Contact Lense Issues
May 9, 2020 4:37 AM   Subscribe

I stopped wearing contacts for a few months and now they make my eyes red and unhappy even if I only wear them for a few hours. What have I done wrong?

I’ve worn contacts every day for years and years, but I recently stopped bothering on account of being at home all the time anyway. The last two times I tried wearing them, everything felt fine until I took them out and then I had red, irritated eyes and some discharge the next morning. This last time I only left them in for a couple of hours to see if it helped but I’ve had the same problem. Does anyone know how I can fix this? Thanks!
posted by velebita to Health & Fitness (9 answers total) 2 users marked this as a favorite
 
- try a new pair of lenses
- clean the current ones better, maybe with that protein remover stuff
- it's allergy season, try an allergy pill
- wash your hands with soap and water, don't put hand sanitizer'd fingers in your eyes
- try a new brand
- accept the fact that your eyes eventually can no longer wear lenses comfortably as you age, which has happened to everyone i know who wore contacts for many years. at no point in my life did any dr ever mention this probability to me. v annoying but it's life now.
posted by poffin boffin at 4:40 AM on May 9, 2020 [10 favorites]


Did you change out your cleaning solution, that did expires 90 days after opening.
posted by AlexiaSky at 4:49 AM on May 9, 2020 [2 favorites]


Please see an eye doctor. At the very least, contact your eye doctor's office about this.

(I am an ophthalmologist. IANYD, TINMA, etc. I often see excruciatingly incorrect medical advice thrown around on these threads, so I wanted to step in early and tell you to please see an eye doctor, and please don't solicit medical advice from strangers on the internet.)
posted by aquamvidam at 5:57 AM on May 9, 2020 [12 favorites]


There are some potentially obvious causes - were these the same pair, sitting for months in solution? Ick. They’re covered in irritating proteins and bacteria. Toss everything and start with new items.

If however, you have new solution, brand new dailies, and not putting them in a case overnight, then I would classify this as a mystery to see your eye doctor about.
posted by DoubleLune at 7:15 AM on May 9, 2020 [2 favorites]


Don’t use a multipurpose solution, use a daily cleaner (https://www.bausch.ca/en-ca/products/contact-lens-care/soft-lens-care-products/sensitive-eyes-daily-cleaner/) and saline solution. If you wear mascara (especially waterproof), change it to something else.
posted by cotton dress sock at 7:29 AM on May 9, 2020


Seconding DoubleLune but if you can't get your doc to get you new lenses right away because they're closed or whatnot, try disinfecting the lenses with a hydrogen peroxide cleaner like Clear Care. This system will get your lenses very clean, but follow the directions carefully.

This was the only cleaner that really worked for me until I switched to dailies.
posted by JoeZydeco at 8:21 AM on May 9, 2020 [2 favorites]


I stopped wearing contacts because I had a similar situation and felt that my eyes were having a reaction. One side effect was copious amounts of eye goo. I asked for my old brand, and did not want to fill an Rx with something that didn’t work. The staff seemed to think I was interested in free contacts, however, nothing worked when fresh out of the packet, as well as when rinsed with a range of eye products. Either the standards for contacts changed, my eyes went on strike, or something about my personal chemistry subtly shifted. I enjoy my glasses but miss having the opportunity to wear contacts, as some situations can fog my glasses.
posted by childofTethys at 8:32 AM on May 9, 2020


Seconding to please talk to your eye doctor about this. Doing the wrong thing for your eyes can seriously mess up your vision and I would not trust my eyes to random internet strangers' advice, especially when it comes to contacts. If your eye doctor can't help you right now, I'd switch to glasses until things have stabilized enough that they can advise you again.
posted by Aleyn at 3:24 PM on May 9, 2020 [1 favorite]


Thirding please talk to your eye doctor! I asked a similar question over a decade ago - it turned out to be keratitis and needed treatment for several months, and I ended up with scarred corneas. I can wear dailies now but I went about a year when contacts were forbidden.
posted by andraste at 4:07 PM on May 10, 2020


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