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Not sure why I'm writing this here, I guess I'm bored and I can't do much right now. I can't read anyhing lengthy, I can't play games that require me to pay much attention. Maybe some of you have had similar problems but having frequented some forums on the issue, it seems like the problems are so diverse that there's not one answer to one problem... but more scary is that many people never find a solution.
I'm writing this with an eyepatch covering my left eye which is the worse of the two. My eyesight is and has always been very good, but over the last few months I've been having various problems which I've brought to optometrists and the next step might be to go see an ophthalmologist. Essentially, my eyes get dry and irritated and sore and sometimes when it gets too bad, it feels like needles are being shoved into them.
It all started when I woke up one morning with intense, truly intense pain in my eye. It was so painful that I panicked and didn't know what to. My eyelid fluttered like crazy and it really felt like I had the tip of a knife inside my eyeball. It didn't matter if my eye was closed or opened, the pain was there. It got better after a few minutes but I still went to the optometrist - she gave me this ointment for my eye, which helped a little but not much. For a week, it was painful. Then for 2 months, I was micromanaging my eyes. Eyedrops to lubricate even though it's largely ineffective - I was in near constant discomfort. In class, I was constantly closing my eyes to rest them and and consciously blinked to prevent my eyes from drying out and getting more irritated. Giving classes was worse and my students probably suffered a little bit from it...
Then after that it got better, with some episodes of tired eyes and whatnot, and recently after a few months of (relative) peace, it started coming back. The computer screen murders my eyes, reading books seems fine at first, but the discomfort hits me like a truck shortly after I'm done.
Just doing random things like talking to people doesn't put a strain on my eyes, but most things that I have to do seem to... At its worst, this condition, whatever it is, completely disables me. I can't do anything and the horror stories on the interwebs make me think that maybe I'll have to deal with this thing for my whole life. Hell, if it's like most things, it'll get worse as I get older. If I don't find a solution, I don't know how I can live with this....
Anyway, just wanted to share. Cheers.
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D:
I have nothing useful to say. That sounds absolutely debilitating. Hope the docs find out wtf is going on with it.
Is it worse in certain lighting?
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On May 05 2014 11:04 babylon wrote:
D:
I have nothing useful to say. That sounds absolutely debilitating. Hope the docs find out wtf is going on with it.
Is it worse in certain lighting?
For a few days after I woke up with pain in my eyes, I had sensitivity to light. Now I'd say light makes it worse but it's hard to tell really what makes the difference between a terrible day and a decent day like 3 days ago. I think the computer screen isn't helping at all which really doesn't help me because I have a lot of reading to catch up on for a conference on Tuesday.
I used to read pdfs, now sometimes I have to print... sounds stupid but that's expensive, especially since sometimes it doesn't seem to be that much better.
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I feel you on the printing thing ... I only print when I have access to a free printer. >_>
You've probably tried this already, but does lowering the screen brightness help at all? Or changing the refresh rate on your monitor?
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TLADT24920 Posts
That sounds really rough. I think for now, printing using a printer (use laser and all black/white to save money for now) is the best option to help rest them up. I was going to ask this same question:
On May 05 2014 11:38 babylon wrote:
I feel you on the printing thing ... I only print when I have access to a free printer. >_>
You've probably tried this already, but does lowering the screen brightness help at all? Or changing the refresh rate on your monitor?
When you are having the pain, are they red? It can't be bacterial because you said there is no pus (bacterial conjunctivitis). You also didn't say they get watery which can be seen as a sign for viral conjunctivitis. It does sound like it's dry eyes though I'm not an ophthalmologist and it says mucous though I've never heard that as a symptom till now. This is what dry eyes are though I'm presuming you already read up on this:
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dry-eyes/basics/symptoms/con-20024129
What helps your eyes so far? Is there anything specific that you found that alleviates the pain? What about making it worst (like the computer screen and sensitivity to light)? I think the best to do atm is to try and experiment for a day on what helps you and makes it worse while you wait to see an ophthalmologist. Also, avoid reading articles on google. I wouldn't trust though because they usually make situations worse than they are. Stay strong and hope things get better! 
