Home Remedies for Conjunctivitis

When your eyes don't work properly, you can't see to do most of your regular daily tasks. Sometimes, you can wake up to discover that one or both of your eyes have turned pink and crusty with puss and fluid. That's exactly what happens when you contract pink eye, formally known as conjunctivitis. There are several things you can do from home to encourage natural healing and to prevent the infection from spreading.

Things You'll Need

• Warm compresses
• Cold compresses
• Clean washcloths
• Chamomile tea bags

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Instructions

• 1

  Keep your eyes clean. Do this by applying warm compresses and gently wiping your eyes with a clean cotton ball or gauze pad. The warm compresses will relieve some of your discomfort while at the same time loosening up the crusting so you can wipe it away with a sterile dressing.

• 2

  Sterilize everything that comes in contact with your eyes. Don't run into the bathroom and pick up a washcloth that's been on the rack for days. Go to the closet and get a fresh, clean cloth to wipe your eyes. Use it once and throw it in the laundry basket, leaving a fresh clean washcloth behind for your next trip. Using the washcloth only once will prevent you from reinfecting yourself.

• 3

  Apply cool compresses to your eyes. Warm compresses do a lot for cleaning and sterilizing the area, but if you're looking to get immediate relief for burning and itching, a cool compress is just what you need. Remember, itchy eyes are a sign that you conjunctivitis may have been caused by an allergy as opposed to a bacteria.

• 4

  Use chamomile tea bags. Soak a chamomile tea bag in cool water, place one over each closed eye and relax for 10 minutes. Repeat the process every hour or two. It's important to make sure that chamomile is the only herb in the tea bag, so be sure to check the ingredients carefully before applying.

• 5

  Get plenty of rest and nutrition. As with any other illness, your body needs plenty of rest and nourishment. This means taking a few hours off of work to get some sleep, drinking plenty of fluids, eating healthy foods and avoiding extra sugars and caffeine.