Restasis and Dryness: What Users Say

• Fru...
• June 19, 2019

For Dry Eye Disease "I read the studies & user reviews and I wonder are doctors getting kickbacks from Allergan?! Week 2 of Restasis use, my eye is drier, stings/aches throughout the day, and the dryness and feeling of a foreign object in my eye is so bad it wakes me at night. What drug worsens your condition before it gets better and takes months before benefits can be seen? Will I even experience positive effects of the drug or just return to baseline or habituate to this useless drug? Restasis is only approved in the US. Foreign drug administrations don’t consider a 15% user improvement as enough to justify it with its bad side effects as a treatment for chronic dry eye or MGD. I expressed all of these concerns to my doc, and she says stick with it and now take a steroid eye gel to help the eyes tolerate the Restasis! I honestly hope that in a few weeks I will have to eat my words, but as of this moment based on my own experience, user reviews, and limited empirical data in support of this medication’s efficacy, I am far from optimistic."

• God...
• January 28, 2015

For Dry Eye Disease "Restasis has been nothing short of a miracle for me! My eyes hurt, were extremely dry, had bumps under my eyelids and terrible allergies and inflammation. In the morning my eyelid would stick closed and I would have to open it slowly and add gel drops. I was on 4 things a day for my eyes and they were not getting much better. I run a humidifier because the dryness from running the heat in the winter seemed to make my eyes worse. I could not wear my contact lenses as it was torture. After being on Restasis for 3 weeks, I am 80% better. I use Systane Ultra gel drops when I go to bed at night and my eyes are so much better in the mornings when I wake up. I am now wearing my contact lenses again, but, not as long during the day as I used to. Grateful!"

• Jud...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 24, 2018

For Dry Eye Disease "I just started Restasis about a week ago. So far, it often irritates my eyes, leaving them burning and slightly red. Using Theratears after 15 minutes helps, but I often use it more than I had been before starting the Rx. I agree with most users that the bottle is horrendous. I have fairly strong hands but need both to get a drop out, and my eyes get even drier from holding the eye under the drop open until I can get it out. There’s no excuse for this. Designing a decent bottle is not rocket science!"