Apple Cider Vinegar, Hot Compress
★★★★★
I had 7 decompressions, muscle surgeries, eyelid stuff, retinal procedures and was warned that there was a good chance someday that the sebacious glands would plug up and I would have chalazians. I was treated throughout my eye disease at the VERY BEST EYE HOSPITAL, KELLOGG EYE CENTER, on Planet Earth. 4 years later I got my first chalazian and local doctors thought it was due mostly to all the build-up from scar tissue. So I tried heat compresses for months and one surgeon removed it by cutting through top of eye lid because my lids have been through too much and are brittle and cannot be flipped.
Then 4 stitches and cauterization later, I think all is well. Within 3 weeks I have 4-5 new bumps forming. So I go back and see another doctor and he suggests 4 shots to the eye that will infiltrate the bumps and tells me they will be forever banished in 30 days and NONE will return. I won't even BEGIN to try and explain how crazy painful this procedure was and now I know why FEW attempt this one but I was truly desperate. And I made a SERIOUS LAPSE IN JUDGMENT by not returning to the Kellogg Eye Center and Dr. Victor Elner.
Needless to say, 3 weeks after this last procedure, 3 more cysts appeared and rapidly enlarged. The doxycycline I had been on was doing nothing for me but giving me a constant and consistent yeast infection. I couldn't win. In fact, I felt like I was totally losing ground. So I got on the net and found Earth Clinic and in 12 hours my eye life began to change.
I read about the white tea bag compresses and the ACV applications to the affected eyelid and whammo....when I woke up in the morning my bumps were reduced in size noticeably and apoeared to be coming to a head. Now within 2 days we were able to express the bumps and I have not stopped with the vinegar as I believe it will keep the sebacious glands from hooefully clogging.
I also took someone's advice on Earth Clinic to use baby tearless shampoo to wash eyes. Great idea and I use nothing else.
And I top my regimen off with frankincense or purified castor oil to keep my lids smooth and soft. It has been only 2 full weeks and my affected eye looks so normal it is unreal. Everyday it looks healthier.
The last procedure, the one with the 4 shots to the lid, was traumatizing, and the combination I guess is what has caused me to lose roughly 25 or so eyelashes from the outside upper lid corner. Ugh! I am now hoping time and essential oils will encourage new growth. It has been approximately 3 months.
And I also drink 2-3 ounces of ACV a day and have done this for years. But it was the q-tip and ACV applied directly to the lid that started my turn-a-round. I must comment on how EASY hot compresses are with tea bags. They hold the heat better than anything plus to warm up you just drop back into your hot cup of tea. Chamomile tea works well, too. Have to wonder if the properties of tea are also miracle workers :-) I did both initially.
Any tips on lash growth? One thing at a time.......thank you! Cynthia
(Somewhere, Europe)
08/10/2015
Cynthia, I can attest to the fact that castor oil does grow lashes, even in "empty spaces", not only lengthening existing lashes.
Apple Cider Vinegar, Hot Compress
★★★☆☆
BETTER BUT WITH SIDE EFFECTS
I started early on with just using hot compresses and massaging. After reading up on home remedies I then began using ACV as well as washing my eye out with saltwater. The pea sized lump I had on my lash line two weeks ago has now almost gone but my eyelid is still badly swollen and puffy looking. I have also damaged the top of my eyelid as I overdone it with the massaging and some skin has come off. Is it best for me to stop because of this? It's just I'm worried that the lump will get bigger again if I don't continue with the warm compresses.
Also, do you wash ACV off your eye immediately after applying it or do you just leave it on? No one's explained that yet.
(Ny, Ny)
06/24/2015
First off I would stop with the massaging. If you feel it will help I would do it after you've applied castor oil to the area. I had what I thought was a stye about a week and a half ago. After the first four or five days the swelling went down and the pain went away leaving me with the bump that I discovered is a chalazion. I immediately found natural remedy sites and all of them discuss the apple cider vinegar compresses. I am drinking it (1tbsp in 8 oz. of water) twice a day as well. Additionally after each compress I do which is about 3 times per day I don't necessarily wipe off the apple cider vinegar but I follow up with leaving a layer of castor oil on my lid. I tried some light massage tonight but the castor oil helps you not irritate the skin. The pea sized ball has gone down significantly since starting this regime which I have been doing for about 4-5 days. All the sites I have read over and over state to continue this until it's gone which has time frames that vary. I also have not been wearing any eye makeup at all during this process. Keep at it! It seems it works! Just don't massage your eye without the castor oil.
