Episode 233
Dr. Pam Theriot:The Eye Care Protocol Every Autoimmune Patient Needs to Know
Dr. Pam Theriot:
The Eye Care Protocol Every Autoimmune Patient Needs to Know
Dr. Pam Theriot shares her four-step daily eye care protocol to combat dry eye caused by digital device use.
She explains how screen time reduces blink rate from 21 to just 7 times per minute, discusses essential makeup and cosmetics rules, and provides practical solutions for autoimmune patients who are at higher risk for chronic dry eye symptoms.
She explains how screen time reduces blink rate from 21 to just 7 times per minute, discusses essential makeup and cosmetics rules, and provides practical solutions for autoimmune patients who are at higher risk for chronic dry eye symptoms.
First Aired on: Mar 2, 2026
Episode 233
Dr. Pam Theriot:The Eye Care Protocol Every Autoimmune Patient Needs to Know
Dr. Pam Theriot:
The Eye Care Protocol Every Autoimmune Patient Needs to Know
Dr. Pam Theriot shares her four-step daily eye care protocol to combat dry eye caused by digital device use.
She explains how screen time reduces blink rate from 21 to just 7 times per minute, discusses essential makeup and cosmetics rules, and provides practical solutions for autoimmune patients who are at higher risk for chronic dry eye symptoms.
She explains how screen time reduces blink rate from 21 to just 7 times per minute, discusses essential makeup and cosmetics rules, and provides practical solutions for autoimmune patients who are at higher risk for chronic dry eye symptoms.
First Aired on: Mar 2, 2026
Table of Contents:
Table of Contents:
In this episode:
In this episode:
Introduction
Dr. Pam Theriot is an optometrist and dry eye specialist with over 20 years of experience in eye care. She leads the Dry Eye Relief Center at Lusk Eye Specialists in Louisiana and became a dry eye specialist after experiencing her own chronic dry eye symptoms when she moved to New Mexico early in her career. In this episode, she joins me to discuss the epidemic of dry eye symptoms and share practical strategies for protecting our vision in our digital world.
Episode Highlights
How Digital Devices Are Destroying Our Eye Health
Dr. Theriot explains the primary cause of today's dry eye epidemic and why screen time is so damaging to our eyes.
- Normal conversation: we blink 21 times per minute
- Computer use: we blink only 7 times per minute
- FaceTime/phone use: we blink only 5 times per minute
- Blinking expresses oil from glands in our eyelids that protect our tears from evaporating
- Generations are now being born with screens in their hands by age two
The Daily Four-Step Eye Care Protocol
Just like we know how to care for our teeth daily, Dr. Theriot shares four simple steps to care for our eyes.
- Step 1: Use preservative-free artificial tears throughout the day
- Step 2: Cleanse lids and lashes with eye-specific cleansers (not baby shampoo)
- Step 3: Apply warm compresses at 108°F for 10 minutes to soften oils
- Step 4: Take nutraceuticals like omega-3s or Blink Nutri-Tier for tear building blocks
Essential Makeup and Cosmetics Rules
Dr. Theriot shares her top three cosmetic rules to prevent eye irritation and inflammation.
- Rule 1: If you put makeup on, you must take it off with eye-safe removers
- Rule 2: Never use waterproof mascara (higher toxin content and harder to remove)
- Rule 3: No tight-lining or eyeliner on the waterline where oil glands are located
- Fake lashes contain formaldehyde in the adhesives and should be avoided
- Clean cosmetics without toxins are essential for reducing inflammation
Recognizing Dry Eye Symptoms Beyond Just Dryness
Many people don't realize they have dry eye because symptoms can vary significantly depending on which layer of tears is affected.
- Classic symptoms: dry, scratchy, gritty feeling eyes
- Autoimmune patients: aching, stinging, burning from lack of water in tears
- Screen users: excessive tearing, fluctuating vision, stinging from lack of oil
- The brain tries to compensate by making more tears, causing watery eyes
- Most common mistake: dismissing symptoms as allergies or temporary issues
Special Considerations for Autoimmune Patients
People with autoimmune conditions like Sjogren's have unique eye care needs and higher risks.
- Autoimmune patients don't make as many tears as average people
- They have more inflammation in their bodies, affecting eye health
- Annual eye exams are essential for early detection and treatment
- Using drops more than four times daily indicates need for professional evaluation
- Prescription medications may be needed to help the body make more tears
Nighttime Eye Protection Strategies
Dr. Theriot recommends specific nighttime routines for optimal eye health and healing.
