We see plenty of styes, and they tend to show up with little warning as a red, tender bump along the lash line. Most are harmless, but the soreness and swelling can make it hard to focus on much else. If you’ve noticed you keep getting styes, that pattern is worth paying attention to as well.
To get rid of a stye, hold a warm compress on your closed eyelid for about 10 minutes several times a day and keep the area clean while it drains on its own. Most styes heal with home care, but a lingering one may need a closer look during an eye exam.
What a Stye Is and How It Forms
A stye is a small, painful lump that grows at the base of an eyelash or just inside your eyelid. Your optometrist might call it a hordeolum. Most styes start with a bacterial infection in an eyelash follicle or in one of the tiny oil glands in your eyelid.
The bump often looks like a pimple. Your eyelid may feel tender when you blink, and your eye might water or feel scratchy.
You might also hear about a chalazion, a similar bump that forms when an oil gland clogs without an active infection. Chalazia are usually less tender than styes, though they tend to last longer. Sometimes a stye turns into one.
What Causes a Stye?
Bacteria from your skin and hands can get trapped in a blocked gland or follicle, and a few everyday habits make that easier. You may be more likely to get a stye if you:
- Touch or rub your eyes without washing your hands first
- Use old eye makeup or go to bed without removing it
- Keep lash extensions in for weeks at a time
- Sleep in your contact lenses or handle them with unwashed hands
People with rosacea or blepharitis, a condition that makes the edges of the eyelids red and swollen, may find that styes come back more often.
How to Treat a Stye at Home
Most styes clear up on their own within 1 to 2 weeks, and a warm compress may help yours drain a few days sooner. The steps below can also keep you more comfortable while it heals.
Use a Warm Compress
Heat can soften the oil and debris clogging the gland, helping the stye open and drain. We usually suggest testing the water on the inside of your wrist first. It should feel comfortably warm against your skin.
Here’s how to use a warm compress:
- Wash your hands, then soak a clean washcloth in warm water and wring it out.
- Hold the cloth over your closed eyelid for about 10 minutes.
- Dip it in warm water again whenever it starts to cool.
- Repeat 3 to 4 times a day until the bump goes down.
Keep Your Eyelid Clean
After each compress, gently wipe away any crust along your lash line. Mix a few drops of baby shampoo into warm water and clean the area with a soft cloth or cotton pad.
Use a fresh cloth or pad every time. And wash your hands again afterward so you don’t carry bacteria over to your other eye.
Take a Break From Makeup & Contacts
Skip eye makeup until the stye heals. Once it’s gone, replace any eye makeup you used while you had it, since mascara and liner can hold onto bacteria.
Switch to glasses for a few days instead of wearing your contacts. You’ll touch your eyes less, which gives your eyelid a chance to settle down.
What Not to Do With a Stye
It’s tempting to try to speed things along, but a few habits can make a stye worse or spread the infection. Avoid these until it clears:
- Squeezing or popping the bump
- Rubbing your eye, even when it itches
- Using face scrubs or harsh skin care products near your eye
When to See an Optometrist About a Stye
Book a visit if your stye isn’t improving after about a week of home care. You should reach out sooner if you notice:
- Swelling that spreads across your whole eyelid
- Redness that moves onto your cheek or the skin around your eye
- Blurry vision
- Sensitivity to light
- A stye that keeps coming back
Spreading swelling and redness can point to periorbital cellulitis, an infection of the eyelid and surrounding skin that needs antibiotics. Your optometrist can check for it and confirm whether your bump is a stye or a chalazion.
If a stye won’t heal, treatment may include a steroid injection to reduce swelling or a small in-office procedure to drain it. If styes keep returning, your optometrist can also look for an ongoing eyelid or gland problem that may need its own care plan.
Getting Help for a Stye That Won’t Go Away
A stye that keeps returning may have a cause you can address, whether that’s a gland that clogs easily or a habit that brings bacteria to your eyelids. Once you know the cause, you can work on it with your optometrist instead of treating each stye as it comes.
Our optometrists at Total Vision Diamond Bar can take a close look at your eyelids and help you build a care routine that may lower your chances of getting another stye. Book an appointment if your stye isn’t healing or you’re tired of dealing with repeat ones.
