do you wear contact lenses when you swim

[Simonandrod]

I swim most days and have done for years. I'm blind as a bat without contact lenses so I've always worn them when I swim and never gave it a second thought.
But the other day I went to the optician and they put the fear of god into me about this habit, saying I could end up blind.
However, surely most people with contacts don't faff about taking them out and putting them back in when they go swimming.
Just wondering how unreasonable it would be to ignore him and carry on.

Daily disposable contact lenses with googles and remove the lenses as soon as you get out. (advice from an optician who does this himself!)

Since I got a horrendous infection from swimming in contact lenses I've not worn them anywhere near water. The doctor told me I could have gone blind.

I'd been wearing contact lenses for 30 years when this happened. It's not worth the risk.

I used to. I wear dailies so I'd wash my hands and take them out straight after the swim (walking home with poor eyesight is easier than swimming with poor eyesight). I wear goggles too if doing crawl which isnt often. If I was in the sea I'd just wear one contact and take it out once I got home, about an hour later.

An optician has just put the fear of God into me about it so I've stopped. So I can't see properly in the pool or sea now. I can't be bothered with prescription goggles yet.

I got my infection from swimming in the sea.

Yes same - not worth the risk

Yes i do, but i remove them as soon as possible afterwards and wear glasses after.

No because I'm not asking to get blepharitis

(yes I've had it. yes from swimming in contacts. yes it's painful and unsightly)

My optician did similar. I have prescription goggles now. Not perfect, but much better than nothing or trying to manage with my glasses.

-8.5 contact wearing swimmer here.
I put my glasses on to walk poolside. Sometimes I drive there in my glasses, sometimes I switch once I'm there depending on timing and whim. Stash glasses in a colourful plastic case poolside, then switch to prescription goggles. The goggles are pretty good. I mean, they are not perfect I doubt I would be driving-standard as they don't correct the astigmatism (these were £25ish, maybe pricier ones would), but they are perfectly fine for swimming. Then switch back to glasses, then usually back to lenses afterwards as I hate wearing glasses for long.

I have always showered in them... In recent years I've learned that's bad. I know there is a risk, but I am careful, and I reckon I've got a greater chance of dropping shampoo bottles and breaking my foot or braining myself on the shower door if I was fumbling about in there blind as a bat! 😆 I can't remember ever getting water from a shower in my eyes. I do fairly frequently get face cream/sun cream in there though!

Nope, my optician scared me silly about it years ago and it stayed with me. I rarely swim but if I do I either fastidiously keep my head out of the water, or more likely wear nothing - I'm -4.5 so it's pretty blurry, but I can make out the massive wet patch so head for that. Have to peer pretty closely at the changing room signs when I head back in though to make sure I get the right one! If I'm at a quiet pool, I'd probably take a brightly coloured towel in and leave it on the edge with my glasses. If I swam regularly though I'd definitely get prescription googles.

I wear prescription goggles or dailies and bin them straight after (which my optician is ok with.) don’t wear them to swim or shower if you have monthly ones!

I do, but make sure to change into a fresh pair with some eye drops after or put my specs back on.

It's a nightmare.

I swim almost every day, in river water, with monthly lenses. I ALWAYS shower and bath w them in.

When I was in my 20s, the solutions I had were made up with tap water (yes, seriously - nobody believes this now, but it was a pill that went in tap water).

I just can't decide how much to worry about it all - not enough to change what I do, clearly. Of the various risks I take, I think it's one of the less likely ones to go wrong. But if it did, it really would be horrendous.

Prescription swim goggles here too. I can't see a thing without them, so it's a must.

This is where I'm at. Can't decide... suspect I'll carry on but I'll feel like a complete fool if I do get an infection. Ho hum

No no no!!! You cannot expose contact lenses to water. Never. It's the first thing they tell you when you get them!!

google acanthamoeba keratitis and then buy some prescription googles - mine aren't even strong enough for my terrible prescription but they make it that I won't bump into people!

the difference is that the pill that you added to the water helped cleanse the tap water, so safer that swimming pools and shower water, but we know so much more these days - would you prefer surgery from the 60s or from the 2020's - I know which one I would prefer - science moves on - move with it!

I’ve been wearing contact lenses for 51 years and I wear them in the shower and for swimming.

i don’t bother but I can just about manage without
serious swimmer friend has prescription goggles and they were a game changer for him

I had weeklies and swam with no idea that the risk level for infection was so high - ended up with a ulcer and almost lost central vision in one eye.

I've been wearing daily contacts and goggles at the pool but after a recent thread I've decided to get prescription goggles. I am -9.0 so I definitely can't go without something.

It just seemed expensive to wear a fresh set of contacts in the morning, take them out to put goggles on in the pool, then put another set in after swimming. Do people keep the same pair from before swimming (if using dailies) or open a new pair? I don't even have a contact lens case or saline at home since I switched to dailies I suppose I could wear glasses to the pool and just wear contacts afterwards, but I'm vain and never wear glasses out of the house...

I wear disposables. Put in before swimming....goggles worn and contacts removed straight after l get out.

I wear glasses rest of the time.

I've had contacts since I was 14 and I can't recall ever been told this!! 🤯
In fact I realised I needed glasses when I walked into the gents changing rooms ( proper should have gone to speaksavers moment).
I don't normally shower in them anyway
But I go sailing ! Can't afford to loose my glasses if I wear them ( even with a strap thing) but I do end up swimming if boat capsizes . I'm feeling really worried now!

Oooh I'm the same. Never wear glasses. I had to have surgery recently and I was furious that I would have to spend a day in glasses whilst I got over the anaesthetic.

I wore my contacts to hospital and took them out as we were leaving my bedroom to go down the anaesthetic room😁

Put another pair in at 5am the following morning before I was discharged.

It is a very expensive business putting two pairs in each morning if you want to swim.