- Use viscous gel or ointment drops at bedtime (vision will be blurry temporarily)
- Wear a sleep mask to keep eyelids fully closed and create moisture barrier
- Important for people in dry climates or those whose eyelids don't seal completely
- Get 7-9 hours of sleep for proper eye rest and healing
- Especially beneficial for people over 60 whose eyelids may gap slightly at night
Notable Quotes from this Episode
The number one thing that is causing our eyes to be dry relating to our digital device use is the lack of blinking. We would be blinking 21 times a minute in conversation, but on computers we blink seven times a minute, and on FaceTime only five times a minute.
Dr. Pam Theriot
If you and I were to ask your audience, what is their biggest fear in life after death? Most Americans say the loss of vision. And we all know what to do every single day to take care of our teeth even though if they fell out of our head tomorrow we could get new ones. If our eyeballs were gone, they would be gone.
Dr. Pam Theriot
The most common mistake is disregarding your symptoms. Patients will say 'doc, my eyes were killing me yesterday, but you know, it was just my allergies.' Instead of realizing that this is more common, this needing to rub my eyes or my vision so blurry, it's omnipresent almost.
Dr. Pam Theriot
Other Resources:
Other Resources:
Connect with Dr. Pam Theriot
Connect with Dr. Pam Theriot
Dr. Pam Theriot has a gift for you!
Dr. Pam Theriot has a gift for you!
Clean Makeup Guide for Patients with Sensitive Eyes
Episode Transcript
Pam Theriot:[00:00:00] if you are reaching for artificial tears more than four times a day, it's more than just my eyes need a refresh. You need to see your eye care professional and medication given to you so that your body can help you make more of your own tears.
Julie Howton: Welcome back to The Inspired Living with Autoimmunity podcast. I'm your host, Julie Houghton. In today's episode, I'm talking to Dr. Pam Theriot, a dry eye specialist who opened my eyes to how our digital world is quietly damaging our vision and what we can do about it. In this conversation, she breaks down her four step [00:01:00] daily eye care protocol,
shares essential makeup rules and explains why people with autoimmune conditions need extra protection. We cover everything from recognizing symptoms beyond just dryness to nighttime strategies that can prevent long-term damage. This isn't just about comfort, it's about protecting the one part of our body we can't replace.
Dr. Theriot, welcome to the podcast.
Pam Theriot: Thanks so much for having me today.
Julie Howton: I'm so excited for this conversation because, so, um, we're gonna get into why so many people now experiencing dry eye, um, but especially people with autoimmunity. With just living with that chronic inflammation. So, um, I was one of those people. So I'm excited. I'm excited to, to learn along with you, um, with the listeners.
So share with us. Um, I do believe you are the [00:02:00] first optometrist we've had on the podcast, so Woo hoo. Um,
Pam Theriot: Yay.
Julie Howton: and I'd love to just have listeners get to know you a little bit and then share your journey of, you know. How, how did you create your specialty?
Pam Theriot: Absolutely. Well, I'm so thrilled to be here today, and especially with your listeners and. Particular because, uh, dry eye symptoms are so prevalent in our autoimmune patients and patients with autoimmune disease are the biggest portion of my dry eye practice. I wouldn't say that autoimmune patients make up the biggest.
Majority of dry eye patients, um, because probably the biggest majority are people who are using digital devices all day long. But my practice where, where I live in Louisiana and because of the, the age of my practice and the specialty that we're in, um, my patients primarily have autoimmune diseases. So, um, your people are near and dear to my heart.
Julie Howton: We're [00:03:00] your people
Pam Theriot: Yes, your people are my people.
Julie Howton: And one of the, even aside from the chronic inflammation and, and my own personal experience and then with clients and patients at the clinic, I know how, how common that overlap is. Um, but I, I've heard you talk like these are no matter what, because those of us with autoimmunity, we don't live in a cave.
We are on devices. We are doing the same things. Hopefully to a lesser degree, um, that, that the rest of the world is doing. And that's, you know, that's why to me, this is such a, and I'm a mom. I have three grandkids. Like, it's such an important conversation because modern times have changed.
Pam Theriot: Right, and we're, we're using our devices. The demands that we have on our visual system and on our eyes themselves are so much more demanding than they were 20 years ago. Which, you know, brings [00:04:00] me to the, the point of like, how did I become a dry eye specialist? And it, it doesn't, it always go back to you, right?
It goes back to me my own experience and, um, we'll we will make a long story short, but 20 something years ago, um, my husband was a. Was in the military. He was at active duty, um, air Force, and we moved to New Mexico for the first. For the first time I lived in the desert and I was a newly, newly born optometrist.
