Advice about the Eyelids
Berkeley Parents Network >
Advice >
Beauty & Fitness >
Advice about the Eyelids
Nov 2010
I'd like to find out what my options are for droopy
eyelids. My eyes (my once best features)have begun to
look unattractive due to the space between my eyebrows and
eyelids drooping. It's almost like there is too much skin
there now and it hangs over the eyelids so that the
eyelids themselves cannot be seen.
I'd like to take care of it. Please let me know if there
is a secret to solving this problem.
Thank you
My grandmother got the eye lift surgery and insurance
covered this because as time goes on it is an impediment to
vision.
Good luck!
Kari
Eye Opener!
i have a droopy eyelid and have been diagnosed with ptosis. it's not so bad but
will get worse over time. my dr. said the only option would be to get a eye lift in
the future. so surgery will probably be the best option for you. i have not done it
but probably will in the future since i do not want to have uneven eyes.
Jen
My mother had eye-lift (i.e. plastic) surgery. She is
pleased with the results.
--anon
The only real remedy is a bilateral upper blepharoplasty. If
you have coverage with Kaiser, ask for a referral to the
exquisitely talented and experienced Dr. Delyse Williams at
the Oakland opthamology clinic. If she'll take you (her
waiting list is months long), you'll pay practically nothing
for a procedure that costs thousands of dollars from private
practitioners. Be aware that recovery after surgery involves
several weeks of hiding out under dark glasses and floppy
hat, as the facial bruising is quite severe and recedes only
gradually over one to two to three months. But the results
are dramatic and so worthwhile! I am so glad I suffered
through the (not that bad) ordeal and am so grateful for
Kaiser. Good luck.
Bright Eyes
plastic surgery.
anon
I am responding to your post b/c I am watching my once
beautiful eyes do the same thing. I remember being years
ago told that my eyes shined and were magical... but I
digress. Unfortunately the eyelid droop has to do with
what happens when we age, what our genetics are and we
have no say in it. There is no magic cream/lotion/crystal
rubbing to make it go away without surgery. *sigh*... I'm
just waiting until the droop stares back so blatantly that
I can no longer ignore it... then surgery it will be.
-- Droopy dawg eyes too!
This runs in families - as you get older your eyelids start
to droop because of gravity and stretchier skin and fat. It
can actually interfere with your vision in some cases - my
sister lost about 40% of her vision due to droopy eyelids.
The only way to fix this is an eye lift which is called
Blepharoplasty. Your insurance might pay for it if your
vision is hampered. My sister just lives with it so you
don't have to get surgery. But don't waste your money on eye
creams - they might make your skin look and feel better but
they are not going to shrink skin or dissolve fat.
anon
We all develop extra skin as we begin to get older, and the sagging skin on the
forehead and eyelids causes bunching of the upper eyelid skin. Often there is
also puffiness from bulging fat in the lids. While Botox can help with wrinkles on
the forehead, between the eyebrows, or in the crow's feet, only surgery can treat
the eyelid problem. Most people can get dramatic improvement from removal of
extra skin and perhaps fat, leaving a fine scar in the upper lid crease. Some
people may ''need'' a lift of the brows, either by itself or along with an eyelid lift,
to give them the well-rested and younger appearance they are looking for.
Fortunately, the body is very good at adapting to protect vision, so, except for a
few people whose eyelid muscles pull away from their lid attachments and let
the lid fall over the pupil, what you describe is only an appearance problem.
Michael C., Plastic Surgeon
Jan 2010
Most of you are too young to worry about this, but maybe you have some
knowledge because one of your parents has this problem! My right eyelid
droops and has for many years, but it's becoming more and more noticeable. It
droops over my pupil, and I'm slightly aware of that, but my vision really isn't
affected. I assume I'll need minor surgery soon to correct the problem. Anyone
have any advice? Thanks.
no, I'm not winking at you!
If you are a Kaiser member, you can have a blepharoplasty as
a covered out-patient procedure. In Oakland, Dr. Williams
has done literally thousands!
