Hi,

Well I've never had the problem of having dry eyes or anything like it, but since about 2 weeks ago I have been waking up with the itchiest, dry eyes. I'm using Visine and it burns when I put them in although it does manage to get rid of most the red. They itch all day, and are constantly dry. Does this sound like symptoms of dry eyes? I would think allergies but this has never happened to me..and the rest of my normal allergies are going away. Any suggestions on what to try/ what to avoid would be appreciated.

Thanks

Don't use Visine for more than a few days at a time. You'll just make your eyes dry, and eventually it will work less and less, while the redness will get worse. If your eyes are dry, use preservative-free artificial tears, such as TheraTears or Bion Tears. They don't get rid of redness, but they help with dryness.

It could be an allergy since you mention itching. You need to see a doctor.

stop you using Visine right there. Anti-allergic drops is what you'd want to look into. Just keep in mind that you can experience a real effect of such drops only in the course of several weeks/months so be persistent. Don't abandon the anti-allergic eye-drops the doctor will prescribe you even if you don't see an immediate effect.

It does sound like you have dry eyes, but I would be a little concerned about such a sudden onset. Stop using the Visine right away, because like Chris said it can eventually cause the problem to get worse. Also, it is going to sting because it has preservatives in it and is a very harsh drop. The commercials for the redness reliever drops (if that's the type of Visine that you are using), as well as most of the other Visine drops all say that they are safe to use as often as necessary. But when it becomes necessary for you to use them more than once or twice a day, they can cause side effects and are not good to use. Preservative free artificial tears are the way to go. They come in boxes of individual vials, not bottles. So they don't need preservatives because they are for single uses.

You also need to see an ophthalmologist to figure out the cause and best possible treatment for your new problem. And please, throw out the Visine. http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif (I made the same mistake when I first started with my dry eye problems, and it made them much worse.)