It was my second year in practice. I was so excited to be an eye doctor and to. To get into treating patients for the first time. And we landed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and within six months I could no longer wear my contact lenses. I couldn't wear eye makeup on my eyes. I was sitting in front of my patients with makeup, running down my face, big, clunky [00:05:00] glasses on, and feeling like a fraud because the climate had put my, at that point, uh, probably like 20 year.
Experience of wearing contact lenses. Now I'm in the desert now, I'm trying to wear them 16 hours a day going to work. Now I'm, um, in this dry, arid atmosphere that just, it just put me over the top so I could no longer do the things that I thought were making me look professional. And that's where my love of dry eye decide.
Was born.
Julie Howton: Well, as somebody who's in Colorado, I get it. It is
Pam Theriot: Absolutely. The air matters.
Julie Howton: Yeah.
Pam Theriot: Yes. The.
Julie Howton: I love that you shared, you know, part of the journey with, with the contact lenses. I went through a phase at one point trying, trying to mess with contact lenses for me. It didn't, it wasn't a, I [00:06:00] wear them when I scuba dive. And that's it. And they're super, when I scuba dive and that, that's, and I'm usually not in a dry climate when I do that. Um, so it's just not worth it. It is a choice. Um, but so here we are. Now you're living somewhere with more humidity in the air.
Pam Theriot: Absolutely
Julie Howton: and I'm assuming your eyes, you look beautiful. So I'm guessing you're, you have, you've figured it out and you've managed your challenges.
Pam Theriot: right. 20 years later, uh, technology has caught up to us one, but I've also completely overhauled, um, how I treat my eyes on a daily basis from the cosmetics and products that I put in on and around my eyes. No. Longer have toxins in them to bring down that level of inflammation. And I have a simple four step protocol that I use every day that, um, love to share with your audience on how we can take care of our eyes, just like [00:07:00] we take care of our teeth
Julie Howton: So important. I know I've heard, I've heard you talk about that every 2-year-old in this country at least, you know, knows that to
Pam Theriot: stands in front of.
Julie Howton: their teeth, right? So. So what is, first I wanna, I wanna back it up a little bit. Um, 'cause we've kind of made reference to screens and modern times, and talk about, kind of get underneath because functional medicine, we gotta figure out the why. Um, what is different in our eye health now that we're all spending so much time on screen.
Pam Theriot: So the number one thing that is causing our eyes. To be dry. Relating to our digital device use is the lack of blinking. So if you and I were sitting at the at at a table enjoying some beverage together and just looking at one another in real time, we would be blinking 21 times a minute. [00:08:00] Um, right now we are on our.
Computers. So we are blinking seven times a minute. But if we were both on FaceTime and we had our phones in front of us, we would blink only five times a minute. So on average, you can see how quickly that blink rate decreases. And because of that, every time we blink our eyes, our eyelids come together.
And that little bit of pressure of the upper lid touching that lower lid causes the oil glands that are inside the skin of the lids to express some oil, and they get spread out across the front surface of our eye and coat our eyes with this luscious, beautiful oil that gives us a clear. Image for the light to come into our eyes, and it also protects the watery part of our tears from evaporating into your very dry Colorado climate that you're in.
And so [00:09:00] the, the tears will stay on the eyes because that oily layer is in place locking the tears onto the eye. So with hours and hours and hours and hours a day, right? 8, 10, 12, 14, 16 hours a day. Some of these kids are on their digital devices. Um, that decrease in blink rate for, you know, Monday through Sunday.
Nobody's putting their cell phone down just because it's Sunday. And then decades upon decades upon decades of doing this. That's what's damaging our eyes. And now that we're, you know, in 2026, um, there are actual generations of human beings that were born within the first two years on a screen, right?
Their toothbrush in one hand and their cell phone in the other hand, by the age of two.
Julie Howton: So sad but true. Good job with the toothbrush, by the way. And, and so I wanna highlight it's [00:10:00] not, well, when we think of dry eye, we tend to think of discomfort. Um, which, and, and it can be serious discomfort and can be chronic and, and, but it's the, it's the protectiveness. That we're talking about, one wanna prevent damage and having chronically dry eyes is not healthy for the eye.
Pam Theriot: Right. The actual health of the, the eye itself, much less the clarity of your vision,
Julie Howton: Right? Yeah. and, and just before anybody is like, well, you know, when we're concentrating or focused on something, like even reading a book. It, it is typical for blink rate to, to kind of slow down a little bit. Right?
Pam Theriot: right? Even book reading is decreased from the. At 21 times a minute that we would be in conversation,
Julie Howton: Yeah.
Pam Theriot: right?
Julie Howton: Plus most of us don't spend 16 hours a day reading a book. I mean, that sounds like [00:11:00] heaven, but not, not usually how, how we're spending our day.
