How do you deal with dry eyes?

Posted by maryy @maryy, Jun 10, 2019

I have dry eyes due to sjogren's syndrome. Does anyone else deal with dry eyes?

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@bluekittymom

I have dry eyes from sjogren's and 4 eye surgeries. I had IPL treatments over 4 months and this treatment has made a huge difference. There are times that my eyes feel wet! I use a Bruder mask with the Bruder Hygienic sheets once a day. Like your own mini spa. I no longer feel like my eyes are burning or have something in them. I use drops maybe 1-2 times per month, even in heavy allergy season. When I do use drops, I use Thera Tears and Blink Tears at night.

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@bluekittymom Thanks for this info! May I ask if IPL was covered by insurance? If not, what kind of cost was involved? How long do the results last?

Thanks so much!

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@bustrbrwn22

@bluekittymom Thanks for this info! May I ask if IPL was covered by insurance? If not, what kind of cost was involved? How long do the results last?

Thanks so much!

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IPL was not covered by insurance (Medicare). Each treatment was about $300. So far 5 months, and things are still ok. I do use Bruder eye mask everyday.

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For Sjogrens, it helps to use a warm eye mask twice a day. I agree that “preservative free” eye drops are a must.

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@dreams

Thank you so much for sharing your experiences. I will look into the Bruder mask. The radiation caused lacrimal gland problems. Do you know what gland IPL treats? I was diagnosed with Merkel cell cancer on the eyelid. I had it surgically removed and then had radiation. I had been using Restasis for six years prior for dry eyes. The doctors at Mayo clinic advised me to promptly stop using Restasis after the merkle cell cancer began. Restasis is an immuno suppressant antiinflammatory drug. They are not sure what started the cancer but it could’ve been from using reatatsis, as it is has immunosuppressant qualities. Just letting others know my experience. We continually need to consider the positives and the negatives with any treatments.

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Did you do the IPL?

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No, I haven’t. I will need as assessment first to see if my problem of dry eye would respond to it.

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@rexsan20

Did you do the IPL?

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What is IPL?

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@luki52

What is IPL?

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Intense Pulse Light uses light energy to target a certain color in your skin.....Tear are is another heating and pulsating mechanism will express meibum( portion of normal tears)

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I began to have chronic dry eyes around 2 years ago. I'm a 68 year old man that always had perfect vision with no issues. I've used every OTC drops and ointments on the market. In addition to the dryness, I experience pain in both eyes, burning and it never gets better. I don't have Glaucoma or any other eye disease. I've been to 5 different Ophthalmologists, with 3 from Columbia Eye Clinic. Restasis burned my eyes. Heat masks didn't help, plugs didn't help. Presently, I'm trying autologous serum eye drops (insurance doesn't cover), Xiidra, and Prolensa for ocular pain. Nothing has helped, and all of the Doctors haven't figured it out yet. Has anyone had something like this?

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@rayjay535353

I began to have chronic dry eyes around 2 years ago. I'm a 68 year old man that always had perfect vision with no issues. I've used every OTC drops and ointments on the market. In addition to the dryness, I experience pain in both eyes, burning and it never gets better. I don't have Glaucoma or any other eye disease. I've been to 5 different Ophthalmologists, with 3 from Columbia Eye Clinic. Restasis burned my eyes. Heat masks didn't help, plugs didn't help. Presently, I'm trying autologous serum eye drops (insurance doesn't cover), Xiidra, and Prolensa for ocular pain. Nothing has helped, and all of the Doctors haven't figured it out yet. Has anyone had something like this?

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....have had dry eyes over 20 yrs and like you tried many options...and now do have glaucoma; there is an article on internet titled "Dry Eyes And Glaucoma - Double Trouble"... years ago dentists and an optometrist said check with family dr to see if I had Sojourns and sorry if not spelled correctly and he wouldn't do it... and as mouth dry etc. I feel I should have pursued.
I think medications over the years have caused dry eyes and the ones I am on still might ... used just about every eye drop in pharmacy and was using Hylo for few years but even that now is not as effective, so switching around different ones again - read the ingredients on Internet.... chemicals etc. so could be helping dry eyes yet causing the burning, redness, swollen eyelids etc. Hopefully someone here will offer a solution and I would be interested too! Using previously boiled water and a new face cloth I did try warming up in microwave the wet cloth making sure not too hot and put over eyes and I did feel a bit of comfort but to keep doing thise many times a day up and down stairs I gave up but worth a try? Best of luck, J.

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@lacy2

....have had dry eyes over 20 yrs and like you tried many options...and now do have glaucoma; there is an article on internet titled "Dry Eyes And Glaucoma - Double Trouble"... years ago dentists and an optometrist said check with family dr to see if I had Sojourns and sorry if not spelled correctly and he wouldn't do it... and as mouth dry etc. I feel I should have pursued.
I think medications over the years have caused dry eyes and the ones I am on still might ... used just about every eye drop in pharmacy and was using Hylo for few years but even that now is not as effective, so switching around different ones again - read the ingredients on Internet.... chemicals etc. so could be helping dry eyes yet causing the burning, redness, swollen eyelids etc. Hopefully someone here will offer a solution and I would be interested too! Using previously boiled water and a new face cloth I did try warming up in microwave the wet cloth making sure not too hot and put over eyes and I did feel a bit of comfort but to keep doing thise many times a day up and down stairs I gave up but worth a try? Best of luck, J.

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Have you tried a shower water filter ? I thought our City Water was safe but, it is not. For $25 you can install one yourself in 5 minutes. I had terrible dry eyes and sore eye muscles. The water filter helped the first time I used it. Wear eye protection when using your computer. I also placed good air purifiers in 3 rooms.Winix 5500.

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