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Isn't there any kind of eyewear to fix it?
Anyway I sincerely hope you'll get better, man, take care.
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Thinking about eye problems terrifies me and leaves me in a puddle of nervous sweat and salty tears.
All the luck in the world to you, sir.
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Have you been missing any sleep?
Is there stress in your life? (Besides that caused by the dry pain)
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For the printing thing. Have you tried an Ereader? They don't have the same issues with backlight and refresh rates. I get blinding headaches if I read for too many hours at the computer, not so with my Nook.
I would assume the same issues as with normal books apply though.
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Go to the ophtalmologist. Could be a lot of different stuff. Consider genetic analysis cause eye problems shouldn't show up on their own when you're young afaik.
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Question: do you wear glasses?
If not the solution may be that simple.
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On May 05 2014 11:38 babylon wrote:
You've probably tried this already, but does lowering the screen brightness help at all? Or changing the refresh rate on your monitor?
I lower the light and use f.lux, I turn it up so high at night that the screen is essentially red/orange. Not sure if it helps but I think it can't hurt.
On May 05 2014 11:58 BigFan wrote:When you are having the pain, are they red? It can't be bacterial because you said there is no pus (bacterial conjunctivitis). You also didn't say they get watery which can be seen as a sign for viral conjunctivitis. It does sound like it's dry eyes though I'm not an ophthalmologist and it says mucous though I've never heard that as a symptom till now. This is what dry eyes are though I'm presuming you already read up on this: http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dry-eyes/basics/symptoms/con-20024129What helps your eyes so far? Is there anything specific that you found that alleviates the pain? What about making it worst (like the computer screen and sensitivity to light)? I think the best to do atm is to try and experiment for a day on what helps you and makes it worse while you wait to see an ophthalmologist. Also, avoid reading articles on google. I wouldn't trust though because they usually make situations worse than they are. Stay strong and hope things get better!
My eyes don't really get red, nor do they water. They get dry and eyedrops don't really help much for keeping them hydrated. Sometimes it helps for like 10 minutes, other times 10 seconds.
What helps for me is staying away from the computer which sucks.
On May 05 2014 13:53 ZenithM wrote:
Isn't there any kind of eyewear to fix it?
Anyway I sincerely hope you'll get better, man, take care.
They have weird glasses with foam around the rim to "keep the moisture in" but they look weird and their utility is contested. What helps the most as far as I can tell is muro 128 ointment but it's only for nighttime because it's so thick you can't really see anything after you use it.
On May 05 2014 14:47 Alakaslam wrote:
Have you been missing any sleep?
Is there stress in your life? (Besides that caused by the dry pain)
2 nights ago it was so bad that I slept for 11 hours even though I wasn't particularly tired. As for stress, not particularly. I don't think that's the problem and I wish it was.
On May 05 2014 15:03 Yurie wrote:
For the printing thing. Have you tried an Ereader? They don't have the same issues with backlight and refresh rates. I get blinding headaches if I read for too many hours at the computer, not so with my Nook.
I would assume the same issues as with normal books apply though.
I'll need to get me one. How good are they at reading pdfs though? The pdfs I read oftentimes have graphs and stuff. I wouldn't know which ereader to get. But yeah reading a book or a tablet would probably be better - but not "good". As a person who's writing a master's thesis, I can assure you that my life sucks sometimes 
On May 05 2014 18:31 Cortza wrote:That sounds truly awful. I've have problems with headaches and such related to eye strain. I did some research a while back and found this program. http://www.softpedia.com/get/Desktop-Enhancements/Other-Desktop-Enhancements/DimScreen.shtmlIt lowers brightness without affecting the refresh rate. Might help with the computer eye strain. Make sure to max out the screen brightness on the monitor's settings. Hope you get better.
Thanks for that, it might actually be pretty helpful.
On May 05 2014 20:35 Vivax wrote:
Go to the ophtalmologist. Could be a lot of different stuff. Consider genetic analysis cause eye problems shouldn't show up on their own when you're young afaik.
Hopefully my optometrist will refer me... being in Canada, seeing a medical professional with a specialty like ophthalmology means waiting for a few months...