Pam Theriot: Correct. Yes. But in some form of digital device, off and on. Is is quite typical these days, whether you're, you're sitting in front of a computer for your, for your JOB, or you just happen to have a cell phone attached to one of your, your hands.
Julie Howton: Yeah, absolutely. Uh, so I, I touched on I want to differentiate and, and I, I believe actually that this conversation serves everybody. Um. Um, but because of our particular audience, and we've done some, some episodes on Sjogren's, we're not, this conversation is not Sjogren's specific. Correct. But I'm guessing probably doesn't rule out it would be the same.
Like you said, taking care of your eyes is taking care of your eyes. Right.
Pam Theriot: Absolutely. So our Sjogren's patients are, you know, have [00:12:00] more of a need to, to listen closely and follow, follow the advice that we're gonna give, but all of us. Because we are, we are all using digital devices. We can, you know, take some, some takeaways from this conversation. Our Sjogren's patients, unfortunately don't make as many tiers as the average person, and that puts them in, in a higher category of need.
And, but the, the tips that we'll share. Can be used across the board.
Julie Howton: Okay. And before we get into like, because you have great tips, um, and I, and I want to share your four steps, um, I know you have, you have very good eye health habits, um, that we can all develop and, and it doesn't take a lot of time. Um, but you mentioned makeup and I love that. 'cause again, it's, it's whole health, right?
So I love, you already said, you know, what's going on in and around your skin, your eyes, your body, um, to, [00:13:00] to reduce the toxicity. But if somebody like me who's just ridiculously careful about what they put on on themselves, um, you know, is, is clean eye makeup, okay? Like, what are the do's and don'ts for the ladies out there?
Pam Theriot: Absolutely. So let, let's hit my top. Three do's and don'ts. So, um, as far as cosmetics go, if you put your makeup on, you must take it off. So at the end of the day, we are using an eye safe makeup remover. Um, and I have a, I have a list of makeup removers and cosmetics that, um, are Dr. Approved that we'll reference at the end of our episode.
And. And so if you put your makeup on, you have to take it off. So that's rule number one. Rule number two, um, mascara happens to be, uh, a woman's favorite cosmetic across the board. That's, that's the [00:14:00] one that we are all applying every day is mascara. So if you're using mascar. It cannot be waterproof, which some of my dry eye patients like to argue with me, oh, but my eyes water, or I have to put my artificial tears in so many times a day.
I want to use waterproof so that it doesn't run down my face, but the likelihood of a waterproof mascara having toxin ingredients in it is much higher. Then a non waterproof mascara. And then the effort that you need to use to remove that waterproof mascara at the end of the day is, is more so no waterproof.
And then my third cosmetic rule is no tight lining, so that's when you put the eyeliner on the water. Which is where those oil glands that we were just talking about, um, the oil glands that, that release oil, when we blink, they live on the waterline, so no cosmetics on the waterline. Upper lid, lower lid, doesn't matter.
No tight. [00:15:00] Lining.
Julie Howton: I never even knew the name for that. So, see, I'm learning so much I, I can share with everybody. And not only that, but I learned about makeup today. Um, but that makes, it does, it makes perfect sense, right? Like why would you wanna occlude? Like that's the
Pam Theriot: Write your oil glands.
Julie Howton: Yeah. Yeah. I love that. Okay. I love that you didn't say never, ever.
Don't do it. Um, as far as eye makeup at all, so yeah.
Pam Theriot: you know, as women we're gonna wear eye makeup and there are plenty of healthy ways to do it. Sometimes patients, their eyes are so dry or they're so, they're so inflamed that we have to take a small vacation from cosmetics or a vacation from certain types of cosmetics. But getting back into that, that's.
That's part of our human experience that we want to, to wear cosmetics. So I don't like to take things away from patients if I don't have to.
Julie Howton: That's, that's [00:16:00] so fun. So, so again, back to making sure products are clean, it does make sense. If so, if like what if mascara is truly waterproof, there's something bonding that to your eyelash that's gonna be toxic, you know?
Pam Theriot: Yes, absolutely.
Julie Howton: Yeah, so such good advice. Okay. So, and I, I'm, I know there's overlap, um, and I just, I love the way I, you lay out the rules, like if you put it on, take it off, you know, like makes sense, but a lot of people don't think of it. Um, I know like the, the. Fake lashes and, and adding in lashes and all of that is, is very popular. Um, I'm guessing the adhesives and the bonding agents can't, they
Pam Theriot: All toxic. They're all toxic. So either you're gluing individual lashes onto your own lash, and most of that glue [00:17:00] has formaldehyde in it. And we know that formal formaldehyde is what we used to embalm dead bodies. It can't be good for our eyes. Uh, the, the other option is to use an adhesive that, you know, stick.
