Allergic to Mascara?

Mdgirly88

I've used Maybelline Great Lash mascara for years, and I love it. Yes, it's cheap, but I'm not a big makeup wearer so it's worked well for me. I don't wear makeup everyday- maybe once a week if I'm going somewhere special. However for the past month or so I've noticed that whenever I wear my mascara the skin under my left eye is red, puffy, and kind of scaly. I think I might have developed an allergy. Has anyone experienced this before? It's just my left eye, and it just started happening. I wear contacts, at first I thought that might have something to do with it, but I've tried changing my contacts and it doesn't seem to make a difference.

So I'm going to try some new mascara and see if anything else works. Does anyone have allergies to certain mascaras, and if so,  any allergy-friendly recs?

MsBlake

I haven't had those exact symptoms but my eyes tend to be quite sensitive and there are many mascaras I can't wear. I use YSL Luxurious (also marketed under the name "Faux Effects") and I love it. It has really been the only one that hasn't given me any issues at all.

DiorShow also wasn't too bad but YSL is still better (for my eyes.)

shesthetoast

Any Maybelline mascara has always made my eyes terribly itchy. I couldn't wear it.

If you haven't already, I might give it a few days without any mascara to make sure you don't have an eye infection. If you're looking for drugstore brands, most Almay products are fairly gentle. I'm currently using CG Lash Blast (big orange tube) and haven't had any problems with that. (I wear less expensive mascara since I toss it so often.)

romagrrl

How old is your mascara?  If it is older than 6 months, that might be the problem

mandms08

I am allergic to some mascaras but my reaction is a bit different. No scaly skin. It could be allergies or it could definitely be something else. FYI, allergies can suddenly appear. I would lay off the mascara for a few days. If it gets immediately better, then probably it's either the brand or something in that particular tube that has developed (like bacteria). If it doesn't clear up right away, I'd play it safe and go to your eye doctor. The scaly skin makes me think it might be something else.

GreenEyedGal

The EXACT same thing happened to me about three weeks ago. I don't mean to scare you but I want to share my expierence with you, as I wish I had known what was coming up...

About four weeks ago, my left eye became itchy. I just assumed it was a mosquito bite so I didn't think anything of it. By the next day, I developed a small bump, much like a mosquito bite. Again, I ignored it. The day after, it became even more itchier and the bump was under my eye and right ontop of my eyelid. I finally went to the doctor.

He was stunned as to why only the left side of my face was swelling up (it was also red and scaly. Is your eye itchy as well?) but he concluded that it was indeed an allergy reaction but that we cannot know what have caused it, especially because I have not changed soaps or products recently. He prescribed me some medicine, told me to rub Bendadryl ointment on it and sent me on my way.

The next day, my entire left face had ballooned. It was so puffy that my left eye was swollen shut. I have never been so scared in my life! I called my doctor and he told me to stop taking the medicine he prescribed me and to start taking this other one, it was a steroid medicine, a series of which I take for 7 days. The next day, I awoke to my face still puffy but it significally improved, thank god. I stayed home from work for an entire week and during this time, I did extensive research on the internet-BAD IDEA. Many people who had similiar expierences never had their face go back to normal, or if it did, the puffiness would return within a few days of finishing the steroid medicine. I prayed to God everyday that this wouldn't be the case for me.

Within a few days, my face was slowly getting back to "normal". I was so happy, yet so paranoid that it would swell up again after my last pill. Thankfully, it has been three weeks since the last pill and my eye is showing no signs of swelling up.

That entire week was so emotionally draining, I cried everyday and prayed that my face would return to normal. Like you, I RARELY wear makeup. I was so scared to put on mascara again, but I have pretty much gotten over that fear. To this day, I have no idea what caused my eye to puff up but I threw away all of my mascara's and eyeliner's and gave my brushes a good wash. I also replaced my sheets, steam cleaned my carpet, disenfected my eye glasses (I don't wear contacts) and now wear latex gloves when I change the kitty litter.

Anyway, sorry to make this so long but I highly recommend you going to the doctor NOW and not waiting when your eye gets worse. I honestly hope you don't go through the same thing I went.

Also, if you dont mind, could you tell me what your doctor says could've caused the reaction?

Mrs_F

You are not alone!  I had this same Great Lash problem a few months ago...and it happened one other time I tried to use Great Lash (which is how I figured out what is was).  I search the internet, and found the following blog, where tons of woman have posted the same issue. 

I have a feeling Maybelline changed their formula, and now people are not reacting well to it. 

 I stopped using it, and it cleared up in a few days.  Good luck!

 

http://jackandhill.typepad.com/jack_and_hill_a_beauty_bl/2006/10/maybelline_xxl_.html

tsimmer

I used Loreal's Voluminous Waterproof mascara for years but bought a new tube and developed red itchy irritated eyes after one use.   I went to the doctor right away and she said that I had blepharitis and prescribed erythromycin ophthalmic ointment, which I used and my eyes were better within days.  I bought a new tube of Voluminous and got the same symptoms a couple days after using it.  So, I need to use a non allergenic mascara from now on.  Loreal also has a new brand called Bare Natural that seems to be working out ok so far.  Hope this post helps!

valaria

I see another responder  had same expereince with Loreal's Voluminous Mascara (mine was not the waterproof one).  I have used this mascara for years, but over the past 3 months, or so, have also had intermittent red, puffy, and sort of scaly skin under my left eye, less severe on right side, very strange indeed.  (Have they also changed their formula?) In addtion, my eyes appear rather bloodshot.  Since it did not happen every day, and I wear the mascara daily, I attributed the symptoms to some kind of allergic reaction to the environment or to food, until I read this blog containing some similar experiences.  My eyes have also been tearing excessively. As of today, I will stop using the Loreal brand and switch to Almay, which is advertised to be "hypo-allergenic."   Thanks for sharing these experiences, sound so similar to mine!

Melmcg21

I had a pretty severe allergic reaction to the Mayballine Great Lash mascara. It started out with just a little redness and itching, but gradually got way worse over the course of 4-5 weeks to the point where I could barely open my eyes in the morning. Even when I went 5 days without using any makeup, It didn't go away. I went to several doctors and none of them helped at all. It wasn't until I did some research about every product I had been using that I found out it was specifically the Great Lash Mascara. In fact, it's very rare, but there's a specific ingredient in the mascara that I was reacting to. It's called "shellac". They only use it in the cheap drugstore mascaras, and I'm only allergic to shellac in makeup products( has something to do with how they mix it in the makeup).
It's been months now and I haven't had a problem until I started using loreal voluminous mascara. What's weird is it doesn't have the "shellac" in it so now I have no idea what's going on!