Cheers everyone.
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I have anxiety and sometimes have that kind of problems. Avoiding PC and TV for 3,4 days should solve it. If not, use eyedrops.
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On May 05 2014 23:36 JanDe wrote:
I have anxiety and sometimes have that kind of problems. Avoiding PC and TV for 3,4 days should solve it. If not, use eyedrops.
I cut down on the PC time (I don't watch TV) and it helps but it doesn't go away. And unfortunately, eye drops don't work. I've tried a bunch of different types and brands with little success.
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Again at the risk of internet diagnosis you may also want to look up Sjogren's syndrome.
Do you have a dry mouth at all?
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On May 06 2014 00:12 WaveofShadow wrote:
Again at the risk of internet diagnosis you may also want to look up Sjogren's syndrome.
Do you have a dry mouth at all?
I read a little bit about that but no I don't have a dry mouth.
Went to the optometrist and he prescribed 1 year worth of muro 128 which is nice - and some "Erythromycin" which is apparently a fairly weak antibiotic... he's not too optimistic about that but he prescribed it in the off chance that it might help - and it's not so strong that using it without an infection would have a negative effect.
He also talked about this new medicine for dry eyes that I might want to consider if it continued for too long - but it's new and so the turbo-insurance of Canada wouldn't cover it and it's apparently really expensive and takes about 3 months to give results. So I'm thinking about it.
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On May 05 2014 22:27 Djzapz wrote:Show nested quote +On May 05 2014 15:03 Yurie wrote:
For the printing thing. Have you tried an Ereader? They don't have the same issues with backlight and refresh rates. I get blinding headaches if I read for too many hours at the computer, not so with my Nook.
I would assume the same issues as with normal books apply though. I'll need to get me one. How good are they at reading pdfs though? The pdfs I read oftentimes have graphs and stuff. I wouldn't know which ereader to get. But yeah reading a book or a tablet would probably be better - but not "good". As a person who's writing a master's thesis, I can assure you that my life sucks sometimes
I havn't actually tried out PDFs all that much. An Ereader is basically a screen with "no" refresh rate and no backlight. So it is very similar to the experience of a normal book. The majority of them are just a slimmed OS with some dictonary, file handler and a hidden browser. The majority of them includes Adobes solution for reading PDFs on mobile devices. But as I said I havn't tried it out. The major issue would probably be in resolution, depending on size you get.
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I had similar problems for many years. Let me just share my experience, whether they are like yours I don't know. Reading from/looking something at computer screen was possible for about 15 minutes, book reading a little longer. After that, pain. Reading more, and I was in pains for the whole day. The pain was in the eyes and around them, bilaterally. Always the same. It was very strange, the way how aggressive and quick the pain was. Patching the other eye helped, but not really solved anything. What I suddenly noticed however was that the pain came also from other activities, such as teaching (which I did for a living at that time), even from meetings requiring concentration, driving the car in a city. More relaxed activity had no effects. So it wasn't just eye strain from reading, it was something some general. A strange thing happened, some doctor noticed that I had chronical sinusitis which was fixed by surgery. This was eventually found out because I started to have symptoms in the morning before I did anything. What then happened, after the surgery, was that I now have a normal eye strain from screen, but not that kind of pain anymore. I don't feel sick in the morning. If I now have eye strain from sreen and stop looking at it, the discomfort quickly disappears - before the surgery it just didn't. So what I think happened to me was that the eye strain and/or stress just triggered the pain originally coming from the chronic sinusitis. So keep this in mind, for me it was just a powerful trigger. You probably have something different, but your description matches with my experiences and the underlying problem could be something else than the eye strain itself, which might be only the trigger. You should suspect this if the symptoms are associated with other activities as well and if they are too strong/aggressive/fast to result from eye strain, which is quite mild discomfort in comparsion and only develops after several hours of work. One more note, because I had so much pain (chronic inflammation in the face every day), I used a lot of painkillers, because I had to work. The doctor told me that this is bad, because it increases pain sensitivity. So one part of my problem was that.