The lash line to, to your skin itself. And that can break down your skin barrier over time. So I like to encourage my patients to grow their own beautiful lashes. And by taking good care of your eyes and your lids, you can stimulate your own natural lash growth by removing those toxics and toxins in your cosmetics.
And then. Using some conditioning solutions to the lashes at bedtime. And your lashes will just grow
Julie Howton: And that actually works, the conditioning
Pam Theriot: Absolutely. Yep. And they are on my list, so stay tuned. We will download.
Julie Howton: This is like, we should also have like as the aside, you know, and it's the beauty episode. [00:18:00] This is great. And it is so funny though, even, um, you know, women experiencing hair loss and, and like the, the impact that toxins have on our body and, and just. Often, like you said, going, kind of going back to nature and, and supporting what our body naturally does, which is make new hair, make new lashes, you know?
Um, so I love that your, your approach is, is very well aligned. That's, that's fantastic. So, so what are your, your four steps that I'm, I'm guessing are really a must for everybody for long-term eye health and, and combating. This challenge that we have now with the dry eye?
Pam Theriot: Absolutely. Well, since your, your listeners haven't heard me tell this story a million times like you have, um, let's talk about the fact that, um. [00:19:00] Um, as we mentioned earlier, that we all know exactly the steps on what to do to take care of our teeth, right? So if we were to ask your audience what is their biggest fear in life after death?
Most Americans say the loss of vision, and we all know what to do every single day to take care of our teeth, even though if they fell out of our head tomorrow, we could get new ones. It, it might not be painless. It might not be easy. It might not be cheap, but we could indeed get new teeth. Um, if if our eyeballs were gone, they would be gone.
So, um, we use four things to take care of our teeth every single day. A toothbrush, a toothpaste, mouthwash, and floss. And so I have four things that I'd like you to use to take care of your eyes every day. Um, they start with artificial tears or lubricating drops. I prefer patients who use a preservative free lubricant.
You can get these at the [00:20:00] drug store, the grocery store, the pharmacy, um, artificial tears. That might be something that you just wanna set by your workstation so that. Throughout the day, you're working along, click, click, click, and then you put in your artificial tears to give yourself a little boost of hydration.
Julie Howton: Nice.
Pam Theriot: N number two is to cleanse the lids and lashes. So just like our teeth have a biofilm on them, and that's why we brush the bacteria away twice a day. We want to cleanse the lids and lashes. Dirt, dust, debris, pollen, and bacteria are hovering in our lashes and on our eyelids. So at the end of the day, you've removed your eye makeup, and then you follow that up with a cleanser that is made specifically for the eyes, not a baby shampoo, not your face wash, but a specific eyelid and lash cleanser.
Again, you get that in the same aisle at the grocery store [00:21:00] that you get those artificial tears. It's, they're right there all in the same place. Correct? Yeah. These are specifically made for the eyes. The, the skin of the lids is the most delicate skin on the face. It is thinner than the other skins. It has different types of oil glands.
In it that we need to preserve those oils so that the skin doesn't dry out. So
Julie Howton: Gotcha.
Pam Theriot: step two. Step three, all of you computer users are gonna love this step, which is to use a warm compress Because of those oils inside the eyelids that are supposed to come out as we blink, they can harden, get thickened and harden inside those oil glances.
So if we use a warm compress, it helps to soften those oils, and then we do some blinking after we've done the warm compress. It helps to get those oils out of the oil glands and onto the front surface of the eyes. But in general, that warm compress feels very soothing and [00:22:00] calming to the front surface of the eye, especially if your eyes are tired at the end of a.
Workday
Julie Howton: great time to like meditate or just Yeah, just turn inward chill.
Pam Theriot: breathing. Yes.
Julie Howton: have, it's, it's very specific though. Yes. Temperatures and the warm
Pam Theriot: So it, yeah, it needs to be 108 degrees for about 10 minutes, and there are many of these masks available. If you were to put warm, compress eye. Into the search bar on Amazon, you could have one that plugged in. There are air activated masks, like a, like a hot hand that you can just open 'em up and they're disposable.
Um, and they're ones that go in the microwave as well, but 108 degrees for. 10 minutes is the scientific numbers that we're looking for.
Julie Howton: Okay. And is it one of those, like wherever it fits in your, like to me, I picture that as an evening thing 'cause it sounds so relaxing, does it matter? Like it wherever it, [00:23:00] wherever somebody will so many habits, least health related, it's like, well, when you'll do it is the best time to do it. Is that the same with the eye mass?
