Has anybody squeamish been able to get used to contact lenses?

[WhatHappenedToYourFurnitureCuz]

I know nobody likes things going in their eye but I am particularly squeamish about it.

I'm also fed up with being tied to glasses and spending my life cleaning them.

Has anybody like me been able to cope with contacts? I feel like I will struggle more with getting them out than putting them in, and I have an image of me at the optician's getting all panicked because I can't remove a lense 😳

I went for a trial of them. The optician put them in then asked me to walk around town in them for half an hour and come back. It was awful. I was walking round feeling so sick and dizzy. I was back 10 minutes later asking him to take them out. No idea what happened! I'd love to wear them as I hate glasses but I can't stand the thought of going through that again.

Sorry for your troubles, both of you. I daresay there are some eyes lenses just don’t suit - but it’s worth experimenting with different types if your optician can help.

I’ve had a mildly interesting discovery - the two weekly lenses I’ve been trialling are a revelation. With my usual pair I’m always quite keen to remove them once I get home because they make close reading inconvenient. With the new ones I scarcely noticed I was still wearing them in the house. And they feel oddly lighter in weight, though I wouldn’t have thought that was possible.

I am going through the menopause and dry eye is another symptom
The optician said I can still wear contacts with dry eyes but I am doubtful having read other peoples experiences.

Oh god I've tried so many times but I just don't do eyes and even struggle with all the extra tests they do at the opticians - I always go armed with my own box of tissues.

I must have had 8 attempts at contact lenses, the most recent during COVID as I was in a mask at work and indoors/outside all winter and getting steamed up ALL THE TIME. I just couldn't do it. Too squeamish. I've resigned myself to being a glasses-for-life gal now (been wearing them since a teen in the 90s) and now have varifocals too for everyday wear. Starting to get tricky doing eyeliner but preferable to poking my eyeballs every day!

@bluebells34 your optician is correct - there shouldn’t be a problem with wearing contact lenses just because you have dry eyes.

I’ve recently been diagnosed with the same; I just use the eyedrops when I’m not wearing my lenses.

(It’s also important to use the very best cleaning solution for your lenses if they’re not the throwaway kind. ChatGPT directed me to the disinfecting solution with the right ingredients - and it’s made quite a difference to how my lenses feel through the month.)

@PadamPadamPDoom
Thank you for the advise. The optician advised to put the drops in when wearing the contact lenses through the day. If these new contacts work and I can see driving in them I was hoping to wear them to the office but now panicking the air conditioning will dry my eyes out even more.

I too am super squish and reading with interest.

Another 40 year plus wearer here, I started with the rigid ones at 17, wore them for 20 years then switched to soft monthlies, I agree the advice does change, min are silicone hydrogels and licensed for sleeping in (which is brilliant for daytime napping, no discomfort as there was with the rigid ones) but at first I was told I could wear them all month provided I avoided getting water in them - (no swimming, stand with back to water in the shower etc) then the advice changed to take them out and clean them every night.

I don't really have any advice for people starting out as it was so long ago for me, other than do go back and explain to the optician, different types do suit different people and the prescription can need tweaking. Also there are different ways of getting them in and out, I can't do the thing of putting my fingers in to get them out but pinch them out between my eyelids.

Dry eyes are not a problem at all for me, my symptoms are eyes watering, which is annoying but I treat when it flares up using a heated eye patch and massage. Never needed to use eye drops, wear the lenses pretty well all my waking hours including offices with aircon, cars with aircon (I have checkups every 6 months and never found any issues), they are one of the best things I've ever spent money on.

@PadamPadamPDoom I know what you mean about feeling lighter, I tried dailies a couple of years ago to trial a different prescription and they did feel different. I'm happy with my monthlies though.

I'm having a similar problem but only in one eye, which gets that gritty feeling after about four hours. My optician said it's dryness and gave me drops. I also did some research and ordered a pack of more expensive lenses with a lower water content. Neither has helped so far.

I'm going to keep going, trialling different lenses and drops. There are so many out there, I'm sure we can find the right combination for our eyes. It's so nice to have freedom from glasses!

@ExtremeDecluttering
please tell me how you “pinch between eyelids”. I have just started a free trial with contacts and am fine putting them in and wearing them but struggle getting them out which makes me anxious all day about getting them out. I’d love to know new techniques. I have the most success with dragging it down to my lower lid but this can take me ages and by that time my eye is sore.

I hold my hand flat and sideways in front of my eye (fingers pointing towards nose), eyes wide open and looking straight ahead then use my first and middle fingers, press onto the lids (on top of the eyelashes) and gently pinch together, the lens comes out onto the fingers. It's the way I was taught 40 years ago and been using it ever since.

Actually the getting the lenses out is a bit like learning to drive, whichever method you use you need to act decisively.

I do the dragging (sliding) down to my lower eyelid too - and you do have to be quite firm in pressing the lens against your eye. Otherwise it will keep escaping and you may have difficulty locating it.

Good lighting and being close enough to the mirror are crucial for me.

And never try to put them in or take them out over a surface you wouldn’t want to drop them onto!

I’m really squeemish and have no trouble with contacts. Once you get used to them that are a game changer

@ExtremeDecluttering struggle getting them out which makes me anxious all day about getting them out
This is me! When trialling I was anxious to take them out after an hour and don't think my anxiety would let me keep them in all day for the fear of not getting them out. Spec savers said to put some hydrating drops in 2 minutes before taking them out. But now I have dry eyes I cant tolerate the lenses after an hour or so anyway. I used the dragging down method but you really have to apply pressure to get the lens to move.

Me! I’ve been wearing them since 1989 when I was 16. Back then they were the old fashioned hard lenses that had to be taken out, cleaned and then soaked overnight everyday. It took me about three ‘lessons’ and even then I struggled with them, but was so determined to succeed. I now wear daily disposables that are much easier to handle, and much more comfortable. I’m still very squeamish with my eyes, but it was well worth the perseverance. Good luck!

You know even after 40 years I don't think I could do the dragging down thing at all, I've never tried, even though I'm quite happy say getting a loose eyelash off the white of my eye with a fingertip, the thought of touching the cornea area even through a lens is just a no.

I had soft lenses in the mid-80s, @MrsNathanDrake. (In fact I’ve never encountered a hard lens!)

What sort of nails do you all wear? Mine have always been short, and I wonder, every single time I see someone with two inches of nail per finger, how they manage anything in daily life. And assume they must be glasses wearers if they need optical assistance.

I used to love my false nails but whilst trialling the contact lenses have short stub nails! No way can you put in / take out contacts with nails. So If contacts do not work for me I am left with false nails and false eyelashes under the glasses but all I really want is to be glasses free.

I watched a lot of videos of people putting lenses in and out, and plenty of the women had long false nails, including those ones shaped like ice picks. Not sure I'd want to try it but it didn't cause them any issues!

Nail length makes no difference at all with the pinching them out method I described above, as you only use the pads of your fingers, and only use the pads for insertion too. I keep mine short for other reasons but nothing to do with contact lens use.

Thank you so much! Going to try this! 😁