Eye Gel (a thicker artificial tear)

As previously stated there are many different artificial tears and they differ in fluidity depending on your need.

For sleeping it is better to use a slightly thicker version that is more like a gel, as this will remain on your cornea until you awake and remove it.

As you would apply artificial tears approximately every 2 hours during the daytime, it would be very disruptive to your rest (which is so important for recovery) to have to keep reapplying these at night.

With a gel you just apply it and sleep and the gel hopefully, will remain in place.

There are different ways to keep the gel in place but this is where I would go back to the goggles advice. Goggles are hard to dislodge in your sleep even if you are a restless sleeper.

Tape or a patch, on the other hand, are very easy to dislodge and, because the eye is open, it is very easy for the patch or tape to actually begin to scratch the very cornea it is meant to protect. This is something we do not want to happen at all.

Tape

Whilst asleep some people tape there eyelid closed. This is all very well but I would not recommend it for the reasons set out above under “Eye Gel”

Eye patch

Whilst asleep some people sleep with a patch to act as a protector to the gel they have applied. Again, I would not recommend it for the reasons set out above under “Eye Gel”.

Please Buy The Book
To find out about the Bell’s Palsy Guide Book “All Bells and No whistle” and what it contains Just CLICK HERE.
“All Bells and No whistle” is the definitive helper. Over 200 pages of encouragement, explaining everything about living with and recovering from Bell’s Palsy, written by someone who knows what that actually means.