Hi @scienceteacher, joining in as another voice here. Dryness of the skin and mucous membranes is one of the more common effects people report on HU, so I don't think you're wrong to wonder about it. Worth raising with your doctor at the next visit rather than assuming it's the eye makeup, especially since the lid skin sounds irritated.
One thing I'd add to Lori's excellent list: it can help to have an eye doctor actually look at the lids rather than just treating the dryness. Sore, red, itchy lids sometimes turn out to be blepharitis or blocked oil glands sitting on top of the dry eye, and that needs lid hygiene (warm compress first, then a gentle wipe along the lash line) as well as drops.
Also, if you end up using drops several times a day, the preservative-free ones in single-use vials tend to be gentler than the bottled versions. Preservatives can irritate lids that are already unhappy.
And it's worth looking at everything else you take, since antihistamines, blood pressure meds and a few others add to dryness too.
Hope it settles down for you.
@clinectthan
Thank you for the additional information. I am thinking it has a good chance of being demodex blepharitis since I have three risk factors; over 65 with rosacea and taking HU. The lid irritation along with the eyelashes thinning and some lashes heading in the wrong direction make me suspicious.
Since my husband has recently had cataract surgery he has a good supply of the single-use vials of lubricating drops, I will try those.
I have an eye exam already scheduled in two weeks so I hope I will get a diagnosis then.
Thank you everyone on this site for all the excellent support.