My eyes were opened
Several years ago, my eyelids were drooping, one side a lot
more than the other. I had an upper and lower eyelift, from
an experienced doctor. About a year afterwards, the
droopiest eyelid started drooping again. I was disappointed
but I just attributed it to my particular anatomy and didn't
want to be one of those people that expects perfection. I
didn't go back to the doctor, since I don't want him working
on me again trying to correct it . Then one day I was at an
eye doctor's office and I mentioned how I had gotten my eyes
done and it was a little disappointing that I still had a
problem. She said it was because I had ptosis of the eyelid
and that was the problem causing the one eyelid to droop
more. Shock. Recently I researched a plastic surgeon with
extensive ptosis work on his website, and went in for a
consult. He says the problem isn't bad enough where he can
correct it - yet. So now I have to wait for it to get really
bad before I can get it done and I'm definitely not letting
it get to the point where my insurance would pay for it
(interfering with vision).
So, make sure you go to a doctor absolutely familiar with
ptosis. Dr. Silkiss of Oakland, and several other locations
diagnosed the ptosis; Dr. Mabrie of San Francisco & Pinole
does excellent ptosis work, to my eye anyway (no pun
intended). I would hate for you to fall victim to the same
mistake that my original doctor made in not diagnosing
ptosis. I could have done the surgery at the same time that
I did the blepharoplasties. Now I'm going to have to have
a separate operation, with downtime, dangers of surgery,
cost, etc.
$5,000 and still wonky
Please check with your doctor and ask if the eyelid droop
could be a symptom of any disease just to eliminate this
possibility. It probably is not connected to anything like
this, but it was the case with someone close to me.
anonymous
I'm a plastic surgeon in Oakland. A progressively drooping eyelid is a sign of a
problem with the muscle that lifts the lid up. Most people with this end up
walking around with their eyebrow lifted (unconsciously) to try to keep their
vision. It won't go away without surgery, which is done as an outpatient and
should be covered by your insurance. Depending on the problem, it may not be
able to be made perfect.
Michael C.
You may have a mild case of Bells palsey , I have been dealing with the same
eye issue. I find doing eye & face exercises. Like looking from right to left.
slowly for a few minutes each day is one that seems to help. also opening my
eyes wide and then closing them in the same fashion.
face massage also is helpful. You can find moe info on google as well Good luck
sharyl
Dec 2009
Does anyone have experience with the yellowish bumps on the eyelids called
Xanthelasma? I know they are caused by high cholesterol, and I am working on
lowering it, but I am not sure if that will make them disappear. Has anyone had
them removed or know of any natural treatments for them?
Thanks so much!
Dalila
I had my Xanthelasma removed. The dermitologist essentialy
burns them off. They haven't disappeared completely, but
are much reduced and I'm very glad I did it. There was no
pain associated with the treatment, you do have to keep
them tended to (ointment) for a couple of weeks. She had
told me that I would look bad, so I only did one eye at a
time. However, I'd do both together (cheaper) if I had it
to do it again.
anon
Nov 2008
For several months I have had a very bad itch on my left eyelid.
I haven't changed anything in terms of products or makeup. I
use cetaphil to cleanse my face. I stopped using sunscreen
because I was worried that was causing it, but it hasn't helped.
I also tried not wearing makeup for a few weeks, but that also
didn't help. The doctor and dermatologist both prescribed creams
that didn't help. I am now being referred to an allergy
specialist. Has anybody had a strange itch like this (only one
eyelid)? I can't seem to figure out what might cause this, and
what to do about it.
Itchy Eye
Have you been to an eye doctor? You don't say if you have any lesions on your skin or
other signs of this issue save the itch. I would highly recommend going to an eye
doctor--using creams that close to your eyes can be problematic, and there are
alternatives that an eye doctor would be better prepared to offer. Plus, eye doctors
have slit lamps which allow them to look at your lids at much higher magnification,
and that may be what's needed to diagnose you properly. One possibility, believe it or
not, is lice of the eye lashes. They are VERY difficult to see with high magnification, and
impossible to see without.
eye doc
April 2008
Hi,
I recently returned from Hawaii and since then have experienced
a weird condition on my upper eyelids- itchy, red, sensitive
and puffy, and oh dry skin. I wonder if anyone would either
recommend an appropriate professional or share any insight
into/experience with this condition. Thanks!
