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[Hopeful2]

Good morning ladies.

Was wondering if anyone else experiences this. My left eye takes a few seconds to open in the morning completely freaks me out every morning and in the night when I wake. Its fine in the day.

Optician says I'm not producing tears in eyes so I'm using gel drops for dry eyes. Could it just be dry eyes causing this? So upset over everything feel like I'm falling apart. Thanks for your help ladies.

[Nas]

If it is dry eyes, I recommend hycosan drops, an excellent lubricant to rehydrate and moisturise dry eyes. Obviously if it is something else, it will need to be investigated further.

Any redness or swelling in the morning? How is the health of the eye lid? Does the lid feel sticky?

 

[Hopeful2]

Good morning Nas.

Thanks for your reply. No stickiness but I have little bump on eyelid which was sore a few months ago but barely noticeable now and not painful Dr said it looks like blocked tear duct.

[Dorothy Gale]

I'm sorry you're struggling with this.

It happens to me most nights and has done for the past couple of years so I no longer freak out about it.

Opticians gave me clean bill of eye health and said its classic dry eyes. Extremely common in menopause.

He said its a case of management. I use Hycosan extra eye drops which are my saviour and make eyes feel normal. When I get up in the night with the usual eyes hard to open, I put in 3 or 4 drops in each eye...and that sorts it out.....then back to sleep......then repeat.....I uses them during the day too......they are about £11 but so worth it in my opinion. Boots do them but I get mine from amazon.

There's lots of other things you can do and lots on YouTube and Web about dry eyes.

It's just another thing to add to the list I'm afraid!

Try not to get too upset....I know its distressing but the drops help and you'll be OK. Its nothing serious.

[Hopeful2]

Thank you so much Dorothy Gale for your lovely kind message. I don't feel so panicked now 💐

[Dorothy Gale]

You're very welcome xx

[Birdbrain]

Good morning ladies.

Was wondering if anyone else experiences this. My left eye takes a few seconds to open in the morning completely freaks me out every morning and in the night when I wake. Its fine in the day.

Optician says I'm not producing tears in eyes so I'm using gel drops for dry eyes. Could it just be dry eyes causing this? So upset over everything feel like I'm falling apart. Thanks for your help ladies.

It could be Sjogren's Syndrome - I had exactly the same thing. Do you have dry mouth too? I would ask your GP to refer you to an Ophthalmologist or a specialist eye hospital like Moorfields and ask them to perform a Schirmer tear test, a test for your tear film (how quickly tears dry up) and a blood test for antibodies associated with Sjogren's. I was first referred to Moorfields after I had Thyroid Eye Diseas and when they screened me for various antibodies just in case, it turned out I had Sjogren's. I was then referred to a rheumatologist (Sjogren's is a rheumatological condition) and am now under the care of both Moorfields and a rheumatologist.

Sjogren's takes a long time to diagnose because symptoms are often mistaken for something else, so I think it's worth getting tested for it (there is no definitive test so it's a combination of tests). I have it and I use Hylo-Tears (artificial tears) during the day and Ikervis eye drops (immunosuppresant eye drops) and Hycosan ointment at night before going to bed. The Ikervis eye drops worked wonders - some days I can go the whole day without using Hylo-Tears or any other lubricating eye drops.

P.S. Sjogren's can also cause joint pain, fatigue, brain fog, neuropathy...but they resemble menopause/perimenopause symptoms so you may have these things which doesn't necessarily mean it's Sjogren's. But very very dry eyes and/or very very dry mouth is definitely a flag.

[Birdbrain]

I'm sorry you're struggling with this.

It happens to me most nights and has done for the past couple of years so I no longer freak out about it.

Opticians gave me clean bill of eye health and said its classic dry eyes. Extremely common in menopause.

He said its a case of management. I use Hycosan extra eye drops which are my saviour and make eyes feel normal. When I get up in the night with the usual eyes hard to open, I put in 3 or 4 drops in each eye...and that sorts it out.....then back to sleep......then repeat.....I uses them during the day too......they are about £11 but so worth it in my opinion. Boots do them but I get mine from amazon.

There's lots of other things you can do and lots on YouTube and Web about dry eyes.

It's just another thing to add to the list I'm afraid!

Try not to get too upset....I know its distressing but the drops help and you'll be OK. Its nothing serious.

I'd also consider getting tested for Sjogrens as per my post above. Also, Ikervis eye drops can be used even for just very dry eyes. It's prescription only though.

[Hopeful2]

Thank you Birdbrain for your reply.

I had a blood test for sjrogens it came back ok. I will look into those eye drops. Thanks so much for your advice 💐.

[Birdbrain]

Thank you Birdbrain for your reply.

I had a blood test for sjrogens it came back ok. I will look into those eye drops. Thanks so much for your advice 💐.

Oh that's good to hear!
I hope you find something that works for you. I don't know if you're on HRT but my dry eyes impoved with that too (though some people that's not always the case).

[DottyD68]

Hi hopeful2 (love your name !)

I have acquired very dry eyes. My bro is an optician so gives me advice. My regime is:-

Warm eye pad everyday for at least 10 mins (I use an electric one "aroma season" from amazon which is much better that microwave ones) followed by very gentle massaging of eyelids to encourage natural oils to flow out. I now enjoy this and put the eyepad on when I wake up or have time for a time out to listen to my mindfulness app.

Hycosan Dual eyedrops during day as required, but probably at least twice a day.

Sea Buckthorn capsules fron H&B once a day.

Hycosan Night gel before bed.

Hope this helps x

[Hopeful2]

Thank you both so much for your most helpful replies 💐.
 
I've posted also about my oestrogen level being 945pmol. Am worried its too high as my blood pressure has gone up and have been feeling dizzy. I guess it would be sensible to reduce my Sandrena a little bit. I feel I will never get a balance.

Thanks again for your replies x