? Is it just a lottery based on the clinician's perception of the person they are seeing ?

I have Sjogren's syndrome, Dry eyes, dry mouth. Sjogrens is a disease that attacks the immune system. I have always to be drinking water, my teeth rotted away because I have no saliva, I got corneal ulcers as my eyes were so dry.

The problem with dry eyes is that we use the computers too much or our smart phones and we do not blink enough but it took the doctors two years to finally agree that I had Sjogren's syndrome. Go online and read all about it.

If you just have dry, tired eyes, see your GP and let them prescribe you some eye drops as the ones you can buy over the counter may not be strong or thick enough to keep your eyes moisturised. Or go to the optician for your eye test and tell them, they will tell you how bad your eyes are and then refer you to an eye specialist.

Elegran

I found that Hycosan Night ointment stayed on my eyes all night and lubricated them so that the lids didn't feel like sandpaper when I moved my eyeballs to look around me in the morning. It has some lanolin and vaseline in it . Dry eyes are often not exactly dry - in fact they react by watering profusely sometimes - but they have too little of the tiny proportion of oil contained in tears, so the tears don't stay on the eyeball.

It took a while of using a tiny bit of the ointment every night, but I now only use it if my eyes feel gritty. I think perhaps when the eyes are irritated by being a bit dry the ducts which supply the oil get dry and blocked, which cuts down the amount of oil available for lubrication even further. Applying the slightly greasy ointment may be good for the ducts, as well as for surface of the eyes, though that is only a guess.

Is that Hycosan shield? @£19?

No, Hycosan Night.

Elegran

No, Hycosan Night.

It is in a 5g tube, www.boots.com/hycosan-night-eye-ointment-5g-10226769 £8.20 but the tube lasts for ages, as you only use a tiny amount at a time. In fact, if you use too much, it melts and makes your eyelids feel like a basted chicken! You need far lss than you think. It says to squeeze it straight from the tube, but I found that rather hit-and-miss, so I squeeze a couple of millimetres onto a clean finger, and apply it that way.

I see that it is out of stock in Boots at the moment, but other pharmacies may have it.

Thanks. Boots seem to be out of stock of lots of things these days. When I use Lacri lube I always think of the poor woman who put super glue on her eyes by mistake because the Lacri lube tube looks just like a super glue one and the consistency is pretty much the same, too

I have Blepharitis as well as Macular Degeneration and I have to use wipes every day for the rest of my life. I prefer Optase as they do not leave me with stinging eyes but they are not cheap.

When ordering through Amazon I have a look to see what is on special offer and then I alternate them.

I don’t wear make up very often these days but when I do put on eye make up my eyes are streaming. Once I’ve put the make up on I can add to it later without tears streaming down my face. Not sure if it’s down to the timing of when I put eye drops in. Due an eye test soon, I’ll ask the optician for advice.

I bought the Boots Dry and Irritated Eye drops which last 90 days. They seem fine so far.

I like the sound of the night time eye ointment, but have to use glaucoma drops at night so I am not sure how they would work together.

I will trial the Boots drops for a couple of weeks and see how I go. Some good recommendations which have been useful. I will make a list of them.

Are people with dry eyes aware of the free Minor eye condition service offered by some opticians. You can book an appointment and your eyes will be checked using their specialist equipment. They will then advise what is causing the condition and how to treat/ remedy it.

HelterSkelter1

I write the date of opening on the box as well. I wish I could get on with the Hycosan bottle and plunger but I end up with it on my cheek and not in my eye. I have tried many different ways to no avail. They last 6 months so good value even though they seem expensive.
I will give the Boots dry and irritated eye one recommended above a go and then work my way through the others.
The cold weather doesnt help and the central heating as well.

I use the Boots dry eye one, it’s quite good, and also use a gel eye mask which you can heat up to warm for a few seconds in the microwave, bought at Specsavers.

I watched something on utube last night that said before you apply eye make up put a warm flannel over the eyes for five minutes and then gently massage around the eyes and your eyes won’t stream. I’ll check out that eye mask. I’ve never thought to do anything other than apply drops. Then again when I thought I had blepharitis once I read to put warm potatoes on the eyes. I’ve got very blurry eyes today because I used Lacri lube last night.

Marydoll

I have Sjogren's syndrome, an autoimmune disease. I have precription eye drops, which were developed for dry eyes caused by Sjogren's.

I'm being investigated for the same. My dry eyes were a nightmare, dry mouth too. I use a prescription gel twice a day and cleansing wipes. They have helped enormously.

Freya5

Marydoll

I have Sjogren's syndrome, an autoimmune disease. I have precription eye drops, which were developed for dry eyes caused by Sjogren's.

I'm being investigated for the same. My dry eyes were a nightmare, dry mouth too. I use a prescription gel twice a day and cleansing wipes. They have helped enormously.

The dry mouth is awful. It's particularly bad this morning, no voice and painful mouth.
I have R.A, so not difficult to make the diagnosis.

My optician and GP both said I had Sjogren's - I have dry eyes and Blepharitis, dry inside of nose and horrible dry mouth. I wake up with my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth every morning. My GP referred me to a rheumatologist and I was lucky to get a cancellation so it was quite quick.

He said no to Sjogren's because my blood test was negative for (I think) Rheumatoid Factor, and so I diagnosed Sicca Syndrome plus Fibromyalgia. While waiting for my appt I joined an online Sjogren's Group and a great many members said that they had had a negative blood test but were still diagnosed with Sjogren's, and that a lip biopsy is the only way to diagnose for sure.

I am prescribed various products recommended by the rheumatologist, but I have a lot of allergies and intolerances and don't get on with Xylitol which is in most of the pastilles for dry mouth. Marydoll do you know of any other products to help with the dry mouth please?

Forgot to mention dry ears too with intermittent mild earache and tender glands.

should have said "I was diagnosed with Sicca ...".
I didn't diagnose myselk !

Sparklefizz, you have to be very vigilant, regarding your dental health, when you have Sjogern's. My teeth are just crumbling away. During Lockdown my front tooth sheered off at the gum, despite having no decay. 😱

My dentist recommends using Corsodyl mouthwash and at the moment I am using Difflan rinse for my sore mouth. I initially got it on prescription, but you can buy it over the counter.

As for testing negative, when I was first diagnosed with R.A over thirty years ago, I was Seronegative, but as the disease progressed the R.A factor showed in my blood tests and I became Seropositive.
A small proportion of people can have R.A, but test negative for the factor. The diagnosis is made taking many factors into account.

As for pastilles, I found the ones prescribed by my GP to be useless.
Bearing in mind the detrimental effect of the sugar, I found Rowantree's fruit pastilles or Jelly Tots generated saliva.
The bonus is that they are delicious!