Avoid Nickel in Water
★★★★☆
Boiled Egg
★★★★★
(Germany)
06/18/2015
Breast Milk/ Milk
★★★★★
Called my mom (72 yrs old). She told me put a dab breastmilk or room temp regular whole milk on chalazion. Within an hour, swelling reduced. I reapplied again, then a very slightest dab aloe liquid from my garden plant. Next day, chalazion was half size. In 2 days more it was gone forever, no scar. At 14 he had an identical chalazion lump grow to cover entire backside of one earlobe. Since no pain we didn't pick, pierce, lance. After 1 month, it was about same size, but tender. We applied gentle wet warm washcloth to soothe and soften. It showed reducing next day after slight dab hydrogen peroxide, milk and aloe. Next day we dabbed milk, aloe, olive oil and kept it clean, dry. It is almost gone in a few days. Seemed these last 3 did most help. Thank you forever mom. Love this site. Thank you.
(New Zealand)
12/09/2014
I'd like to recommend Skinoren - 20% Azelaic acid- instead of ACV. This is naturally occuring but expect it's synthesised in the cream. I had great success with it for treating rosacea on nose and eyes over a few months it went from quite bad to almost gone.
Currently I also noticing improvement on a chalazion after 4 days (top of eyelid only), while also using hot compresses. That's after around 4 weeks of just getting worse or no change.
Much less harsh and stingy than the ACV also.
(London, UK)
12/10/2014
(Philippines)
01/10/2015
Castor Oil
★★★★★
+1 on the Castor Oil! I tried it based on the recommendations here. I put one drop directly on the nasty little lump and it loosened and drained that night. (I must say that the draining was a little gross looking)
Castor Oil
★★★★★
I mixed castor oil (the old-fashioned type in a glass bottle from the Indian store that has been used safely in eyes for centuries that I happened to have) with pure teatree oil in a dropper bottle and after his morning shower, I applied 2 drops to his clean knuckles which he held together for me and he then touched his knuckles together to disperse before swiping one knuckle across each respective lashline of both his closed eyes to avoid cross contamination as the chalazion was only on his left eye. He also used his knuckles to massage the mixture into his lashlines.
At night before bed, he used Opti-Soothe mask (from pharmacy) for two consecutive 20mins after heating 20secs in the microwave following by the same oil-on-knuckle treatment. As stated in the article, after 12 weeks the chalazion disappeared and has not returned after four months.
Wish we had known this remedy before as over the decade, we wasted time and money on doctors every time it became embarrassingly conspicuous after other natural treatments just to be prescribed eyedrops that made no difference and referral to opthalmologist who recommended best to leave it alone as it may recur after surgery which is apparently very painful.
(America)
07/05/2021
Thanks for sharing. I'm going to try this method in with my other method I'm using. I've had a chalazion on my eyelid for 5 years now that has hardened without redness. The chalazion has gotten smaller over the last 5 years but it's still there. I recently just started back consistently doing hot compress at least 5 times a day with a heated eye mask from Amazon and massages to it and mines also has started to split off into very tiny lumps that seem to be dissolving (the original lump is still there but it looks a little smaller). I'll update this in a couple of months if it worked since I know that Chalazions are very stubborn and I've had mines for 5 years so it will take some time to go away completely.
(America)
03/11/2022
★★★★★
My 5 year chalazion is almost gone. Nobody or I can see it anymore by looking at my eyelid. I only know it's there still by putting pressure and touching my eyelid with my finger. This is what's working for me:
I do a hot compress twice a day. One in the morning and one at night followed by putting a mixture of 1 cup water to 1 teaspoon of apple cider on my lash line with a qtip. I let that dry then I put some Similasan Stye Eye Relief Drops in my eye (you can buy on amazon or CVS/Walgreens/Walmart). I then let my eye dry from the eye drops and then proceed to put an half and half oil mixture of castor oil and tea tree oil on my lash line (don't get inside of your eye).
