Fake Tears

Oh look! Third post is about some passive/aggressive thing. Or maybe third post is some long poem!

No, actually, this post is about eye drops.

Most of my life, I've suffered from dry eyes.  It's one of those things that you get so used to that you don't even think about it anymore. It's one of those little pains that never goes away, just strains on you hour after hour until eventually, you shut your stinging, abused eyes for several hours of sleep.

Why it took me to 37 to realize this didn't have to be the case is beyond me.

I would occasionally use eye drops, but not that often. A lot of this had to do with the basic fear of putting things into my eyes. I hate that so much. When something even comes near them my eye starts to blink and protest, well, you know, in its own EYE kind of way. There was also the fact that I never mastered the drop thing. Instead of just squeezing out one or two drops, I would go from nothing nothing NOTHING...to a flood.  It was always horrible.

The thing is, most of that was due to lack of practice and familiarity. My roommate started using them on a regular basis after an eye appointment and they helped him a lot. He suggested I try it and I wasn't sure, mostly for the reasons mentioned above.  I gave it a shot though.  I'm so glad I did.

Really, eye drops can be wonderful for people in my situation. Putting them in causes almost immediate relief from the stingies.  As I said above, the pain is something you get used to, but that doesn't mean it isn't there.  It's so much easier to focus when you don't feel like tiny needles are stabbing into your iris. I found I could stay up longer and got less headaches. I could even see with more clarity for longer periods of time.

I overcame my fear about it by reminding my eyes how much better they would feel.  They began to work with me, in their own EYE kind of way, and were thankful.  As for controlling the drops, that has come with practice. I can safely say there have only been a few mishaps.

I try to do them at night before going to bed, just to take out the last of the evening sting, and in the morning when I wake up.  Sometimes I have to reapply midday, especially if I've been stirring up dust or the cats are shedding.  My roommate put a bottle of drops on the bathroom counter. It's by my toothbrush, which honestly makes it easier for me to remember to do it.

OH! And they have drops for people with allergies. I will warn you, those burn when you first put them in. It's horrible. But it's temporary. After that, you feel so much better.

In conclusion, fake tears can SO be your friend.  If you are tired of the constant nagging ache in your eye sockets, eye drops may help a lot. There really is no reason to suffer.