M.
That sounds exactly like a reaction I've had to various substances in eye makeup
and cleanser. In particular, that happened to my eyelids once when I used a
cleanser that contained mineral oil (for waterproof mascara), and once when I used
an eyeshadow that contained silica (for a bit of sparkle). I also had a similar (though
not as serious) reaction to a scented lotion. I have very sensitive skin, and simply
have to keep a close eye on the products I use.
Have you recently switched eye makeup, cleanser, or moisturizer -- or tried
something new? If so, eliminate the new product, use a bit of hydrocortisone to
reduce the swelling and itch, and see if it goes away. If so, that's probably your
answer.
Karen
ok don't freak out but my neighbor kid went to Hawaii in June
for graduation and came back with a puffy funky lid like yours -
something from the coral in the water or something - the dr. in
hawaii was dismissive, but the dr. here said it was some kind
of infection and he had to get antibiotics - his eye de-puffed
and scabbed over and looked horrible but he has all of his
vision - please go to your doctor NOW. NOW.
neighborly
Hi,
Hopefully by now your eyelids are feeling better. While in HI
were you using sunscreen on your eyelids? Do you have sensitive
skin in general? I have sensitive skin and several years ago, I
had a similar problem with my eyelids (though the skin didn't
dry out). By process of elimination, and in talking to others,
I deduced it was a reaction to the PABA in the sunscreen I was
using. You might check the bottle you used and see if it
contains PABA. Good luck!
Caryn
First, I'd say go to a doctor. If they can't help you, here's some advice. I had a similar
problem when I returned from Mexico. The eye doctor had no suggestions. I think it
didn't look so bad to him, but I knew that my eyelids had looked a lot healthier
before my trip. After much research and advice from MD friends, I hypothesized
that it could be (don't freak out....) eyelash mites. I think I picked them up from
using greasy sunscreen on my eyelids, and sweating a lot. Everyone has eyelash
mites, but they only cause problems when they multiply. Oily conditions can cause
them to multiply. It also could have been a bacterial infection, but the same
treatment would work either way. This is it: stop using any lotion or sunscreen on
your eyelids until the condition clears up. Wear sunglasses instead of using
sunscreen. Every morning and night, scrub your eyelids at the base of your
eyelashes with a washcloth, warm water, and a mild cleanser made of 1/2 baby
shampoo and 1/2 water. Scrub for longer than you would think was right for
eyelids. They can take a lot more scrubbing and cleaning than I ever imagined. Go
back and forth 15 times on each lid, top and bottom. Rinse really well with warm
water. The idea is to destroy the habitat of the mites. After a week or so, my eyes
started to look better, and they just kept on looking better and better until they were
back to normal. I've kept up the eyelid cleaning as part of my regular hygeine and
they keep on looking good. At first I used generic baby shampoo from Walgreens,
which was fine, but then I found an unscented kind-California Baby brand--at
Whole Foods. It's expensive, but as an eyelid wash one bottle will probably last a
year, so I'm using that brand now. I think Berkeley Bowl and Rainbow Grocery sell it
too. Now that my lids are better, I sometimes use opthalmic-grade vaseline or
unscented sunscreen on my eyelids, but I still scrub them twice a day.
Good Luck
The moisture content on the islands sometimes causes yeasts to
grow on skin.
Try oregano oil. Burns for a little while after application.
Clears up within a few days.
this page was last updated: Aug 29, 2012
The opinions and statements expressed on this website
are those of parents who subscribe to the
Berkeley Parents Network.
Please see
Disclaimer & Usage for
information about using content on this website.
Copyright © 1996-2013 Berkeley Parents Network