Do this every day twice a day and you will see results it may take a long time but my 5 year chalazion is almost gone. I've been doing this remedy for months now and it's slowly going away. Chalazions take a long time to go away especially if you've had them for over a year and it's hardened. So be patient and continue at it!
Castor Oil
★★★★★
(Los Angeles)
06/11/2018
(South Africa)
08/10/2018
hi, please assist, how did you apply this castor oil to help with your chazalion? On top of the eyelid or under the eyelid? I'm desperately needing to remove a chazalion under my eyelid, tried everything including spending so much money with the eye doctors, it is still there 9 months later and not popping at all and irritating me a lot, I will like to try this castor oil, how do I use it?
(Al)
06/11/2018
You might also try a homeopathic eye infection remedy called Similsan Pink Eye or Stye Eye Relief. Any of them that have 12X sulfur as an active ingredient. Apparently mites hate sulfur.
Good luck!!
(Los Angeles)
06/12/2018
(Victoria)
06/16/2018
Hello! I have a 9 month old with a chalazion.. it's been about 3 months now and it's not going away after antibiotic drops, ointment and then a antibiotic/steriod ointment.
We are waiting to see a specialist but it's going to take 4 months (only 1 in town). I started to try ACV and I'm noticing a lot more white oil stuff coming out.. but his eye is still chronically red/inflamed. So the ACV is an astringent but what can I do for the inflammation? Castor oil?
(Usa)
06/18/2018
I would try cold pressed hexane free castor oil. It seems like it would be safer than antibiotic and steroid drops. Coconut oil is also gentle and healing.
(Usa)
08/15/2018
Castor oil is typically applied over the chalazion. If the oil is pure it should not feel painfull if it gets into the eye. I have used it on a chalazion that was several years old and the chalazion shrunk quickly. The oil never bothered my eye.
Castor Oil
★★★★★
Castor Oil. started applying and also purchased a dry eye compress off of Amazon. Benefit was immediate. Size reduced drastically after the first heat treatment. Keep applying castor oil directly to the bump on the inside of the eyelid and use heat regularly. After 2 days, bump is almost gone.
Castor Oil directly to the Chalazion with lots of heat.
(Miami)
03/16/2016
(Fairfield, Ca)
05/25/2016
(Indianapolis)
11/27/2016
Starting my castor oil treatment today. I have had this chalazion for about a month and it has grown to a noticeable size on my upper lid. I now have another one on my lower lid that is much smaller. I have applied directly on the affected area under the lid. I felt the lower lid working almost immediately. I'll repost after a few days to give progress. Thanks to all for your help.
(Odessa, Tx)
01/29/2017
Did you say put the Castor oil on the inside of the eyelid?
(New Orleans)
12/10/2023
Hi there,
Thanks for boosting my optimism! I haven't seen an eye doctor yet and have been lackluster with my efforts, hoping it would go away on its own. My lower eyelid has a small chalazion but it makes the length of my eyelid appear swollen. I never experienced any draining that people have described. I remember feeling a hard nodule almost immediately and that has never gone away. I'm assuming it's fibrous tissue that scarred right as the chalazion formed. Do you think castor oil would work to break that hardened tissue down, or just to help drain the contents within a blocked chalazion?
Castor Oil
★★★★★
ACV did not work (made things worse). Switched to castor oil and compresses - this cleared everything in two days.
