Contact Lenses

November 20, 2007 7:20 AM

ContactLensFilter: What to do if you can't tell if you're wearing contacts, but know you haven't taken them out. More Inside.

Just got contacts and put them in at the doctor's. Got home and accidentally fell asleep. Before I could feel the lenses and now I don't. Furthermore, I don't feel like I have improved eyesight. I put on my old glasses and my eyes adjusted-- I could see clearer. I've tried taking them out, but with poor results. Now I ask myself....are they even there?

posted by jne1813 to health & fitness (15 comments total)

I assume that yu have soft contacts like most people do.

If you try to get them out with your fingers and touching your eyeball is just unconfortable, they are still in. If you touch your eyball and it is more of a burning sensation, then you're not wearing them anymore. At least that's what I felt when my sof cantacs were new :-)

They might have fallen out, while you were sleping. Who knos what funny hand or eye movements you did in your sleep?

Sometimes you can feel them when you roll your eyes. Sometimes you can see them, when a bright light shines onto the rim of the contact lenses. Some contact lenses shine brightly in UV light. Do not look into a UV lamp unless it is one of those safe disco things. Awww, just don't look.
posted by mmkhd at 7:27 AM on November 20, 2007

Do not freak out, but as a former soft lens user, the lenses may have moved up towards the top of your eye. Now, the actual physical structure of your eye won't let them go too far -- no worries about it getting out of reach -- but try looking in the mirror and lifting your eyelid enough to look at the top of your eyeball.

I am guessing this might happen due to the rapid eye movement that happens during sleep.
posted by WCityMike at 7:36 AM on November 20, 2007

Did you get a starter kit at the doctor's office? Use the drops and moisturize the hell out of your eyes. I know when I fall asleep with contacts in, my eyes get super dry, my vision gets blurry and it's nigh impossible to take out my contacts because they are plastered to my eye.

If that doesn't work, call the doctor's office. Either the person at the desk will know what to do or that person will suggest that you come in and see the doctor.
posted by spec80 at 7:36 AM on November 20, 2007

Sounds to me like they've fallen out. A surprising number of people go to opticians thinking they've still got them in and can't get them out when they're not there at all. They even think they can still feel them, so given you can't it makes me think even more that they're not there any more.

Put on your glasses and have a good search round the pillow or wherever you were asleep. Get someone else to have a look in your eyes, and if you're still not sure of the situation it'll take only a minute for the doctor or someone else with some experience to check.
posted by edd at 7:37 AM on November 20, 2007

I'am sorry for my poor orthography! I have been called away before I could proofread.
posted by mmkhd at 7:44 AM on November 20, 2007

It sounds like they just felll out. There's also a chance that they've folded in half twice and are sitting in one of the corners of your eyes.

you should be able to see them in the mirror around your eyes when you are wearing them properly.
posted by damn dirty ape at 8:02 AM on November 20, 2007

This is my technique to see if I have a folded up contact hiding under the eyelid. I put my finger gently on the eyelid, on the outer corner, and pull back. You should be able to see up under the eyelid a little. Keep holding your finger there, and squinch your eyes up a bunch of times. Sometimes the contact pops out.
posted by selfmedicating at 8:27 AM on November 20, 2007

How long have you been awake for? I've tried many different brands of contacts (all soft though) but none of them allow for sleeping. Of course, I've often fallen asleep in them and what you're describing is pretty similar to what I experience - the good old 'fuzzy eyes for the first 30-60 minutes after waking up'

They're dry - but probably still in place. I wouldn't try to remove them unless you have some eye drops or contact solution to drip into your eyes to relube, or you might hurt your eye by peeling them off.

You can purchase contacts suitable for sleeping in but I don't know what makes them different. I prefer to use daily disposables.
posted by jeffmik at 8:30 AM on November 20, 2007

I think there're probably still there, they're just not in your field of vision, like WCityMike said. Flush your eyes with saline, like spec80 suggested, because falling asleep with lenses in will allow them to dry out. When they dry out, they'll stick wherever they were last, and if you're asleep, that'll be some odd spot. This has happened to me plenty of times in 21 years of lense wearing.
posted by jocelmeow at 8:34 AM on November 20, 2007

Nthing the "they're probably somewhere round the back of your eye" theory - more likely than the "fallen out" one in my experience as well. I've had then pretty far back at times - can be freaky but I've always got them out... even if sometimes I had to resort to semi-scary measures like looking as faaaaar to one side as I can and poking around the other side of the eye with my finger (I know some people will probably say "get thee to thy doctor before you do that" but oh well...).
posted by ClarissaWAM at 8:43 AM on November 20, 2007

then = them
posted by ClarissaWAM at 8:45 AM on November 20, 2007

I've never had a soft lens fall out. They're up there, somewhere. Go back to the eye doctor and s/he will get them out.
posted by Joleta at 9:14 AM on November 20, 2007

If you woke up after sleeping for more than half an hour, your eyes would feel very dry. What probably happened was that they are lost somewhere in your eye! Don't worry, its not that scary. It happens all the time. What I do is look down and then press on the top of my eyelid and pull down. Usually that brings the contact back where I can see it. Then, rinse and viola. Good as new.
posted by thebrokenmuse at 12:49 PM on November 20, 2007

Action plan:

1. Look carefully in the mirror at your irises. Can you see the edge of the lenses as a rim around the iris?
2. Prod your iris gently. Is it less sensitive than you would expect?
3. Squirt saline in each eye, and then very gently pinch at each eyeball to try and lift any lens that is there.
4. Turn each eyelid inside out to see if a lens dislodges.

If all 4 steps fail to detect lens, return to doctor.
posted by roofus at 6:07 AM on November 21, 2007

Gas permeable hard lenses can end up sticking to other parts of your eye, and possibly be quite difficult to remove. Usually this will be very unpleasant, especially when you roll your eyes around.
posted by yohko at 12:51 AM on November 22, 2007