Ready..VENT! What keeps you from getting to the pool?

Blech for eye infections, (S)he-Man! I've been on acular for a week ... I haven't resorted to vigamox yet. Can you never, ever swim? Or are you just cutting way back? I think you'll get hooked on running. It's addictive too. Just don't ramp it up too fast. Will there be any tris or road races in your future? :groovy: Take care of your eyes Fortress! We've only got two of 'em! I've been dealing with this issue for the past 9 months and tried everything including a modified (swim 2x a week for an hour or less) swim schedule. The only thing that's working well for my eyes is no swimming at all. I'm preparing myself mentally for no swimming ever, but I will try again (after no swimming) to hop back in the pool after month 3. Docs say I've got to stay infection free or have the surgery. So, I've got to do what it takes to keep 'em healthy. I hope that I can get back in the pool one day in the future, but this is not usually a situation the spontaneously resolves itself. But yes, I've got some 5K runs and a half marathon planned for later this season that I'll be doing. Oh joy. :) Hey, at least after week 1, I no longer feel like a hippo on land during my runs. Boy, did I forget about gravity!! I know!! It's SOOOO tempting to do 10 miles right away - but I know that would be silly and just asking for injury trouble. So, I'm sticking with 5 miles, weights, and some cardio classes until I build up to some nice running distances.

Kristina You've had to quit? Isn't there a more mask type goggle that will work better for your eyes? Granted you might not be able to dive but you can push start or at worst still workout. Have you looked at homeopathic help for the eyes etc? I think it's a shame to be forced to give up something. Well I guess OW is still OK right? Maybe you can room with Donna and join her on the 18 miler! Yea. For now. But honestly, not having eye infections (even without swimming) is truly a miracle in and of itself. I did try the masks but it looks like it's a lot of factors in addition to the goggles (although different docs all give me different opinions including the pressure changes and exhaling of water, etc). They all are in agreement that swimming aggravates my condition. I'll see how my eyes look in 3 months and try and hop back in - worst case, it's just a bust. Oh yes, I am taking all kinds of vitamins and such on the homeopathic side of things. But, what's making the difference for the health of my eyes is no swimming. Arg. Will continue to speak with different docs and get more opinions. But, it's okay. I'm fortunate that I'm a bit of a "jock" and can do other sports - granted, not well. But that's a different story. Afraid that the 18 miler is out of the question at this point!

It's interesting that this discussion should come up now. I had an appt. with my eyedoc a few weeks ago, because my left eye had been bothering me. He said I had blocked meibomian ducts, took a pic and showed me. It looked similiar to what you describe. Also recommended the warm compress and then gently massaging the lower eyelid to work the plugs loose. Since I've been doing this the dry eye problem has all but disappeared. Kristina: I just went to the eye doctor. He said that my tear ducts were blocked--he could see them as little yellow dots on the inside of my eye lid. He asked if I had dry eyes. I have had dry eyes all my life. My dad did too. He said it is hereditary. That some people just don't produce enough water to keep them clean and open. Basically, each duct had a little waxy plug in it. Dry eyes can lead to eye infections. He asked it artificial tears helped. They never do for very long (as he suspected). So far nothing new to me. Then he asked if I tried putting a warm, moist compress on my eyes to help re-liquify the wax plug. IT WORKED!!! At first, it was 10 minutes once a night for a week. He said to cut back a little each week to see how often my eyes required. He has this condition and does it once a week. He has an associate that has to do it twice a day. I included a link that describes it, but does not mention moist heat as a treatment. Probably because no money can be made that way. health.yahoo.com/.../C1437648-D55B-4D9D-B6D902D1A5378D58 Its a minor in convenience, but may reduce your eye infections and may get you back in the pool! I know my eyes feel great. I can't believe I went this long and no doctor ever offered hope other the tear drops. Good luck

School mostly keeps me from the pool.. its midterm season. Also, not keep me off the pool but keeps me from doing a heavy workout is the girl i dating whom i met at the gym. Whenever we get together we end up doing 100's with 5 minute talk-breaks in between. Women are trouble!

Alright, so I will not rant this time. Traffic Work and Homework Visiting my family 2 hours away Not having enough time to spend with my husband due to our crazy schedules makes me want to work out at home instead of go to the pool. And most recently, the notice on the locker room saying "there will be no hot water in the locker rooms until further notice due to events out of our control" is keeping from the pool before work. Trying to go in the evening is hit or miss due to all the other reasons.

Kristina: I just went to the eye doctor. He said that my tear ducts were blocked--he could see them as little yellow dots on the inside of my eye lid. He asked if I had dry eyes. I have had dry eyes all my life. My dad did too. He said it is hereditary. That some people just don't produce enough water to keep them clean and open. Basically, each duct had a little waxy plug in it. Dry eyes can lead to eye infections. He asked it artificial tears helped. They never do for very long (as he suspected). So far nothing new to me. Then he asked if I tried putting a warm, moist compress on my eyes to help re-liquify the wax plug. IT WORKED!!! At first, it was 10 minutes once a night for a week. He said to cut back a little each week to see how often my eyes required. He has this condition and does it once a week. He has an associate that has to do it twice a day. I included a link that describes it, but does not mention moist heat as a treatment. Probably because no money can be made that way. health.yahoo.com/.../C1437648-D55B-4D9D-B6D902D1A5378D58 Its a minor in convenience, but may reduce your eye infections and may get you back in the pool! I know my eyes feel great. I can't believe I went this long and no doctor ever offered hope other the tear drops. Good luck

I have an eye condition (partially blocked lacrimal ducts) in which I now get eye infections every time I swim. Don't cry about it. ..sorry couldn't resist, and you did say humor is appreciated :)

I'm guessing someone thought of this along the way, but (S)he-man do you wear contacts?

I have an eye condition (partially blocked lacrimal ducts) in which I now get eye infections every time I swim. Docs think it's from the goggles rubbing against the lacrimal system that surrounds the eyes and due to the chlorine envt and bacteria and such that are in the pool. I had a lot of eye infections before I switched goggle styles. The ones with the separate adjustable nosepiece put too much pressure on my tear ducts, which caused my eyes to be a little dry and less resistant to infection. Now I buy the goggles where the nosebridge is integrated into the frame. A Hydroflex Junior is what I wear now, not a Sprint type goggle. I have lots of excuses if someone wants to borrow some: "I'll just sleep in and swim tonight" then I am also late to work and miss practice. "If I swim this late I'll oversleep in the morning, so I'll just go home and get a good night's sleep and swim in the morning" (see previous) "I just want to check the RealTime results of this meet first" "I just want to finish this up now (work, swim biz) rather than have to deal with it after practice" "I need to attend the team's board meeting" (I am on the board) "I need to attend the team's parent meeting" (no kids, but I'm usually asked questions) "I need to get this paperwork / website update / whatever done for the swim team / LSC / LMSC today and I won't have time to do that and swim" "I have a little intestinal upset / diarrhea" "The water is too cold" (if it's below 78) "The water is too hot" (if it's above 86) "I have a stupid injury" (busted toe, boil, cuts, staph infection) "Pool is closed for spring break" "Pool is closed for end-of-summer break" "Pool is closed for mandatory 5-day December shutdown" "Pool is closed because all the kids are away at a meet" "Practice is canceled because there is a meet (HS, USA Swimming, YMCA" "Pool is closed because the died" "Pool is closed because there is a big game in the adjacent gym and security needs to lock the facility down during our practice"

Our wonderful pool is shutting down for annual maintenance Apr11-28, Ack! We get to go to smelly old pool kept at 86-87 degrees...