Testimonials: Lid-Related & Meibomian Dysfunctional Dry Eye

Remember that additional testimonials may be available in both French and Portuguese if you read any of these languages.

Steve (Sweden) As a newly-diagnosed dry-eye sufferer with Blepharitis, I was advised only to "try all the over-the-counter drops I could" until one seemed to help.  This was in Sweden where the quality of care for chronic conditions is quite poor, and finding a specialist who can see you within a year is sometimes difficult.  So I couldn't just find a better specialist. One of the few drops that felt soothing when first applied was Visine Night, a European OTC product which includes Benzalkonium Chloride in known cytotoxic concentrations.  I didn't know this, all I knew was that my eyes often felt worse in the morning than at night when I put them in, and that the dry-eye was slowly worsening.  Worse, I was trying other drops in the daytime, and even the most promising ones were painful to use.  When I finally found out about the dangers of BAC, I trashed the Visine Night and looked around for a preservative-free alternative.  As an unexpected side benefit, I found that some good day drops that had been too painful to use, were now quite soothing! Over the next two months I saw a noticeable improvement in my dry-eye and Blepharitis symptoms, and can now use several eyedrops that were previously too painful.  I hope I am healing from the damage caused by the preservatives! Steve, Stockholm, Sweden

 

Gloria (UK) I have had dry eyes for 9 months now  I got my Dry Eyes from a viral infection. I have been told I have blepharitis and meibomian gland dysfunction. I am an older woman, post menopausal and i suppose it was waiting to happen I also suffer from osteo arthritis which I understand can be a factor in DE.  I have suffered quite a lot in the past from chronic ailments but non can be as unpleasant, debilitating and depressing as ones eyes being constantly painful itchy prickly and sensitive to light. It makes you desperate and you will do anything to get help and relief My heart goes out to Sara and other much younger people than me whose lives are being ruined by this dreadful complaint and yet WHAT IS BEING DONE IN THE UNITED KINGDOM TO HELP US ? Practically nothing! The lack of interest resources and knowledge are abysmal. We are driven to self -diagnosis and self-prescribing, sending for the drugs and eye drops we require from the internet which is at best anything but ideal and at worst positively dangerous So what are we expected to do? Go away and suffer! I wish some the eye docs and people who write it off as not serious could suffer what we do for even a week let alone day and night with no let -up and no help. It is the Cinderella of the eye world and the excuse is that it is" not serious" -neither is toothache before it becomes more serious and affects the whole jaw but it is recognized that people have to get help earlier on. Likewise, dry eyes if left untreated may become very serious and much more expensive and complicated to treat.  To make matters worse we anxiously surf the net and finally join a cyber self -help group only to find there are lots of things out there mostly in the USA ,which we are refused It is like dangling a prize before us and giving us an obstacle course to go through to get it. Then to my amazement -I find out that vets have access to cyclosporine for dogs ,and we can not get it in the UK. That is nothing short of disgraceful. Then we realize that there are millions of people out there with varying degrees of DE -So why is there so little help in the UK? Most of us can’t afford to take trips to the USA to get the help we need so something needs to be done. From the heart - and on behalf of my fellow sufferers.

 

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