Here’s how it usually happens: all of a sudden there’s an irritation in your eye; it feels as though there’s a hair in it, or a grain of sand. You look in a mirror and see that one of your contact lenses has inexplicably torn while you were wearing it. Or, perhaps the tear was there this morning but you just now rubbed your eyes and made it bigger. Don’t panic. Just remove it as you usually would; it will help if you use some artificial tears eye drops.
- Wash your hands with soap, as you always should do before handling your contacts.
- Stand in front of a mirror for the procedure.
- Put a drop of artificial tears in your eye to lubricate it.
- Remove the contact lens as usual if it isn’t completely torn. If it is torn into two pieces, open your eyes wide and roll your eyeball in all directions to see where the pieces may have shifted. If a piece is too small for you to grasp with thumb and forefinger, gently slide it to the inner corner of your eye so you can wipe it out.
A most disturbing disappearance
If you can’t find all the pieces of the torn contact lens, don’t worry; they probably fell out by themselves. In fact, it’s impossible to lose a contact lens in your eye, because your eyeball is enclosed by the conjunctiva, the membrane that covers the backs of the eyelids. You can rest assured that your contact lens didn’t somehow slide behind your eyeball.
Broken again?
Contacts are made to be durable, so the tear isn’t likely a manufacturer’s defect. If you often tear your contact lenses, you need to be more careful when handling them or ask your optometrist for a tougher kind. Sometimes a contact lens gets caught in the case’s lid when you screw it shut. Make sure both lenses are fully immersed in your cleaning solution before you put the lids on.
Dry eyes and contact lenses
You’ve been wearing contacts for years, so why is it that they’re tearing all the time now? Your eyes may be too dry, especially if you work at a computer all day or if you spend a lot of time in a dry environment, such as an airplane or air-conditioned office. When your eyes are dry, your contact lenses dry out and can become brittle or too sticky. When you pinch a lens to remove it, the edges may stick together; then, when you try to ease the edges apart, the lens might tear. Using artificial tears to lubricate your eyes before removing your contacts should correct the situation.
Your eyes are precious; take care of them
Wearing a torn or damaged contact lens for any length of time may cause eye irritation or more serious damage. As soon as you notice a problem, remove the contacts and arrange for a new pair right away.
