I have had an allergic reaction

[donna]

I used Viscoe tears yesterday morning, my eyes then felt a little sore but I didnt make the connection, used it again at teatime cos my eyes felt sore, I left my lenses out then.
At bedtime one more drop in my right eye. Woke up with my eyes glued shut and the white part of my eye all red. Noway was I wearing my lenses today so bathed my eyes in cool boiled water and thought I had conjunctivitis, except my eyes are not itchy and I am not rubbing them or tempted to rub them.I went to the cinema with my son and my eyes started to look better, i thought it was because I had taken an antihistamine this morning....until I got home and used the drops again. Agony!
That was 4 hours ago and my eyes settling down again now.
Its still red and sore but not as bad. i am going to the gp in the morning.
I had a full eye exam on Thursday and everything was fine, usual wear time on friday, so its got to be the drops, this is the first time I have had them. Any advice to make my eyes feel more comfy until I can get to the doctors? I have not had an allergic reaction to drops before

[Sweet]

Donna,

Hello there! Sorry to read about this, it does sound like a reaction, especially if you haven't used these drops before. I get a terrible gritty feeling using Cellovisc so I don't use it anymore. Systane I find much nicer as it is more of a gel and not a viscous substance.

Cooling or warming pads can help ease your eye. I find a nice cold wet flannel nice when my eyes are red and sore. Be gentle and leave your lenses out until your eyes get better. Saline drops might be nice as well as there is nothing in them which you can react to and they will be nice and cooling to your eye as well as rinsing them.

Hoping the doctor goes well. Love Sweet X x X

[donna]

Thanks Sweet I tried a clean warm face cloth just before and it helped alot! I will get some saline drops tomorrow. How long do you think it will take for my eyes to recover? I cant do much without my lenses

[Sweet]

It all depends really and of course if it is a reaction! I had to leave my lenses out for about two days and used regular saline drops and cool wet flannels. It really helped. Bright lights really hurt so maybe some nice darkness would be good!

Hoping you feel better soon!!

[donna]

Its a good job i am still off work! I am supposed to be going back to work in 2 weeks I felt ready to go back aswell, I was getting excellent wear time, lenses are a very good fit etc and now this! Today was the 1st time i went out without my lenses and its scary! I could see 3 of everything and couldnt tell where the edge of kerbs were. Its not something I want to do again in a hurry! My mum is giving me a lift to the doctors tomorrow
The longer it gets from when I used the drops my eyes feel slightly better, they look very red though!

[donna]

Big improvment today! Myleft eye looks normalish, the right one is still slightly red and sore.I am at the doctors this morning.

[GarethB]

Donna,

In 2005 I had a reaction to my lenses, and I spent a good 3 to 6 months finding the eye drops that worked for me.

I know I bang on about Systane because they worked for me. Your experince is a classic example of what works for one is a real pain for another. I know visco tears works well for many people here.

You will find the best drops for you eventually.

Good luck.

[Matthew_]

Donna,
Sorry to hear that you are having such a rough time!
I have just had 3 weeks without lenses because of an allergic reaction too. I think I might have got away with a couple of days however, had I not kept trying to squeeze the hours out of my lenses! I had been used to 8 hours and so I kept them in despite the discomfort (and pain in sunlight.) It sounds like you are being a lot more sensible, so hopefully you will not have so long to wait. I went back to Gartnavel and the optom had a look at my eyes. The cornea was so sensitised by that stage that anything could irritate it, the 3 weeks gave the surface a chance to stabilise and become firm again.
In my case hayfever triggered the initial sensitivity and then I became intollerant to the preservatives in my solutions and my viscotears too. Apparently, when allergies affect the eye, the cornea becomes a bit spongy. The lens can then easily scratch the surface and remove the cells. The lens is then basically sitting on the nerve endings! Then of course the eye becomes sensitive to everything, sunlight, solutions and so on...
The good news is that the cornea cells grow back really quiickly, so even a day off lenses should allow you to wear them again.
I found I was suddenly allergic to things I had not been before:
-Preservatives in solutions
-Hayfever eye drops
-Viscotears
-Systane

After the 3 weeks which just finished I switched to preservative free solutions and I am using the vials of Systane (thanks Gareth ) which are preservative free. The difference is overwhelming!! It doesn't even feel like my lenses are in apart from being able to see
So, all in all I wouldn't be surprised if your reaction to viscotears has lead to other reactions or sensitivities you never had before. Or a seasonal reaction has made you suddenly sensitive to viscotears. I found going in to the clinic was well worth it. The Optom was able to have a good look at the cornea and advise me to give them time to heal. She also had lots of really useful tips on how to manage my allergies.

[donna]

My gp gave me anti allergen drops and Minims drops , my eyes feel a lot better now. The redness is going aswell.
I have never had a reaction as bad as that to anything before......and hope I never do again!
I also got antibiotics because I have a throat infection aswell Not a good start to the week!

[GarethB]

I have found that KC makes the eye very sensitive anyway. So any infection I get is always noticed by an increased sensitivity.

As a results colds and sore throats are generally very short lived as I pick up on them before they have a chance to take hold.