Having had the chalazion removed in December 2019, the expected outcome was that the excessive mucous being secreted from my right eye would be cured and no longer present an issue for me. So much for that theory. The mucous continued unabated.

The eye surgeon had already diagnosed me as having Floppy Eyelid Syndrome (FES). I also suffer from Sleep Apnea, and these conditions are related, and the apnea can exacerbate the FES. As I experience issues when trying to use a CPAP – more on this aspect later – the doctor tried a somewhat creative and non-invasive approach: swimming goggles.

The idea is that by wearing swimming goggles I would be protecting the eyelids from rubbing against my pillow, and thereby hopefully alleviating the problem. It seems like a simple solution, easy to try, and hopefully that would address the issues. Sadly, and after several weeks, this was also not a solution for me.

January 2020, and back to the eye surgeon, who had done a fair bit of research in the meantime, and was also now diagnosing me as having Giant Fornix Syndrome (GFS). The new treatment regime was to now persist with the eye drops, four times daily for four weeks, then three times daily for four weeks, twice daily for four weeks, and so on.

Hopefully this treatment regime might yield some observable results. My eyes decided otherwise.

During the first couple of four week periods the mucous secretions were basically being controlled by the eye drops. While it might have appeared to be under control, it was really just the eye drops suppressing the mucous, rather than actually providing any form of cure. During the third month of this treatment regime – drops instilled twice daily – it was becoming obvious that the problems were persisting, and instilling the drops once daily was simply intolerable and unmanageable.

I reverted to instilling the drops four times daily, and in consultation with the surgeon, we scheduled a surgical procedure to address the FES and GFS.

This was to occur in May 2020, and the procedure was to actually be three procedures performed at the one time. FES to be reduced on both the upper and lower lids of my right eye, and the GFS on my right eye to be addressed at the same time.

These procedures were all undertaken in mid May 2020, and there were no issues resulting from the procedure. This photo was taken on the day following the procedure. The bruising and swelling are a normal outcome at this juncture; everything at this time was pretty much what was expected.