I wake up with my eyes glued shut, crusty on the corners, a little yellow, what is it?

Question

This happens only when I wake up in the morning, not throughout the day; could it still be conjunctivitis? I wake up in the morning and my eyes are sticky, glued shut, I have to wash my eyes out. Little crusty on the sides. Sometimes stingy when I wash it. Sometimes i wake up with water leaking.

Could it be that maybe allergies? I dont know. It was never this bad before.. Its been like this for a few weeks. Only when I wake up in the morning. I have a cat.. I have a fan blowing all night, perhaps circulating dust?

Answer 1

John D - your eyes are irritated by something, not necessarily a full blown allergy.  The 'crust' is just eye mucus (your tears).  When dirt or germs get in your eyes, your immune system produces more white blood cells to fight them.  When there are a LOT of white blood cells the mucus gets thicker (think about when you have a cold and your nose produces thick snot).

To alleviate this problem, just buy some EYE WASH (with eye wash cup) at your local drugstore (about $3-4 for a 4-8 ounce bottle).  Every night before bed and first thing in the morning just rinse out your eyes with Eye Wash.  The 'eyes glued shut' symptoms should stop in a couple of days.  Don't use the eye wash too much because it has preservatives in it which may start to sting your eyes.

*Just an FYI - rinsing your eyes with plain water 'stings' because your tears are saline (have salt).  Your tears also have a type of lubricant to soothe your eyes which plain water washes away, which can leave your eyes stinging and dry.

Answer 2

It could be conjunctivitis. see a doctor to examine your eyes toget the right diagnoses