Help for dry eyes! Can I re-build my tear film?

I've had really bad problems with dry eye for about the last year. I took thera tears fish oil pills for a while, and they helped, then stopped taking them. I've been taking them again for a month, but my eyes are still really dry. I wear contacts, work on a computer all day, and sit under an air conditioning vent. I was wondering, if I wear only my glasses for a week or so, (or a month), will my tear film that has deteriorated get thicker? What can I do? I have an appointment with an eye doctor with the intention of getting acuvue oasys, but my eyes hurt now! Thanks!

Ask your doctor to do a Tear Break Up Time test...which will determine the degree of your dry eye problem.

Restasis requires a prescription, and a lot of insurance companies drag their feet about authorizing its use, but hopefully you won't have that problem.

Changing your workstation as mentioned above is a great idea.

Another great fix (but takes some time) is to use warm, damp heat on your eyes for 5-10 minutes every morning and evening. Follow this with a lid cleanser like Ocusoft. A lot of patients with dry eyes have other conditions with their eyelids that make them worse - this lid hygeine therapy can help remove some of those problems which can in turn help maintain the tear film.

Avoid over use of over the counter drops. Most just drain out of your eye within minutes any way and can actually make the problem worse.

Taking a break from contacts might help somewhat, but your tear film won't regenerate as rapidly as you are hoping.

i had PRK surgery back in may and i use refresh eye drops. they're very cheap and non-addictive. visine and medicated drops can often make your eyes dependant on their use.

works like a charm, keep them in the fridge for added comfort!

There are several things you can do... first of all, become more friendly with your glasses. If you have a pair you hate, get new ones. There are some qtts called Restasis, they are a very mild cortasporin qtts but they can not be used while wearing contacts. I think the space of time between qtts and contacts is about 2 hours.

Second and more immediate is, punctual plugs. The opening for tears to drain in your lower lid is plugged. Speak to your dr about them. Good luck, dry eyes and contacts have been a battle for a very long time, I hope you find a solution that works for you.

I suffer about the same for similar reasons, it is necessary to change the working habits and have good sleeping.
If your work demands to keep adverse conditions to your eyes, you should soften them, for example, avoid air conditioning vent, change your monitor for a LDC screen, tube monitors emit radiations which form cataracts, this type of cataract is almost invisible, it rounds the cornea and provokes same symptoms you have, reduce the amount of hour in front of the computer and reduce the bright as much as you can.
Visit your ophthalmologist to perform a deep eye exam, may be you suffer cataracts and you don't know. I have to replace the natural eye lenses by artificial ones, it is a simple but expensive operation.
Hope to have helped you

When you go for your eye appt, consult with your doctor about either punctal plugs or starting a drop called Restasis. Restasis helps the body produce more tears. It is a great drop but you have to take it consistantly and usually takes 1-3 months to notice a difference. So it can get expensive in the long run but has had great results in the end. Hope this helps!!

I have the same problem and my eye doctor told me to wear my glasses anytime I'm using a computer. I am always tempted to wear my contacts and when I do, I somehow manage to hurt one eye or the other. Using drops is a good idea for extra lubrication, but wear glasses a lot more. I'm finding now that contacts are simply too painful to wear.