How to Remove a Contact Lens Stuck in Your Eye

Published in

The Wink

4 min readDec 8, 2021

So you have a contact lens stuck in your eye.

Don’t panic — it happens to most contact lens wearers at one point or another. Safely removing your contact lens is important for your eyes’ health and can be done easily with just a few simple steps.

How to remove a stuck contact lens

The first step to removing a stuck contact lens is to thoroughly wash your hands with soap and water and dry them on a lint-free towel. Then, locate the contact lens in your eye.

Most times, the lens gets stuck while centered on the cornea. This can happen when the lens dries out in your eye, often after you’ve fallen asleep with your contacts on.

If your contact lens is stuck on the center of your eye:

First, rinse the stuck contact lens and your eye with a steady stream of contact lens rewetting drops or saline solution. This will help lubricate the dried-out lens.
Next, close your eye and gently massage your upper eyelid until you feel the contact lens move.
Be patient — you may have to repeat these first two steps several times until the contact lens is relubricated and can move freely. It can take up to 15 minutes for the lens to become wet enough to remove.
Once the lens moves freely, remove it as you normally would.

REMEMBER…

Do not use tap water or saliva for relubricating the lens. Only use contact lens rewetting drops or saline solution.

Never try to pry the dried or stuck contact from your eye with your nail or without rewetting the contact. Doing so could scratch, cut, or abrade the cornea — the clear outer layer of your eye.

If your contact lens is stuck off the center of your eye:

Look in the mirror to locate the contact lens in your eye.
Then, move your eye in the opposite direction of the lens. For example, if your contact lens is at the top of your eye, move your eye downward. Blinking may also help reposition the contacts.
If it feels dry, try flushing your eye with contact lens rewetting drops or saline solution. Then, massage your upper eyelid until you feel the contact lens move into its proper position.

If you can’t see your contact lens in your eye:

But what if your contact lens simply…disappears? If you can’t see your contact lens when you move your eye, try flipping your upper eyelid to look for it. (Don’t worry: Your lens can’t get lost behind your eye because of the structure of your eye and your eyelid.) Keep looking and rinsing, and if you still can’t see it or get it out, call your eye doctor.

How to avoid getting a contact stuck in your eye

1. Choose the best contacts for eye health

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: not all contacts are created equal. Different contact lenses have different abilities to lock in moisture, transmit oxygen, and stay where they are supposed to on the eye. Choosing contact lenses that prioritize the health of your eyes above all else is the first and most important step to avoiding any contact lens mishaps.

Aveo daily contacts have many unique features, including Aqualock, which helps to lock in moisture all day long and prevent your lenses from drying out — and they allow for two times more oxygen to pass through than other hydrogel lenses.

If you have astigmatism, our toric contacts for astigmatism are uniquely designed to recenter themselves with every blink. So you can enjoy a thin, comfortable lens that always stays in place.

2. Don’t sleep with your contact lenses in

It doesn’t matter if it’s just a quick power nap; sleeping with contacts is a recipe for disaster.

Sleeping with contacts doesn’t just dry out your lenses and make it more difficult to remove them — it poses a significant risk to your eye health. In fact, wearing contact lenses while sleeping is one of the highest risks for developing an eye infection.

Instead, always remove your contacts before you sleep or nap. No exceptions.

3. Learn how to handle your contacts

Handling contact lenses can come with a bit of a learning curve, and even if you’ve been wearing them for a long time, you may need a refresher on best practices.

Remember to always wash your hands before touching your contacts, keep your fingernails trimmed, and handle the lenses gently.

Safety first

You should now know how to safely remove a contact lens if it is stuck to your eye. Remember that when handling contacts, the safety and health of your eyes should always be the priority.