Do you experience eye burns after crying your heart out? It is normal to experience mild symptoms like burning, itchiness, and stinging after shedding tears. However, a severe burning sensation after crying for a while can occur due to an underlying eye condition.
What are tears, and why does my tears burn my eyes?
When you are sad or happy, your eyes produce emotional tears. These tears are a response to emotional stimuli. Tears are essential to maintain your eye health. These wash away dust and dirt from your eyes and improve your vision. On average, you produce 15-30 gallons of tear every year. These tiny droplets maintain eye lubrication and remove irritants from your eyes.
Tears not only comprise water, but they contain other elements. The other essential components include:
- Lipid
- Electrolytes
- Metabolites
If you cry for long hours, you may experience eyes burning from crying. If your eyes sting more than usual, you must consider consulting with an eye specialist for a thorough checkup.
What are the non-clinical causes of eyes stinging when crying?
The environmental condition may affect your eye health and cause your eyes to burn after crying. The non-clinical causes of eye burn include:
- Sweat
If sweat droplets enter your eyes, it can cause eye irritation. To combat such situations, your eyes produce reflex tears.
- Environmental irritants
Environmental irritants like smoke may cause eye irritation. When these irritants enter your eyes, it produces reflex tears to keep them away. These tears also contain antibiotics to fight harmful bacteria. As the tears perform their duties of removing the irritants, you may feel a stinging sensation in your eyes. Moreover, you may experience a continuous flow of tears, resembling emotional crying. Once the irritant is removed, your eye glands relax, and the tears stop flowing.
If you are constantly exposed to environmental irritants, you are more likely to experience eye burns. So next time when you ponder, “Why do my eyes burn when I cry?” check for environmental irritants around you.
What are the clinical causes of eyes stinging when crying?
The clinical causes that lead the eyes to burn after crying are:
- Dry eye
Dry eyes cause burning, redness, blurred vision, and itchiness in your eyes. It happens when your eyes do not produce enough tears to stay lubricated. Other causes of dry eyes are:
- Hormone fluctuations
- Medications
- Wearing contact lenses for hours
Dry eye is more apparent in older people as their tear production decreases naturally. It is because as you age, the lacrimal glands become weak and stop functioning as earlier.
- Blepharitis
It is a condition in which your eyelids swell and develop inflammation and irritation. Some common symptoms of this eye condition include:
- Burning
- Watery eyes
- Itchiness
- Dryness
- Crusty eyelids
- Light sensitivity
- Blurry vision
It may lead to dry eyes, and as a result, you experience eyes burning from crying.
- Eye allergies
You can experience eye allergies due to various factors. These include:
- Mould
- Smoke
- Pet dander
- Dust mites
When your eyes contact these irritants, you may develop burning, itchiness, wateriness, and redness. Try not to rub your eyes as it can worsen your situation. In addition, the allergens may cause other allergic symptoms like a stuffy nose.
How to treat eye burns?
As a part of the remedy, you may try home remedies and over-the-counter products for eye burns. Other options that may provide relief in your condition include:
- Try to put a warm and cold compress on your eyelids. It may relax the strained eye glands. Make sure to close your eyes before placing the compress.
- Try to clean your eyes every morning. You can use cotton to remove crusts from blepharitis.
- After putting on makeup, carefully remove the products from your eye area. You can use a makeup remover to clean your eyes. After cleansing your eyes, use a warm washcloth to remove irritants from the corners of your eyes. These irritants may include sweat and soap chemicals.
- Use eye drops for eye allergies. Try to use it accordingly as described on the label.
- Use eye gels or ointments to keep the skin around your eyes moisturised.
- Stay in a humid environment. You may use indoor humidifiers to add moisture to your home and office space.
If the reason for your eye burn is an eye allergy, your doctor may prescribe eye drops and other medications to control eye pain and itchiness. However, in case of severe allergies, they may suggest allergen immunotherapy.
Prescription options for eye allergies
In case of severe allergies, an eye specialist may suggest prescriptive drugs, including:
- Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug eye drops
- Antibiotic eye drops or oral medications
- Steroid eye drops for eye inflammation
- Eye drops to enhance tears production
Taking these eye drops can improve your eye condition. So next time when you face this question, “ Why do my eyes burn when I cry?” seek medical attention.
When to call an eye specialist?
If you experience intense eye burns after crying, you must call a medical expert to diagnose your condition. Chronic tearing and burning in your eyes can indicate an unexamined eye condition. If you are diagnosed with an eye condition like dry eyes, you must follow the treatment plan. Carefully listening to your eye specialist might improve your situation in a short time. In addition, call an eye specialist if your condition does not improve even after trying home remedies and medical treatments.
To get your eyes evaluated, you may contact Ujala Cygnus Central Hospital. In addition to the treatment, we will help you understand different health conditions that can irritate the eyes and offer the answer to “Why do my eyes burn when I cry?”. To know more, you may contact us.
For free teleconsultation with our doctor, call us at 88569-88569 or fill the form to share your problem.
