Weight Loss Tips: Real-Life Steps That Worked

Help For Dry Eye; What You Can Do To Ease Symptoms

If you suffer from constant dry, itchy eyes, there is help you can get from an eye doctor. There are also things you can do to ease the pain of the symptoms of chronic dry eye. The following offers help your eye doctor can give you as well as some remedies you can try at home to help ease the pain.

What an Eye Doctor Can Do

An eye doctor will examine you, and based on your description of the problem and what he or she finds, diagnose you with chronic dry eye syndrome. If you do not have the problem year round, it may be due to the season. Cold, winter weather can cause your eyes to become dry due to the artificial warm air that flows throughout your home and in public places from furnaces and heaters. 

If you are prone to allergies, and it is allergy season right now where you are, your doctor may prescribe antihistamine medicine to help you with the problem. Your ophthalmologist or a person from DC Eye Associates might also have you put an ointment on your eyes or around your eyelids that will help heal the dryness. There are specific ointments that you can get by prescription or over the counter (found near eye drops). Fake tears, also known as eye drops, are usually recommended by eye doctors, too, to help restore moisture to eyes.

Dry eye syndrome has many causes, and what's most important is treating the problem. Your eye doctor might put non dissolving punctal plugs in the corners of your eyes closest to your nose. These plugs will not hurt, but will encourage tears in your tear ducts. Some punctal plugs will dissolve in a number of days and be absorbed into your skin. There should be few side-effects caused by punctal plugs, but sometimes your eyes will water. 

What You Can Do

Use damp washcloths on your eyes to help increase moisture. Dampen a cloth with warm water and place it across your eyes while lying down. Keep the cloth in place for about ten minutes each day. You could also try this method morning and night for ten minutes each if you find it helps you.

Get a humidifier for you bedroom. Sleep with the humidifier on each night, especially when the weather causes dry air, or you have a furnace pumping in warm air every day. 

When you look at a computer screen or other electric device's screen for long periods, you forget to blink as often as you would otherwise. Make a conscious effort to blink, and make sure you blink all the way, or it may not do any good.

Wearing protective sunglasses will help protect your eyes from the drying sun and wind, and possibly any other pollutants and allergies that can get in your eyes. 

These methods can help restore the proper amount of moisture to your eyes and ease your eye pain. Talk to your eye care specialist if you think you may have chronic dry eye syndrome.


Share