Eye muscle pain, redness - severe strain?

[Omeomi]

Five days ago, I was attempting to focus on something and felt sharp pain in the muscles in my left eye. It might best be described as like pulling a muscle. I felt the same pain one other time shortly after the first time. The next day my eye was sore, ache-y, and there was redness on the underside of my eyeball. Over the past several days these symptoms have continued. There is also pain associated with looking in different directions, bright lights, even strong smells. This morning there was a new symptom - a thicker, viscous, clear substance on the eye. It also seems to be more red, or the redness is spreading upwards.

What I'm wondering is, do I need to see a professional? Can I get an eye patch and cover it and will that help? Are there eye drops I could use?

Thanks for your help.

[Forum-OD-MP]

do not patch it.  yes, you need to see a professional (optometrist or ophthalmologist).  do not use any visine or naphcon-a or opcon-a or anything that "reduces redness".

my guess is you have a subconjunctival hemorrhage, but thats just a guess based on your description.  if that were the case, it wouldnt be a big deal, but it may mean you could possibly have other systemic problems (like undiagnosed hypertension, for example)

[jkl416]

A related discussion, Frustrating Eye Pain was started.