ontheedgeofeverything

I had my annual eye exam a few days ago. It was a routine imaging appointment, although I should mention I get a little more imaging done than the average person as a result of having Lyme disease and the severe concussions I sustained last year playing rugby. I have a plethora of floaters in my eyes, so my doctor likes to check that they’re not intensifying through specific testing.

I explained to her that within the past year, I’ve been dealing with a decent amount of mucous in my eyes, as delightful as that sounds. I’ll be going about my day, only to be halted by a sudden change in my vision; usually it occurs in one eye at a time, but a gob of God knows what will conveniently make its way across my eyeball and land directly over top of my pupil so I can barely see.

It’s super fun.

Fortunately, my doctor was able to tell me what is causing this mucous, and I was surprised by the answer because it’s ironic as hell. Apparently, I have very dry eyes, unbeknownst to me, and they’re so dry that my eyelids are having difficulty smoothly gliding over my eyes when I close them or blink, which is triggering the mucous.

Perhaps I’m isolated in thinking this, but I find it a bit paradoxical that dry eyes can cause moisture in the form of mucous.

My doctor recommended some specific drops and using a warm compress to bring some moisture back into my eyes, and I plan to use both. I couldn’t help but wonder while driving home from my appointment how many other people out there experience this glorious eye goop issue and are also completely unaware that it could be a result of dry eyes.

Now you know, friends.

Photo by Amanda Dalbjörn on Unsplash