My TheraTears Experiment: Day 2

Okay, we weren’t expecting a breakthrough with the TheraTears eye health supplement on the second day, were we? Of course not. I just wanted to check in and tell a little more about my experiences with this pesky dry eye syndrome.

I noticed a loss of moisture in my eyes during the latter stages of pregnancy with my youngest child. It didn’t really bother me so much as being a minor annoyance. And the eye dryness wasn’t happening every day, just here and there.

After I gave birth, that’s when I noticed the loss of eye moisture more. My eyes would burn and sting. Looking at them, it was like seeing a map of the Mississippi River—only that instead of blue lines representing the waterways, I had lots of red ones.

For a while, I chalked it up to lack of sleep and poor eating habits. With a demanding baby, I couldn’t do anything about the lack of sleep, but I did try to take charge of my eating habits. First I stepped up my water intake. This seemed to help, but then didn’t. Next I tried giving up my daily chocolate and coffee habits because I’d read that caffeine contributes to dry eye syndrome. This actually made my problems worse. (Weird, huh?)

My dry eye problem got worse and I ended up going to see my family doctor, who just told me to get an eye exam and to take over-the-counter eye drops to relieve the symptoms. I tried several different eye drops, including a couple of the leading brands, a homeopathy brand from my local health food store, and one that had a thicker consistency than regular eye drops (to supposedly trap in moisture better).

None of these did much to help me. The homeopathy eye drop was the best out of the bunch, but even then my eyes were still in pain from the dryness. With all of the other brands, I used them once or twice and had to return them to the store for a refund.

At the eye doctor, I had my usual exam done (like I do every 2 years). It was a new doctor because my husband’s insurance had changed and we could get a better discount on eyeglasses at this place. (I’ve been wearing glasses for driving for the last 5 years; before that, my long-distance vision was awesome. Sigh.)

I told the doctor about the troubles I’d been having with eye dryness. She didn’t seem concerned, said that my vision was okay, and made light of how common dry eye syndrome was becoming. At the time, this felt reassuring. I really wanted to believe that my problems would fix themselves eventually (or at least diminish over time), so I took this doctor’s visit as a sign of better days to come.

But here I am today, posting on a blog I named Dry Eyes and Blurred Vision. This post has gotten kind of long, so I’ll save my worse ever dry eye experience for another day. Besides, it’s a doozy and really deserves its own post, I think. Anyway, thanks for reading this and I hope it helps you not feel so alone with your dry eye symptoms.

My TheraTears Experiment: Day 1

Today marks my first day of taking the TheraTears supplement in hopes of regaining eye moisture. The instructions on the box say to give it 4 to 8 weeks before any significant results are seen. The bottle I bought, with 90 capsules, will last 30 days. So, I’ll give TheraTears a go and see if my dry eyes improve after a month or two.

I have to say, though, I did hesitate before buying a bottle of TheraTears. Sure, I’m a supporter of using natural supplements to enhance health, but “enhance” is the key word here. Balanced nutrition from fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains is my main goal when it comes to staying healthy. Vitamins, herbs, and other supplements are just that—supplements.

Looking at the ingredients in TheraTears, I saw some basics—vitamin E, flaxseed oil, and fish oil. I thought, these ingredients are nothing new to my diet. I eat a variety of oily fish several times a week, mix flaxseed in my yogurt every day, and get an adequate amount of vitamin E through my everyday foods and also in my multivitamin.

So why in the world would I want to spend my money on this supplement? The short answer: I’m desperate. Seriously. My vision is getting increasingly blurry and my dry eyes are just bothering the heck out of me. Without vision coverage insurance, I am trying hard to avoid a visit to the ophthalmologist.

Besides, I think that’d be a waste of money anyway. When I did have health insurance and vision coverage, I saw both my family doctor and an ophthalmologist about my dry eyes. Neither one gave a damn about my problem; both basically said dry eye syndrome is common nowadays and nothing to worry about. (I’ve done a lot of reading since then and have learned otherwise. Don’t let your doctor off the hook about your dry eyes! There are several tests that can be used to diagnose dry eye syndrome.)

I decided to take TheraTears after reading about how flaxseed and fish oil tend to become oxidized before they can do a body any good. This is why vitamin E is included in each capsule; the vitamin E prevents this oxidation from occurring. Why is oxidation so bad (in this situation, anyway)? Well, the oxidation of fatty acids in flaxseed and fish oil produces free radicals. These free radicals are what we want to avoid, as studies have indicated that they may help certain diseases, including cancer, progress faster. Anyway, maybe this oxidation thing is why my regular dietary intake of flaxseed and fish oil hasn’t been easing my eye dry symptoms. Time will tell, right?

You can buy a 90-capsule bottle (a 30-day supply) on Amazon.com for $12.76. I was surprised at the cheap price because I saw other eye health supplements costing twice (sometimes 3 times) as much as TheraTears. It’s a wonder that this company doesn’t jack up the price, just to stay in line with the prices of the other eye health supplements. (Knock on wood, lol.)

I like that TheraTears was used in a 18-year research study conducted by the National Eye Institute, and with favorable results. It’s hard to know which eye health supplements to take and which ones not to bother with, especially when online product reviews can be faked and of course the company selling the supplement will say only positive things about their product. Knowing there was a study overseen by a U.S. government agency helps a bit in reassuring me that my money spent is not being wasted on a bunch of empty promises.

Anyhow, I’ll see where this TheraTears eye health supplement takes me. I’d be lying if I didn’t have high hopes for this product—I’m eager to get my normal eye moisture back!

Here's The Deal...

I've started this blog to try and find a solution to my eye problems because, really, I've just about had it with the dry eyes and blurred vision. Hopefully, my attempts to regain the healthy eyes I once had (and took for granted, but boy oh boy do I now "see" how fabulous it is to have good vision!) will work.

This Dry Eyes and Blurred Vision blog will basically just chronicle different things I do (and have done already) to try and reduce the blurriness and increase the moisture. I hope to find a solution to my eye problems (obviously) and help you with yours in the process. Karma can either be a bitch or a beauty, and I'd much rather dish out the latter of the two because what goes around does come around. Cheers!