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On May 06 2014 05:49 aggu wrote:
I had similar problems for many years. Let me just share my experience, whether they are like yours I don't know. Reading from/looking something at computer screen was possible for about 15 minutes, book reading a little longer. After that, pain. Reading more, and I was in pains for the whole day. The pain was in the eyes and around them, bilaterally. Always the same. It was very strange, the way how aggressive and quick the pain was. Patching the other eye helped, but not really solved anything. What I suddenly noticed however was that the pain came also from other activities, such as teaching (which I did for a living at that time), even from meetings requiring concentration, driving the car in a city. More relaxed activity had no effects. So it wasn't just eye strain from reading, it was something some general. A strange thing happened, some doctor noticed that I had chronical sinusitis which was fixed by surgery. This was eventually found out because I started to have symptoms in the morning before I did anything. What then happened, after the surgery, was that I now have a normal eye strain from screen, but not that kind of pain anymore. I don't feel sick in the morning. If I now have eye strain from sreen and stop looking at it, the discomfort quickly disappears - before the surgery it just didn't. So what I think happened to me was that the eye strain and/or stress just triggered the pain originally coming from the chronic sinusitis. So keep this in mind, for me it was just a powerful trigger. You probably have something different, but your description matches with my experiences and the underlying problem could be something else than the eye strain itself, which might be only the trigger. You should suspect this if the symptoms are associated with other activities as well and if they are too strong/aggressive/fast to result from eye strain, which is quite mild discomfort in comparsion and only develops after several hours of work. One more note, because I had so much pain (chronic inflammation in the face every day), I used a lot of painkillers, because I had to work. The doctor told me that this is bad, because it increases pain sensitivity. So one part of my problem was that.
Thanks, I'm glad that it got better for you. I've never had sinusitis so I don't know what could be causing my issues 
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I'll echo what others have said and say make sure you're getting medical advice from a pro.
I've seen an ad on tv recently about "eyes losing vital nutrients as you age." I don't recall what the product is called, but I do remember the 3 key ingredients:
Lutein (a carotenoid)
Zeaxanthin (a carotenoid)
Omega-3s
Thus, I would advise you to pick up foods containing high amounts of carotenoids and Omega-3s. Examples are carrots, sweet potatoes, dark leafy greens (kale, spinach, turnip greens and mustard greens), tomatoes, and other orange and red veggies.
For omega-3s, I advise o3-enriched dairy, o3-enriched eggs, edamame (soy), wild rice, walnuts, canola oil, flaxseed, beans, and seafood.
Along with this suggestion, water and exercise can only help. Don't feel like exercising? Practice posture and walk more. Also try to keep track of your electrolyte intake - potassium and sodium can do wonders for your system if taken in correct amounts. I take the lazy way and go with Gatorade.
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As far as the vitamins go, there are a whole bunch of formulations out there that are made up especially for eyes. For example the AREDS study found that vitamins/minerals such as beta-carotene (in non-smokers) general anti-oxidants and zinc significantly reduced progression of a disease called age-related macular degeneration in its advanced stages. This disease specifically targets the center area of vision in the back of the eye and mostly affects older people. Extra intake of these vitamins as well as the ones hp.shell mentioned are good for general health but overall have not been shown to prevent the disease in those taking it at a younger age. They couldn't hurt but I can say they likely won't help the OP with his issue as these mineral and vitamins are targeted towards the retina and the pigmented epithelium within while OP's issue is with the anterior eye.
And Djzapz, regarding that treatment fairly recently released for dry eyes that's fairly expensive---you're referring to cyclosporine or specifically 'Restasis' I assume? From everything I've heard, it actually works extremely well; unfortunately as you said it can be expensive and I'm honestly not sure what the availability is like as it's still somewhat new.
Again, best of luck to you. I wish there was something I could actually do to help aside from offering tidbits of stuff I've learned.
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On May 06 2014 09:19 WaveofShadow wrote:
And Djzapz, regarding that treatment fairly recently released for dry eyes that's fairly expensive---you're referring to cyclosporine or specifically 'Restasis' I assume? From everything I've heard, it actually works extremely well; unfortunately as you said it can be expensive and I'm honestly not sure what the availability is like as it's still somewhat new.