Pam Theriot: Absolutely. Uh, it doesn't matter specifically which time of the. Day, um, whether morning in, in a midday break, just to, to close your eyes and put that warm compress over or at the end of the day.
Julie Howton: Nice.
Pam Theriot: And then step four is probably your favorite, which is to use a nutraceutical to give your body the building blocks it needs of healthy tears.
And it used to be, um. Um, uh, more than a year ago that I would only ever talk about Omega-3 fatty acid supplements so that, because those are the building blocks of the oils that coat the front surface of the eye. And that's what we had available as far as, uh, an eye nutraceutical. But now I also like to talk about one that's called Blink, Nutri Tier, which might be very.
Um, beneficial for your audience in [00:24:00] general because Bausch Lam came out with these t, these vitamin supplements a year ago. It's just one pill a day, and the Nutri tier has curcumin, which is an anti-inflammatory vitamin D, and then it has lutein in xanthin in it, which are antioxidants. So for your autoimmune audience who already have an overabundance of inflammation in their bodies.
This nutraceutical would help the eyes make more of the watery portion of the tears.
Julie Howton: Nice. Uh, so amazing. And it is, I love the, the. They're focusing on things like making nutraceuticals. Right. But I, I do also, I agree that like foundationally, if somebody's listening and you have autoimmunity and you may or may not have dry eye, you probably, if you do, you know, and you're not, unless you're omegas or like. Uh, tush kicking. Great. Which is [00:25:00] rare if, if you live in this country and you're not supplementing, um, I, I always go back to like those foundational, and even in the, even what's, what's in the, the blank Nutri tier, are pretty foundational substances. Like, it's not, it's nothing crazy or sexy, but they're things that our, our body should make and, and except for curcumin, but things, things that we should have. often we get low end. Um, and so I, I think it, I'm just happy that, that a company like Bausch and Loma is going in that direction. Like That's amazing.
Pam Theriot: Right, and you can find it so easily. At, at the grocery store, and you don't have to go hunting to a specific health food store to find them. It's, it's on the shelves where you're already shopping.
Julie Howton: Yeah. Which is awesome. Is there a, like most common mistake you see people. Making aside from the eye makeup, um, know what I mean? Like,
Pam Theriot: Mm-hmm.[00:26:00]
Julie Howton: is there something we think is good that isn't, or
Pam Theriot: Absolutely. So I. I think the most common one is disregarding your symptoms. So patients will say to me, oh, you know, doc, my eyes, they were killing me yesterday. I just, I just wanted to rob them and they were just watering and, but you know, it was just my allergies. And so if they hadn't been sitting in my chair for me to say, oh no, let me take a look.
Oh no, this is chronic dry eye disease that I'm seeing because you have rheumatoid arthritis and you take an antihistamine and you're perimenopausal and you know, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, and me giving them a diagnosis, right? Instead, they're poo-pooing or they're. They're disregarding what they're feeling to something as simple as [00:27:00] allergy.
That allergy gets thrown under the bus every single day, or I just overdid it. Oh, I had a deadline yesterday, so I was on my computer. I, I did too much, you know, in this one instance, versus realizing that this is more common, this, this needing to rub my eyes or my. My vision's so blur. It's, it's very, yeah, it's omnipresence almost.
Julie Howton: the the blurry vision one too. Sometimes dry eye can be experienced not as feeling dry. Especially. I remember talking to a client a few years ago who. Clearly had dry eye. I'm not an eye doctor, but women, and I said, oh, you know, dry eye. No, no, no. It's the opposite of dry eye. They're tearing all the
Pam Theriot: Watering.
Julie Howton: So look, can we, can we kind of go through, I jumped in 'cause I was so excited. But what are the different symptoms? People, I mean, you just gave us a few, but like, because there's, there's a variety.
Pam Theriot: Absolutely. So [00:28:00] I think classically people would think that their eyes feel dry, scratchy. Gritty. Um, when they are dry, there's not enough moisture in them, but it really depends on what layer of the tears you're lacking. So if you are an autoimmune patient or have Sjogren's, you don't have enough water in your tears, then your eyes feel achy.
They sting and burn. They feel gritty and scratchy and dry. However, if you, you don't have Sjogren's disease and you you're spending eight hours a day on a computer, you might just be lacking. The oily portion of the tears and have plenty of water. And so your tears are actually too liquidy and they're not viscous enough because there's not enough oil in them.
And so you actually have eyes that probably sting and burn. The vision fluctuates in and out of focus, and sometimes you water because the the eye is telling the brain that it doesn't feel right, and the brain goes, oh, [00:29:00] don't worry. I'll make you some tears. And then the tears just. Pour out of the eyes.