Cheers, Steve
(Palestine)
02/15/2016
★★★★★
I tried literally every remedy out there. I had three eye surgeries and they kept coming. Had to dig for the cause since I follow a very careful regimen of eye care, hygiene and the rest of it. Finally I was advised it's hormonal change of the body and there's no solution. I started trying natural remedies one by one to avoid the risk and the cost of further surgeries on the go. Nothing worked and just one day before I my surgery was scheduled I thought the only thing I didn't try is castor oil. I never thought it'd work but then I thought it'd do no harm to try and it worked like a charm! . After cleaning eyes I applied a very small amount topically on the chalazion, three times on that day and by next day the cyst appeared from the outside of the lid and started drying out and peeling off like a pimple. It has always been there right in front of my eyes. Not the baby shampoo, warm compresses, eye washes, drops, antibiotics, eggs, coconut oil, breast milk, apple cider vinegar, frankincense oil, tea/rice bags, nothing worked despite the trouble I went through to get them. Castor oil is a miracle remedy! . In one week of three topical applications (one before bedtime), my eyes looked and felt perfect. Thank God! , and thanks to the guy from Lebanon. It was your tip I followed.
(London)
03/08/2016
(Tennessee)
03/08/2016
Dear Imram,
Either way would probably work. I have used castor oil on the eyelids and right on the eyeball. Right on the eyeball will cause some temporary blurriness though. (So, I just do that at night.)
~Mama to Many~
(Palestine)
05/16/2016
On the outside and be consistent using castor oil and warm presses. I found my diet was the reason.
(Florida)
03/31/2017
(Toronto, Ontario)
12/11/2016
Hi Steve-- did you use wet or dry compresses? I'm going into day 2 of using this and praying it works! Whenever I do a wet compress I find that the bump gets bigger.
(New Brunswick)
01/05/2017
I also find the same thing! ( it gets bigger with the warm compresses). I have it since almost 2 months, it was large as a pea and my vision was blurry. It has decreased significantly in size when I did a full week of the following treatments: 3 eyewash/day with sea salt water mix, warm compresses every 2 hours for at least 10-15 min and massages, castor oil poutice once a day and applied apple cider vinegar 3 times a day . Then the holidays kicked in and I stopped the salted water wash. It hasnt decreased since then, not sure if this isvrelated but I am starting again today.
(New York)
02/02/2017
(Washington, Dc)
04/13/2017
I just found this site today. Dealing with a chalazion under my upper eyelid and six weeks ago the doctor gave me a steroid shot. It hurt and just made a big white dot on my eyelid next to the lump. The white spot is still there and so is the lump! When I returned to the doctor she clearly wanted me to get the surgery, but after reading others' experiences, I don't want to do it. I just bought castor oil and ACV. I am going to start with castor oil tonight first and try it for a few days. If that doesn't work, I'll try the ACV. Does Castor Oil need to be diluted at all or just use it straight?
(London)
03/28/2018
(Hyderabad)
06/13/2018
Castor Oil
★★★★★
(Toronto, On)
03/19/2013
Do you rub it on the outside of your eyelid? Or in the inside?
(Amritsar, Punjab, India)
08/23/2015
Castor Oil, Epsom Salt, Chamomile Tea
★★★★☆
This was just merely the intro. Evidently I did not drain the stye properly, because it appeared to harden to a small lump under my eye. I'm a pretty aloof person in general, and I'm not one to zone in on micro imperfections on my face as well as others, but one day I noticed that my right lid was a bit..lumpier? Than the left. I realize it's still probably some puss. Fast forward to researching about ACV and coconut oil, I go full force. All I did was burn my lid because I stupidly used pure apple cider vinegar instead of diluted. Okay, I back off and dilute the vinegar. Nothing. Maybe the swelling went down for me, but swelling wasn't my problem as it was a small rice sized lumb is stuck under my damn lid! Nothing would make it budge. It's 2017 and I still have this small lump, but it's barely noticeable.
Enter my left eye. I've been blissfully accustomed to my left eye being the golden child, problem free. I get a stye of February this year. A pretty bad one. At this point I'm not panicking because styes actually go away fairly quickly for me. I even do a bit of ACV treatment with my newfound knowledge of it. (ACV works miraculously for STYES, but in my case, not for chalazions). It's draining, I had to call a few days off work but it's draining. I delight when I see the collection of pure white gunk collect in the corner of my eye (fellow stye/chalazion sufferers, you'll definitely know how great this feels). My eye seems back to normal!!! Except...it's just like my right eye, there's another small lump!! And I'll be damned if it's symmetrical with my right!!
