sjogren's?

Any of you fellow RAers or PAers have sjogren's syndrome as well?  I was diagnosed with it recently and I was wondering if any other sjogren'ers can offer any advice.  Every morning, my eyes are just about glued shut (it's absolutely disgusting), and they hurt like crazy in the corner of my eyes.  It occurred to me that I could have a tear duct infection or something, but I don't see the opthamologist until the end of February--impossible to get an appointment sooner.  My eyes sting really bad in the morning, they clear up somewhat in the afternoons and then get really bad again late at night.  They do get worse when watching tv or using the computer.  I've been using a preservative free artificial tears that work great (compared to the garbage I was using), but I still wake up hardly able to even open my eyes.  Anyone else dealing with a similar problem?  Any advice very much appreciated!

Elcamino

Ides,

Thanks for responding. Interesting that you mention Genteal tears. I bought a small container of them last week because I was looking for something that didn't have preservatives in it, and Genteal doesn't. I agree with you; they work so much better than artificial tears with preservatives. My eyes are still glued shut in the morning, though. Maybe I just have to use them longer. I'm embarrassed to even see my kids first thing in the morning--my eyes would scare them :) A warm shower combined with a baby wipe usually takes care of them, and then I put the Genteal tears in right after I get out of the shower. I'll ask my opthamologist about the ointment you're using.

El