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May 19, 2009 6:29 AM   Subscribe

Please give me a good technique for getting drops in my eye rather than my cheek.
posted by CodeMonkey to Health & Fitness (20 answers total) 4 users marked this as a favorite
 
Tilt head back and look at a spot on the ceiling. Put eyedropper in hand and rest hand on eyebrow. Squeeze and make sure you look at the spot on the ceiling, not the eyedropper. Then all you need to do is paint the spot on the ceiling.
posted by JJ86 at 6:33 AM on May 19, 2009


I just push the tip of the dropper into my tear duct and squeeze.
posted by knowles at 6:33 AM on May 19, 2009


Pull down your lower eyelid. Squeeze the drops on the exposed inside of the lower lid. Release eyelid.
posted by Houstonian at 6:35 AM on May 19, 2009 [2 favorites]


Came to say what Houstonian said. Works every time.
posted by Petrot at 6:40 AM on May 19, 2009


The key is to go for the nose 'corner' rather than the cheek side.
posted by cooker girl at 6:41 AM on May 19, 2009


Tilt head back, put drops in tear duct, blink rapidly.

This is the 100% guaranteed kid-friendly method of putting in eye drops.
posted by unixrat at 6:48 AM on May 19, 2009


Tilt your head back and rotate it to the side. If rotated to the left, for your right eye, balance a drop on the skin just outside of the lacrimal caruncle. Now rotate your head so you can look up. It'll just slip into place and there's no scary thing coming at your eye to make you wince.

My wife is eye phobic. It always works.
posted by jwells at 6:54 AM on May 19, 2009 [1 favorite]


If you don't like the other methods, try an eye drop guide.
posted by Ery at 6:55 AM on May 19, 2009


To expand on unixrat's suggestion. Lay down, close eyes, make a little "lake" of the drops in the inner corner of your eye. When you open your lid, the lake will drain into the eye, delivering the meds. Roll eyeball around to get all the juice, repeat on the other side.
posted by pearlybob at 7:18 AM on May 19, 2009 [1 favorite]


Are the drops falling down your cheek because you're blinking/flinching before the drop falls?

What I do is hold my eye open, and then point the dropper directly at my eye. Then, I roll my eye back (y'know, like making zombie eyes where you only see the white of your eye), and then drop it in. Keeps me from flinching, and the drop goes where it needs to.
posted by jsmith77 at 9:35 AM on May 19, 2009


If you use your third finger to pull down your lower eyelid, it makes a bit of a pocket that the drops will stay in, allowing you to gently close and roll your eye around once the drops are introduced. Don't blink forcefully— that'll just push the solution out of the eye.

Holding the drop bottle a little further "up" (towards your brow) than you think you need helps aim. It's important to ensure the tip of the nozzle (or any part covered by the cap) doesn't touch anything to prevent contamination.
posted by a halcyon day at 10:00 AM on May 19, 2009


Do not put the drops on or next to your tear duct (inner eye area). That is defeating the purpose. Houstonian was correct. If Houstonaian's method is still difficult, you can lightly pinch the lower lid to form a better pocket for the eye drops.
posted by GlowWyrm at 10:06 AM on May 19, 2009


I squeeze 1/2 a drop out then dab it on my upper eyelash, then slighly squeeze to get a whole drop out.
posted by wongcorgi at 10:23 AM on May 19, 2009


What's the danger with putting them in the inner eye area? I haven't heard that, though I haven't exactly looked either.
posted by jwells at 10:34 AM on May 19, 2009


If you put the drops in the inner eye, the drops can drain out through the tear duct. This will result in you not getting the most accurate dose possible. Also, some eye drops can cause systemic effects. That's why sometimes you'll be told to apply pressure to your inner eye for a few minutes after putting in the drops.
posted by GlowWyrm at 11:20 AM on May 19, 2009


Lay on a sofa, bed, wherever, but lie flat on your back. Look at the ceiling, put dropper over eye ( widely open) and squeeze gently. You'll probably flinch each time, but it works.
posted by Taurid at 11:21 AM on May 19, 2009


When I worked as an optometrist's assistant, I was taught to have the patient lean back and close their eyes, keeping them closed as I applied the drop to the inner corner of their eye (next to the nose). Once the drop is sitting there, tell them to open their eyes and voila! the drop goes right in. It worked every time for me.
posted by amyms at 12:27 PM on May 19, 2009


I always pull down and make a little pouch of my lower eyelid on the cheek side.
posted by deborah at 3:46 PM on May 19, 2009


I put my index finger on my upper eyelid and my thumb on my lower eyelid and gently spread them apart, then tilt my face up towards the ceiling and look as far towards my forehead as I can. The other hand, holding the eyedrops, is gently braced against my nose or cheek. Move the bottle in to within half an inch of the eye or so, squeeze gently, then release the eyelids.

And yeah, warming up the drops is a nice touch.
posted by Lexica at 8:32 PM on May 19, 2009


And, do not touch the end of the eyedropper to your skin/eye. If it's drops to cure an infection, it's possible you'll move the nasty into the drops. At least that's what my doc told me. I like the 'pull down the lower lid and slide the drops in the corner of the eye' method, too. Haven't sprayed myself with eye drops since doing it this way.
posted by x46 at 8:42 PM on May 19, 2009


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