Again, best of luck to you. I wish there was something I could actually do to help aside from offering tidbits of stuff I've learned.
I've heard of restasis before, it may have been what the optometrist referred to. $100-140 a month without insurance is a bit steep though, but if it persists then I'll have to take the hit and at least give it a shot.
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TLADT24920 Posts
On May 05 2014 22:27 Djzapz wrote:Show nested quote +On May 05 2014 11:58 BigFan wrote:When you are having the pain, are they red? It can't be bacterial because you said there is no pus (bacterial conjunctivitis). You also didn't say they get watery which can be seen as a sign for viral conjunctivitis. It does sound like it's dry eyes though I'm not an ophthalmologist and it says mucous though I've never heard that as a symptom till now. This is what dry eyes are though I'm presuming you already read up on this: http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dry-eyes/basics/symptoms/con-20024129What helps your eyes so far? Is there anything specific that you found that alleviates the pain? What about making it worst (like the computer screen and sensitivity to light)? I think the best to do atm is to try and experiment for a day on what helps you and makes it worse while you wait to see an ophthalmologist. Also, avoid reading articles on google. I wouldn't trust though because they usually make situations worse than they are. Stay strong and hope things get better! My eyes don't really get red, nor do they water. They get dry and eyedrops don't really help much for keeping them hydrated. Sometimes it helps for like 10 minutes, other times 10 seconds. What helps for me is staying away from the computer which sucks.
ya, that's definitely rough. Maybe that ereader that's been recommended can help. Not much else you can do I'm afraid :/ You're doing the best you can atm.
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I also have had trouble with my eyes.
Mine stemmed from two issues:
1) I have Decompensated Heterophoria
2) I GLARED at a screen stressed from work/gaming
This caused all the muscles behind and around my eyes to pack up and go on strike after a while.
It hurt to look at things, I got headaches, occular migraines (I go blind when I have mine \o/), the lot.
I had to do the following to fix it:
- Hold two pens, one in front of (~2"/5cm), but slightly lower than the other.
- Look at the further one for 3 seconds. Look at the closer one for 3 seconds. Back to the further one, back to the closer one.
- Move the closer one a little closer.
- Repeat until the closer one was too close to focus on.
- Move the closer one a little further away, repeat until back in to first position.
This takes about 15 minutes and you're left with an incredible headache, so do it just before bed and sleep the headache off.
Do this daily.
I also now look around a lot more. Focus on things are completely different distances a lot (look out the window at something far away, look around a lot at everything).
Things like this keep the eyes active and strengthen the muscles.
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On May 07 2014 00:24 Gowerly wrote:I also have had trouble with my eyes. Mine stemmed from two issues: 1) I have Decompensated Heterophoria2) I GLARED at a screen stressed from work/gaming This caused all the muscles behind and around my eyes to pack up and go on strike after a while. It hurt to look at things, I got headaches, occular migraines (I go blind when I have mine \o/), the lot. I had to do the following to fix it: - Hold two pens, one in front of (~2"/5cm), but slightly lower than the other. - Look at the further one for 3 seconds. Look at the closer one for 3 seconds. Back to the further one, back to the closer one. - Move the closer one a little closer. - Repeat until the closer one was too close to focus on. - Move the closer one a little further away, repeat until back in to first position. This takes about 15 minutes and you're left with an incredible headache, so do it just before bed and sleep the headache off. Do this daily. I also now look around a lot more. Focus on things are completely different distances a lot (look out the window at something far away, look around a lot at everything). Things like this keep the eyes active and strengthen the muscles.
I'm not sure this is my problem. I don't really get headaches. Still I'm making a point to spend more focusing on things at different distances.
I've barely been at my computer in the last 2 days and I think it's helping but I don't know... it's hard to tell. Part of me wonders if maybe it happens because I have a massive backlog of eye strain from reading too much - perhaps the 120hz monitor is making it worse, too, even though it's not too bright. Anyways I'm going back to detox now. Cheers.
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If it is just an eye strain, you can gently massage the area surrounding the eyes with your fingertips.
Also, learn how to completely relax your eyes for half a minute several times a day (not that easy actually).
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EPT
