@uvea10 & @elizabeth I’m so sorry to hear of others struggling with iritis. My first episode which resulted in steroid drops was in 2008 at the age of 31. For the next 9 years my flare ups increased in frequency and severity and I experienced them in both eyes. Pain. Light sensitivity. Redness. After too many rounds of steroid drops, I started developing cataracts so my eye doctor referred me to a rheumatologist. I saw specialists at UC Davis and UCSF in California who agreed that the best course of action was methotrexate to prevent my immune system from attacking my eyes. It made me so sick I only lasted a month. At that point I had seen 7 MDs and the acute recurring uveitis was starting to lessen my vision. At the time I worked for an employer who provided acupuncture as a benefit and I will forever be grateful. Within about 10 minutes of discussing my history with the acupuncturist she asked if I had ever been diagnosed with West Nile Virus. I had never been tested but I’m one of those people who mosquitoes just love. I requested a test through my MD and I had antibodies (indicating past infection). Thinking back I connected that when I had my first iritis issue I was recovering from over 10 mosquito bites. The acupuncturist explained that the virus likely caused my immune system to go haywire. She had a more eloquent way of explaining it. She then recommended two Chinese herbal supplements. One was to knock down the viral load in my system. When I finished that bottle of pills, I took a second one that was intended to rebuild my immune system. I took these over a number of weeks and they are only available through licensed providers in California. The iritis never came back and that was 6 years ago. If you are comfortable exploring acupuncture I highly recommend verifying the person’s license with your state and researching providers. I wish it hadn’t taken me 9 years to find my answer but I’m so grateful I did. I went into it with the attitude that “it can’t hurt to get more advice” and I didn’t expect it to be the amazing resource it was. I hope anyone reading this finds the help they need. Sending you healing wishes.

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