If you suffer from dry eyes, summer can be a tough time of the year because you want to be outdoors.  You want to be enjoying all the things you love about summer, but your eyes are red, irritated, and watering.  Don't let your eyes hold you back this summer.  I've got a couple of great tips for you to ditch that dry eye drama.

1) Protect your Peepers

Protect your eyes.  No matter what time of year it is, always wear sunglasses when you spend time outdoors.   Sunglasses protect the eyes from UV light.  My patients with dry eyes are usually really sensitive to the light as well.  So, it is best to wear sunglasses anytime you are outdoors to decrease the irritation.  For more details about the best sunglasses for dry eyes, check out this blog.

Along with protecting your eyes with sungl...

Based on the research provided by the Tear Film and Ocular Surface (TFOS) Society, there are 4-simple steps all dry eye patients should take on a daily basis to alleviate their dry eye symptoms. 

In 2017, TFOS published a report called the Dry Eye Workshop that utilized the expertise of 150 clinicians and scientists around the world.  These doctors compiled all of the available research and wrote a consensus on how to treat dry eyes.  

The TFOS DEWS2 report advises using 4 steps to care for your dry eyes daily.  No matter if you have just been diagnosed with dry eyes or you have had them for years, there is a 4-step treatment process to get relief fast.  I recommended these 4 steps to all of my patients to do at home for the maintenance of healthy eyes and eyelids. 

Utilizing these 4 s...

Dry eyes have changed a lot during the pandemic. There are 3 things that have caused dry eye symptoms to worsen for patients who already have it.  Let's explore what has made dry eye worse during the COVID-19 pandemic and what we can do to counter it!

 #1) Masks

Everyone is wearing a mask for some part of the day.  You're breathing and some of this air is going up into your eyes.  All-day long, or as long as you have your mask on, the air is being directed upwards from your nose or mouth into your eyes.  A lot of my patients complain about their eyes feeling drier now than they had before.

In addition, we are avoiding touching our eyes and faces, so you may not be putting artificial tears into your eyes as often as you would like.  Especially, if you are out and about, you may not be u...