I get depressed over this now and then. I wouldn't call myself a vain person but having eye problems like this is just embarassing, although nobody has ever pointed out they noticed it, except my boyfriend who was unfortunately my right hand man during my terrible stye flame up which everyone could notice (I tactfully stayed indoors).
Okay onto the treatment, sorry I just wanted to share my story with you guys and know that I'm with you totally, I know how frustrating it is to have something that will never go away, and surgery will never be an option for me. But..here's the light at the end of the tunnel. On a whim I bought castor oil. Yeah I've read such things about it helping eye problems, but the good stories seemed few and far between. It seemed the frontrunner of chalazion cures was still ACV, but that just doesn't do anything for me other than smell bad and burn my lid, even diluted. (and yes, I alternate warm compresses and cool ACV every so often, sometimes doing this multiple times a day for a week straight, nothing). But castor oil. I've read many techniques, so I kind of make my own routine to see how that will work. And by god..I think I got something going here. My lump under my left eye seems more "localized", meaning I could definitely isolate it and move it around other than it just being a swollen mass.
Note: I do want to focus on my right eye, but that is just a small piece of rice compared to my left. I apply castor oil, soak a warm paper towel in some epsom salts (that also has been working and encouraging little crusties in my eyes when I wake up in the morning which I take as a good sign) and lay that right on top of the castor oil so it kind of sticks. From what I've learned, when you read "warm compress", it does not have to be piping hot or even "hot as you can stand". Take it from me guys, all it does is burn your eyelid and make it red and even more unsightly. Definitely warm but not to the point of pain, it should feel soothing. I alternate between this and cool treatments of chamomile tea bags for just a few minutes. When I wake up in the morning, it feels a bit smaller and smaller. I know this is going to take a while but thats how long it needs, and folks, they do eventually go away. Some people have had theirs for years when one day it just goes. It's just unfortunate for those of us who have to be in the public and are always a bit weary of our eyes. However, I will never get surgery. There's no guarantee it will be removed, and I've read stories of scarring and sometimes styes/chalazions coming back for vengeance. I'm sure surgery has worked for some and I applaud them, however, I believe homeopathy is the way to go and everyone is different so we all just need to keep experimenting.
For me, castor oil, epsom salts, and chamomile tea all together have been showing some differences. You could even do these treatments before you have to be somewhere. Just remember, do not burn your eyelid because you could make it worse and who knows, you may just be dealing with an inflamed lid instead of something underneath and you wouldn't know it because you're burning it.
Sorry for the long post, just wanted to finally share my struggles. I can't wait for the day where they make a magic pill to cure these things. And yes I've tried staphysagria and it didn't do anything for me.
(Midwest)
08/14/2020
Much appreciated! I'm going to try this asap. I've been dealing with these for 15 yrs.
(New York)
08/17/2020
Often the cause of chalazions are demodex mites.
If this is a constant battle for you, search demodex mites my posts.
Heat and massage will reduce them but you must get rid of the cause!
Castor Oil, Tea Tree Oil+
★★★★★
Do everything I mentioned twice a day every day and you will see results it may take a long time but my 5 year hard chalazion is completely gone. It took almost a year for it to go away completely it was hard and had been there for five years.
Chalazion takes a long time to go away, especially if you've had them for over a year and it's hardened. So be patient and continue.
Chalazion Disappeared On Its Own
★★★★★
Now, eight months later, it is completely gone without me doing anything to it - I didn't even stop wearing makeup. It disappeared by itself and I didn't need to try and fix it. It would be good to know if this is true for others - that the lesions just disappear on their own for everyone - or if I just got lucky.
(Usa)
11/15/2016
★★★★★
(ON)
11/15/2020
(New York)
11/15/2020
Apply heat as often as you can and massage area. It will go down. Additionally buy unscented baby wipes and wipe eyes clean multiple times a day. Chalazions caused by demodex mites who thrive on oils. Keep eyes clean dry and apply no oils. Demodex are killed by tea tree oil.
Wash your hair and face with Desert Essence tea tree shampoo for a month.
You must wash your bedding as often as possible with detergent borax powder and hot dry heat.
Chamomile
★★★★★
