A sty is an infection that occurs near your eyelid when one of the glands becomes swollen. A sty is either pink or red and causes discomfort. A sty man feel like it is burning, and it may itch. You can alleviate the pain and speed up recovery time with a few at-home techniques.

Make a cup of tea. Tea has antioxidants in it, so you can drink it, but you really are after the leftover tea bag. Set the tea bag aside to cool off. Once it does, place it over your infected eye for 10 minutes. This will bring down the swelling and relieve the pain. You can continue doing this once every hour until the sty clears up.

Run the water in your faucet until it becomes hot. Place a clean washcloth underneath of it. Wring out the washcloth and place it over the sty. Once the washcloth begins to cool down, place it back under the hot running water then reapply. The heat from the washcloth will cause the sty to pop on its own, releasing the pus trapped inside. This will bring pain relief, and it will allow your sty to begin to heal.

To help the sty disappear, you are going to need to keep the area around your eye clean and keep it that way. Dirt can irritate the sty. First, remove your contact lenses if you wear them. Second, wash off any makeup or lotions. (Do not reapply any makeup until a few days after the sty has disappeared.) Finally, clean your eyelid with warm water and a liquid antibacterial soap such as Dial. Be sure to keep your eye closed while washing so you do not get any soap in your eye.