What in the world is a sty and how in the world do you get one?

Well, it looks like a giant pimple right on top of your upper eyelid or the inside of your upper or lower eyelid.  Only it hurts tons and makes you a bit irritable at the cat and means you can’t wear eye makeup for about a week and probably causes a bad hair day too…

What is it exactly?  Well, it’s an infection of the eyelid oil gland… some bacteria causing a ruckus in there.  And this little party they’re throwing in your eyelid oil gland causes it to rebel and throw up a puffy, red unsightly pimple…

And then random people you run into on the street point at you and say, “There’s a sty in your eye, don’t cry.”

What’s the skinny?  Why am I even talking about this?

Because there are ways to avoid getting these, and as always, I am speaking from painful & humiliating experience when I tell you to:

• Get new mascara and eyeliner at least every 6 months. Or it’ll be a very long day of burning eye pain. Old eye makeup will give you a sty.  Throw away that glitter eyeshadow you got 2 years ago that you swear you just might wear again.

• Restrain yourself from using someone else’s eye makeup…don’t share; don’t do it.  This is one of the few times that I will urge you NOT to share.  They have different eye bacteria than you do and your eye bacteria and their eye bacteria will not get along…trust me…

• Make certain that if you are applying eyeliner to your inner eyelid (which I recommend not doing for various reasons, among which it will cause discomfort), that your eyeliner is not OLD…ohhhh the stinging… and have I mentioned how badly you’ll want to walk around with your eyes closed for a week straight?
• And wash off your eye makeup at night.  Even if it’s just with soap and water.  (I prefer using Noxzema, myself.)  Don’t emulate me…I was the bright one who really wanted to look pretty in the morning for my new hubby and went to bed with makeup on when first married.  Thank goodness I already had the ring and the commitment from him when my eyelid decided to get revenge by producing an attractive pus-filled boil!

So, the only remedy for a sty, if you do not heed my words of wisdom & end up with one is to avoid eye makeup for about a week and use a warm washcloth & hot water on it, frequently.

Whatever you do, just…don’t rub that eye, oh my!