Dry eye is easy to ignore at first. The discomfort tends to come and go, so plenty of people blame a long day or a dusty room before they ever consider dry eye therapy.
Dry eye often feels like a burning, gritty sensation, as if an eyelash or a speck of dirt is stuck in your eye. If that sounds familiar, a comprehensive eye exam can help you find out what’s behind it.
What Is Dry Eye?
Dry eye happens when your tears can’t keep your eyes’ surface hydrated. Your eyes may not make enough tears, or the tears they make may evaporate too quickly.
Healthy tears need the right mix of water and oil. When the glands in your eyelids don’t make enough oil, the watery part of your tears can dry up faster than it should.
Common Signs of Dry Eye
Most people notice dry eye through discomfort first, but it can also change how your eyes look and how clearly you see.
How Dry Eye Feels
The feeling can range from mildly annoying to hard to ignore. You might notice:
- Stinging
- Burning
- A scratchy, gritty feeling
- The sense that something is stuck in your eye
What Dry Eye Look Like
Your eyes may look red or irritated in the mirror, especially after time in wind or cigarette smoke. You might also see stringy mucus in or around your eyes.
Allergies can cause similar signs. An eye exam can help your optometrist tell the 2 apart.
How Dry Eye Affects Your Vision
Dry eye can make it harder to see clearly and comfortably through the day. Watch for these changes:
- Blurry vision, especially while you read
- Vision that seems clear one moment and fuzzy the next
- Sensitivity to light
- Contact lenses that feel uncomfortable
- Watery eyes
Watery eyes might sound like the opposite of dry eye. When dryness irritates your eyes, they can respond by making extra tears, but those tears don’t fix the underlying problem.
What Causes Dry Eye?
Your daily habits and your overall health can both affect your tears. Screen time is one of the most common habits to look at. When you stare at a screen, you blink about 5 to 7 times a minute instead of the usual 15. Long hours on a computer or phone can also cause digital eye strain, which can lead to similar discomfort.
Low humidity plays a part too. Watch for these everyday triggers:
- Wind or smoke
- Fans that blow toward your face
- Dry air in airplanes, offices, and other large buildings
- Wearing contact lenses for many years
Health and Life Factors
Your health and stage of life can also increase your risk of dry eye. You may have a higher risk if:
- You’re getting older, since tear production tends to drop with age
- You’re a woman, especially after menopause
- You take antihistamines, sleep aids, or blood pressure medicine
- You have thyroid disease or rheumatoid arthritis
- You’ve had LASIK or another type of eye surgery
Simple Ways to Soothe Dry Eye at Home
A few changes to your routine can help your eyes feel more comfortable. Try adding these habits to your day:
- Follow the 20-20-20 rule by looking at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds every 20 minutes
- Blink fully and often during long stretches of reading or screen time
- Run a humidifier in dry rooms, especially when the heat is on in winter
- Rest a warm compress over your closed eyes for about 10 minutes in the evening
It also helps to limit what dries your eyes out. Aim fans and hair dryers away from your face, and stay away from cigarette smoke, including secondhand smoke.
Check your desk setup, too. Position your screen so you look slightly downward at it rather than straight ahead.
When to See an Optometrist About Dry Eye
Home care can make your eyes more comfortable, but it can’t tell you what’s causing your symptoms. Book a visit with your optometrist if:
- Your symptoms linger or keep coming back
- Your eyes hurt
- Dryness makes reading or driving harder
Dry eye often needs ongoing care instead of a one-time fix. Your optometrist can identify the cause and build a plan around your routine and how your eyes feel day to day.
Get Answers About Your Dry Eye
Dry eye can make reading and screen time harder than they need to be. Our team at River City Vision Center welcomes you like family, and our optometrists take time to listen to what you’re feeling before recommending next steps.
Book an appointment and find out what’s behind your dry eye symptoms.
