Does anyone know about chalazions / eyelid problems

[uglyanddesperate]

Changed my name as this could be identifying. I am really getting desperate now. Since March I've had a hard, very swollen lower eyelid. In April it became very painful and eventually burst. I thought that was the end of it, but ever since then I have just woken up with a hard orange/yellow crust around my eye every single morning - and it's still just as swollen. The only support I've been able to get is the GP saying to do warm compresses 4x day - which I have been. For months.

I have an appointment at the eye clinic in November, but that's already been pushed back twice thanks to covid so I'm not overly hopeful. I have called the GP and eye clinic several times but all they ever say is to keep up with the bloody useless compresses. Since they don't work, I tried going 2 weeks without doing them but there was no difference. I am now also getting painful styes around my eye, every 10 days or so, that last 2-3 days. My confidence is also shattered as I walk around with a huge yellow/orange mess on my eyelid. I haven't been able to wear my contact lenses for months and am wearing out of date glasses which don't allow me to see properly.

Has anyone else ever experienced this, and if so do you know if there is anything else that might help? I will try just about anything at this point. All I can find online is about chalazions (which I believe this started off as), but nothing about ones that have burst and will not heal. It seems like once they've burst that should be the end of it, but really that was just the start of my problem.

I know people are dealing with more serious issues right now, but I am getting very down and starting to wonder if my eye will ever get better.

The only thing I can say is (might not be helpful) I have had a lot of problems with my eye, since getting Covid in March, lots of blisters on the eye lid which Im told is an immune response, also my eyesight was disturbed due to the virus, anyway I had to visit the optician regarding my visual problems, she had to check my periphal vision etc, and rile out the need for a referral in case of a clot on the brain from Covid.

To cut a long story short, we discussed the blisters and she advised me to use Tea Tree wipes to help with the healing and to prevent more coming.

I had one end of last year. You have my sympathy as it was really uncomfortable! It only cleared up with antibiotic eye drops - prescribed through hospital eye care clinic. Warm compresses didn’t really work - did do some of time and recommended by the hospital. I would push for treatment.

I had a chalazion on my upper eyelid a few years ago. It got to the point that I could feel it pushing on my eyeball and was disturbing my peripheral vision. I'd been to the GP about it but as it wasn't infected, nothing was done. I ended up paying to be seen at a private hospital where I had it surgically removed. I've had no problems since.

DH had a very different looking one on a lower eyelid. His was sore and red, massage and hot compresses didn't help so he was seen by a specialist at Guys and St Thomas's. I can't remember what the treatment was that time, some kind of eye drops I think. That worked and it disappeared for a couple of years... until lockdown!

He had what looked like the start of a stye so he used hot compresses again but when it started leaking and going crusty, he managed to get a telephone appointment with the GP. He was told to continue with the compresses and massage but was also given a phone number for an eye clinic (Kings or Moorfields). Because the lump wasn't improving, he called the clinic and was given much better instructions on how to massage a chalazion. Turns out it needs to be much firmer than he'd been doing. Since he started this, it's pretty much disappeared!

I had a small one on my upper eyelid. It took about a year to go. I was recommended to use a heated eye mask and that really helped. I used the Optase eye mask and it microwaves so the heat lasts for a while. Wear it in bed for 10mins (it makes your vision blurry for a bit afterwards so make sure it is the last thing you do at night). I also use the optase tea tree oil eyelid wipes in the morning and evening to help with the general condition of my eyes. It has helped me but it did take a little while, but my condition does not seem as severe as yours. Certainly worth a try as it is unlikely to make the situation worse.

I have blepharitis which resulted on one occasion in a chalazion a few years ago. I did hot compresses, cleaned the eyelid with diluted baby shampoo and it improved, but ultimately I had to have a minor operation at Moorfields to remove it.

Touch wood, while the blepharitis flares up from time to time, I haven't had another chalazion since.

I would try buying an eyebag. It's a heated compress that you warm up in the microwave. That's much better than a hot flannel as it stays warmer for longer.

Can't thank you all enough! Off to buy some tea tree wipes and a proper mask.

I probably don't massage it enough, because when I do it bleeds It really is a mess.

What a scary time for you @Yonijust, there are so many weird side effects of covid and that one sounds particularly nasty. I hope you are fully recovered soon

I suffer from blepharitis too which caused a chalazion that I had surgically removed. Now I have to clean my eyelids with a cleaner and use a heated eye mask. Mine is also linked to rosacea. When it flares up I take erythromycin for 8 weeks. As pointed out to me by the eye consultant, it is for life and I have to try and stay on top of it

Only way to get rid of mine was removal under local anaesthetic but now my DS has one one too. We've been back and forth to the doctor for about 2 years now but finally we got referred for him to have his removed under general anaesthetic last week (yes, I was surprised his appointment was still going ahead too!). So just waiting for a surgery date. He was repeatedly told warm compresses but to be quite honest, they did nothing. Oral antibiotics and antibiotic cream cleared up the crust on the surface but never cleared up the lump under the skin. So we're very relieved we've got to the point of surgery being approved!

Yes I had one removed in 2016 - was on NHS waiting list for 6 months whilst it got infected on and off (upper eyelid) and then was told it was unlikely to be removed as deemed cosmetic so paid privately to have it removed - no compresses or hot eye masks helped at all but mine was a fairly solid lump of sebum or whatever it is - was not liquid.

I rang round a few different private hospitals and managed to negotiate - paid around £500 - it was very unslightly and obviously was never going to just go away by itself.

Not had an issues since but did have quite a black eye afterwards for about 3 weeks as they do lift the eyelid up and scrap the goo out underneath.

DH had a chalazion and was advised to bathe it in baby shampoo daily and was prescribed a 3 month course of antibiotics while waiting for eye clinic appt (still waiting). It has gone but it took about 4 months.

Oh god, I had my first stye during lockdown and it grew to monstrous proportions, bigger than anything you could Google - was bathing in salt water and hot compressing to no avail, tried sudocrem and it was like magic! It calmed down almost immediately. My eye was left with a hard little grain under the eyelid, which made the eye v dry and sore, and which just now seems to have cleared up. But do try sudocrem, amazing stuff.