The woes of wearing contacts

Remove all ads!

Argh! Does anyone else here wear contacts?

Well, here's my horror story from yesterday:
Mom picked up some contact solution late at night, I was too tired to read the instructions, or even the label, so I just put the stuff in the case. Woke up next morning, yawning, rinsed them with saline, put them in my eyes. Felt normal for maybe ten seconds, then suddenly it felt like they were on fire. White hot searing pain all throughout my head, my eyes were stinging like hell and I couldn't open them back up, I literally couldn't open my eyes for maybe twenty minutes. By the time I could, it still took maybe ten tries per eye to get them out, I couldn't touch them right (and I have no qualms with prodding my eyeballs). My eyes were all red, no white to speak of, and it basically felt like someone had poked them out with a hot fork.

So for an hour after that I alternated between madly splashing water in them and just pressing a cold washcloth on them. I looked like a raccoon, my skin around my eyes was all crimson. Then I just sat in bed dripping water into my eyes, I couldn't open them all the way, but when I shut them I couldn't open them back up - I thought I would go blind if I did.

Long story short, six hours of pain later, went to an eye doctor, by then my eyes were relatively normal, if they still ached and stung when I blinked. Turns out you need a neutralizer tablet for the solution, you don't soak them for more than x hours, and I was allergic to one of the ingredients. That hurt like no one's business.

Anyway (yeah I ramble), have any horror stories of your own?

 

Going trough 7 operations for just one teeth is NOT fun. I had to re-undergo an operation becouse of the dentist's mistake. He laughed at it. I didn't. (On the other hand, my teeth got me a lot of free vacation while others have to go to school!!)

 

I wore soft contact for a year when my optometrist tried to get me to switch to hard. What a miserable pain they were! I couldn't open my eyes fully, and had to drive with my head titled back and peering down my nose. He relented after I made it through a full week without "getting used to them."

Nowadays the only problem I have with my contacts is dryong out after being worn too long. I make sure there are bottles of wetting solution in all my purses and in both cars. The first time I squirted my lenses while doing 70 mph on ahighway, Velcor nearly had a fit!

 

Yeah, I wear soft contacts. I've worn them for close to 15 years. Maybe closer to 17.

I use the "monthly" ones. And there's (kinda new) solution that's an "all in one". You're supposed to swap them out every month, but I just wear them until they become very uncomfortable, or I lose one in the sink. Here lately, it's been running 50/50. Although in years past, I've never lost a contact. I must just be getting old.

Anyways, hydrogen peroxide is crazy stuff. I soaked mine in regular 3% years ago, because I was out of AOsept. The regular solution ate my contact; literally. It was in the process of being dissolved. And AOsept is just hydrogen peroxide mixed with a little buffering salt, if you look on the indegredients.

Soon after that, I switched to this all-in-one stuff. I still have about 4 of those little AOsept holders with the platinum coated disks inside. I should get around to chucking them, one of these days...

 

I've worn glasses since I was 8, and about a year ago, I tried contact lenses. I underestemated my fear of touching my eyes. Once I got over that, a few hours of trying later, I learned what a pain they really are. I like to rub my eyes a lot, which causes them to fold, and I was on the swim team then, so I lost a bunch in the pool...to make a long story short, I'm back to wearing glasses. I say stick with wearing glasses.

By the way: Like my new spikes?

 

I happen to have the extraordinary luck of being stuck right in the middle of two extreme (-7, -7.5) powers. Since they obviously can't over-comensate they have to undercompensate. So about 20/60 is all the better I can see with my contacts. It seems I have to further destroy my eyes before my sight can get any better. The sun never looked so good.

 

I wear glasses. My new ones cost £136.50. How's that for a bummer?