Julie Howton: Uh, thank you. I just, you know, I, we jump in sometimes and, and having somebody to who, you know, just literally said, no, no, you don't understand. I was like. maybe we should back it up and just at least touch on some of those symptoms. you, we talk about this all the time on the podcast, the normalizing of symptoms, right?
Of inflammation, whether it's aches and pains. Oh yeah. I'm getting older, like you name it. And, and there's a way that we tend to either compensate for or normalize. Um, and so I, I love that you highlight that. It's very common, even with the eyes. And like you said, we get, we have one set. We need to protect them.
Pam Theriot: Right. We need, we need to take some steps every day to to help our eyes. Work as well as they possibly can for as long as they can.
Julie Howton: Wow. I love that. there, is there [00:30:00] such a thing as overusing, again, I'm talking about preservative free, artificial tears is there, is there, what, what's an appropriate amount to, to be using them?
Pam Theriot: Right? So I think that if you are reaching for artificial tears more than four times a day, you. It's more than just my eyes. Need a refresh. You need to see your eye care professional and you need to have a prescription medication given to you so that your body can help you make more of your own tears.
And for your audience, especially they, they must be getting annual eye. Exams, uh, there's so many things that could be noticed during an eye exam where we could take care of this at the beginning of the disease instead of letting it go on and on and on. Uh, where it's harder to treat.
Julie Howton: Yeah. So important and I, I, yeah, I know so many people who just don't pay attention because it's not their loudest symptom. [00:31:00] Um, but again, we're talking about prevention and true eye health. Um, which is, you know, important.
Pam Theriot: Important.
Julie Howton: Now I'm going back a long time. I, I haven't bought, I, I, I'm assuming they still make these.
I know when I was experiencing dry eye several years ago, chronically, um, I was also using like a, a more viscous, um, tear replacement at night when I would go to bed that, you know, seemed to kind of really help. Is that, are they still around? Do you recommend those? Is is that.
Pam Theriot: Absolutely. And is. Especially in drier climates like you live in or here in the winter time when we have our heaters going and our, the air in our bedrooms is so dry, I recommend two things. Number one would be an ointment or a gel drop to use at bedtime. And you do truly want to just wait until you're ready for bed because once you put that viscous drop in your IE you can't see very clearly.[00:32:00]
Um, and then, but the second thing I would recommend. Is a to wear a sleep mask, so just a cloth mask over the lids because you'd be surprised, especially as we get into our sixties and seventies, the, uh, the eyelids have a tendency to just be a little bit. Open at night and having that covered can really give you a, a nice moisture barrier inside the, the eyes.
If your lids aren't ceiling shut all the way.
Julie Howton: That is such brilliant advice I love, and, and so many of these things we're not talking about again. Fancy expensive hacks or it has to be a special eye mask or, um, and if, if hopefully, you know, maybe some of the things we talked about in the beginning of the conversation don't apply to certain listeners because their eyes feel great. sounds like a, like such an easy, inexpensive way to protect them down the [00:33:00] road. Um, 'cause the goal is that we continue to age so.
Pam Theriot: And gracefully as well, right?
Julie Howton: Yes, that too. And feel younger 'cause why not? But yes. Um, that is so amazing. Listeners know, and you already gave us this huge list, but I'm gonna put you on the spot anyway 'cause listeners know I'm gonna ask for one step.
So it could be a repeat, it could be something totally different they can take today to support their health. It could be. Whatever you think.
Pam Theriot: The one thing, oh gosh. Well now I wanna do two things.
Julie Howton: Go. Every, everybody does. It's fine.
Pam Theriot: the, the first thing I would say is, as adults, we still need seven to nine hours of sleep every night. I'm sure this is something that you've harped on more than once in on your podcast. Closing your eyes for seven to nine [00:34:00] hours since we just gave you those tips of putting that ointment in and covering your eyes with an eye mass sleep, seven to nine hours, your body needs that rest and your eyes especially do.
But if there's one specific step that you could take just for your eyes, it would be to start cleansing them with a lid and lash cleanser, and especially for your audience. With autoimmune that have more inflammation in their body than they, than the average person
Julie Howton: Mm-hmm.
Pam Theriot: removing any, uh, any infl inflammatory factors from around the eyes, the dirt, dust, debris, pollen, makeup, cosmetics from around the eyes before you go to bed at night with a, with a cleansing lid and lash cleanser scrub it on.
They come in, uh, foams, like a foaming cleanser. It comes in a spray and it. They come in pre moist and wipes, so all sorts of stuff. If you go to the eyecare aisle at your local grocery store, cleanse your lids and [00:35:00] lashes, I promise that is the the most important step to keeping your eyes healthy. It's gonna bring down the inflammation from around your eyes.
