Very rarely, before moving here, was I bothered by anything I could call an allergy. Oh, sometimes I'd get a tickle in my throat as the oak pollens would blow on the Spring breezes, but it wasn't much of a bother. Here, it's another story.
I've yet to discover what it is that causes my eyes to get itchy, swollen, red and goopy. The first time it happened, I went to the doctor, who suggested that it might be something topical and that I should ride it out. The next time it occured, I thought I'd seek the opinion of an eye doctor. His opinion was that I have 'extreme dry eye' and gave me the name of two over-the-counter products that would cause relief. They do cause my eyes to become more moist, but I don't see that it's alleviating the problem.
Yesterday I felt the condition coming on once again. Before any other symptom shows, my eyes feel very tired. I feel the need for a nap. It is best to steer clear of me, as I'm not entirely pleasant to be around when I feel that way. I tried to have a little snooze yesterday, but was unsuccessful, so I opted for an early night. By the time I retired, I was feeling as if my eyes were falling out of my head.
I went through the routine of warm compresses to the eyes, as the eye doctor had told me to. This procedure, apparently, stirs the tear ducts to produce more fluid. Then I put the drops in my eyes, I took a Benadryl tablet to alleviate the itching, and I toddled off to bed. After sleeping quite well, I awoke this morning with one eye glued shut, and the other blurry with gunk. Again, I used the warm compresses and drops. This cleared my eyes, but the lids are swollen and itchy. Since they, who are documented as 'those in the know', tell me that the condition is not 'pink eye', it is not contagious. I do not show myself in public, however, until all of this mess disappears, because I look like a frog and I don't care to answer a million questions of "what's the matter with your eyes?"
So...here I am, in front of this little screen, telling you more than you wanted to know about this ailment of unknown cause. I'll 'ride it out' in the peace of my home, and hope that it will soon be gone.
