Mouth Sores & Eye inflamamtion

Hey there-

Looking for any advice on how to deal with symptoms that come and go - usually when I'm flaring, so I realize the "real" solution is to get the disease under control, but in the meantime, does anyone have any tricks in dealing with:

1) Mouth sores - I've had them in my throat, on the roof of my mouth, and on my tongue for the past 3 weeks. I'm just about to the point where I just want to stay asleep so I don't have to feel the pain in my mouth. I've not tried any of the OTC mouth pain relievers - partially because I'm wary of trying any new medications and partially because I wonder if they're going to actually work or if they'll just leave a nasty taste in my mouth. Has anyone had luck with numbing/getting rid of sores quickly?

2) Eye inflammation - I don't have uveitis. I just have had inflammation in my body for so long that my eyes have been affected. I use Restasis drops twice a day to help manage it (and I'm sure I'd be much worse if it weren't for these drops), but they don't return me to anything approaching normal. Most days, I still feel like my eyelids are sandpaper, and often by about 4pm, I just want to sit with my eyes closed so they don't hurt so much. When I wake up in the morning, I have to put eye drops in and sit with my eyes closed for a few minutes before I can even bear to open them. I was hoping that once my Crohn's Colitis symptoms were under control that my eyes would improve, but unfortunately that has not been the case. Has anyone experienced this and had any luck improving your symptoms?

Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer!

Hi Collie,
For mouth sores, I pulled this off WebMD:
Rinse your mouth. Use salt water; baking soda (dissolve 1 teaspoon of soda in 1/2 cup warm water); or a mixture of 1 part — such as 1 teaspoon — diphenhydramine (Benadryl) to either 1 part Kaopectate or 1 part Maalox. Be sure to spit out the mixtures after rinsing.
Dab a small amount of milk of magnesia on your canker sore a few times a day.
Cover canker sores with a paste made of baking soda plus a small amount of water — just enough to make a paste.
Try over-the-counter products that contain the numbing agent benzocaine, such as Anbesol and Orajel.
Avoid abrasive, acidic or spicy foods that can cause further irritation and pain.
Apply ice to your canker sores by allowing ice chips to slowly dissolve over the sores.
Brush your teeth gently, using a soft brush and toothpaste without foaming agents, such as Biotene, Sensodyne ProNamel or Rembrandt Canker Sore.

I get one swollen eyelid and the canker sores when I am flaring. For the swollen eyelid, I use Sterilid eyelid cleanser, which you can get over the counter at the pharmacy. I find it very soothing. I don't get the problem in my eyes themselves, just my eyelid. You may want to see an ophthalmologist to make sure the Crohn's isn't affectint your eye itself.