And it'll make you feel better tomorrow.
Julie Howton: Amazing. And of those choices, do you have a preference or it really is just personal preference for the different kinds of cleansers.
Pam Theriot: You know, I usually personalize it to my patients. Um, the spray is probably the. Most gentle because it's an anti-inflammatory hypochlorous spray that just kills bacteria and viruses on contact. It's super easy to use and it's gentle on the skin, so you close your eyes and just spray the hypochlorous spray onto your closed lids.
That's the easiest one. So across the board, anyone could use that one.
Julie Howton: That's amazing. This is too much, too much information. But I'm gonna overshare, I feel so grossed out right now because I don't do that. Like that's not part of. My, hasn't been until today. 'cause you know, I'm going to the store [00:36:00] on the way home. Um, it hasn't been part of my wellness routine and I am like grossed out that I didn't know that and haven't been doing it.
So, um, yep. I will be stopping on, on the way home from clinic today to,
Pam Theriot: Yay
Julie Howton: things. um, and, and I love that you highlight, you can find many of these products. Wherever you
Pam Theriot: your.
Julie Howton: Like even the, I'm back, back when I was using drops regularly. Um, you know, it was a little harder to find the preservative free, but even back then, like Costco carries a giant box.
Like, can find these things. And so, um, really, really worth the, the time investigating and the investment to protect your eyes for sure. It's amazing. So you mentioned some of the resources that you have. Um, so I want [00:37:00] listeners to make sure that they're able. To, to find you've, you've put a lot of work in and, and this is such important information.
I'm like, you know, you're, you definitely seem like you're younger than me. So I'm like, well, 'cause I wanna say, well, where were you, you know, ago, um, you were too young. You probably hadn't hit New Mexico yet. Um. Where is the best place to, to find you for people that aren't gonna check the links? Um, and, and how can they, how can they get some of your wisdom shared with them?
Pam Theriot: Absolutely. So the easiest place to go is my website, which is my name, www.pamtheriot.com, and my last name is spelled the Riot. So pam the riot.com. And
Julie Howton: makes me smile.
Pam Theriot: from there, the two resources we are talking about would be pamtheriot.com/defocus. That will get you the makeup remover [00:38:00] guide and the cosmetics, like it has my favorite mascara eye cream, all the things listed on that one. And then if you would like to know the four simple steps that you can use every day to take care of your eyes.
And a guide to help you set up your workstation so that you know which distance you're gonna have your screen from, the proper angle, the glare settings, uh, and all of that. That came from my TEDx talk that I gave in 2025. So that handout is at pamtheriot.com/tedx.
Julie Howton: Amazing. And again, so this is so important for, this is one of those episodes that not only do I want people to listen a few times, but spread the word. It's like we all need to know and, and you have done such a beautiful job keeping things simple for people. Um, but again, this is a, a newer problem that has [00:39:00] happened over the past few decades, newer in that sense, and, and
Pam Theriot: Right,
Julie Howton: it, it's gonna get worse because, like you said, now the 2-year-old is on a screen and they didn't have screens when I was two except for tv. So,
Pam Theriot: right.
Julie Howton: you know, it, it's a huge change. Our bodies can't evolve that quickly. and so I just really, um, am so grateful for your time and your wisdom and the effort that you're making to get the word out. Um, because we all need to take the best care of our eyes.
Pam Theriot: Thank you so much for having me. It was such a pleasure.
Julie Howton: For everyone listening. Remember, you can get the transcripts, show notes, and all those links by visiting Inspired Living Show. I hope you had a great time and enjoyed this episode as much as I did. I'll see you next week. [00:40:00]
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My Guest For This Episode
My Guest For This Episode
Connect with Dr. Pam Theriot
Dr. Pam Theriot
Dr. Pam Theriot is an optometrist, author, and dry eye specialist based in Louisiana. With over 20 years of experience in eye care, she leads the Dry Eye Relief Center at Lusk Eye Specialists, where she helps patients find personalized, long-term solutions to chronic eye irritation.
Her own journey with dry eye began early in her career, when symptoms like dryness and discomfort began affecting her ability to wear contacts, enjoy running, or even apply makeup before work. That frustration turned into a deep, professional mission: to help others feel at ease in their own eyes again.
Dr. Theriot now shares her most effective tools and strategies through her book Alleviate Dry Eye, online courses, a weekly blog, and her Editor’s Pick Award Winning TEDx talk. Her work reaches people who struggle with red, irritated eyes and fluctuating vision.
Dr. Theriot is on a mission to help 1 million people learn to care for their eyes as routinely as they care for their teet
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