Eye irritation and headaches caused by dilation drops, what do I do?
Posted , 2 users are following.
Hey everyone. I'm new here nice to meet you all.
In early march, I started to experience some discomfort in my eye, but I was still able to look at screens for extended periods of time. I booked an appointment at my optometrist just to make sure my eyes were alright. At the appointment, he put dilating drops in my eye (tropicamide 0.5%) and after that my eyes have not felt the same. The drops were placed on March 20th, but since then I have had headaches alongside eye irritation and light sensitivity. I went back to him for a follow up and he said everything was okay. Now, I'm having trouble looking at screens for a long period of time without my eyes aching. I'm feeling a little disappointed in myself, as a rountine check up has turned into something serious. Furthermore, it was my first time having drops placed in my eye, but I dont think that would make a difference.
Should I be worried? What are my next steps since I'm going back to school in the summer and that requires a lot of screen time.
Thank you for listening.
0 likes, 3 replies
Marina_Dee alan83674
Edited
Alan, I dont think its the eye drops that are causing you problems. I think its the prolonged screen use. Your eye surface is drying out because you dont blink enough. You may be heading for dry eye disease . The sensitivity to light is one of the symptoms.
There are millions of people all over the world who are suffering, or starting to suffer, like this and its all because of our reliance on computers and looking at screens for too long. Our brains are so concentrated on the screen that we are forgetting to blink. At least you have noticed it early.
So: less screen time please. Dont look at screens in a dark room. Get up after an hour and walk around and blink rapidly . Use eye drops to maintain a tear film. You can buy Hypromellose drops, which are often called artificial tears. Use them as much as possible during the day and also before you shut your eyes at night.
The tiny glands in the eyelids which provide the oily secretion for a healthy cornea will gradually dry out if you dont educate yourself to blink,blink,blink. Dont ignore these symptoms. I will private message you.
alan83674 Marina_Dee
Posted
thanks for responding. I will try to limit my screen time more and see how that effects me. My eyes still feel weird after the dilation. because I was still able to look at screens for an extended period of time. However, it seems like it has dwindled after the dilation. Also, my eyes seem more itchy to me after the dilation and get more irritated.
Marina_Dee alan83674
Posted
Those itchy irritated eyes are part of dry eye syndrome. Get some Hypromellose drops.