Advice on getting contacts first time?

Practice practice practice

You will get used to putting them in. Just take your time and relax. You may sweat curse and cry the first week.

Beware though that contacts can harm your eyes greatly. I am hopefully going to get Lasik next Thursday IF my right cornea heals enough to have it done. Nobody ever told me how harmful they can be. You can even go blind after time. I recommend limiting use and getting Lasik once you are done having kids and your vision stabilizes in your 30's.

It just takes practice! I got my first pair of contacts when I was in 8th grade. It took a while to get the hang of, but after all these years I can take them out/ put them in anywhere in any light... I don't even need a mirror! You'll get it, just keep working on it. So much better than glasses!

I've been wearing contacts for over 30 years. I've had soft and rigid ones. It sounds like you would do well in soft. The hardest part is learning to put your fingers close to your eyes, but once you can do that, it's a piece of cake. Wash your hands, take the lenses out as directed and clean them well. Avoid an eye infection - I've never had one, so it is not set in stone that you will. Best advice, don't get lazy with taking care of them. I am now going to monovision because my eyes are getting old. I hate wearing glasses. :noway: Good luck!

I take back the after having kids remark.....sorry man lol

I have to agree with the others... practice and it becomes easy. I wore contacts starting when I was 17 until just a couple weeks ago (so about 20 years). I had soft contacts that I replaced every 1-2months. I didn't mind putting them in and out, but that was the price to pay to get out of glasses. I had a friend where they wouldn't let him leave with contacts until he could put them in and out on his own. I didn't have a choice, they sent me home in them and I had to figure out how to get them out myself lol.

I had SBK eye surgery on Nov.1 and all I can say is it is absolutely fabulous! I could see more than well enough to remove the corrective lenses restriction off my drivers licence less than 24 hours later! SBK is like laisik, but lower risk of side effects, and quicker recovery.

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I work for an eye doctor and I conduct a contact lens training with new wearers. We teach patients how to put them in and take them out. It does take practice. The first question I ask is how comfortable they are with touching their eye. That makes a huge difference with the lenses. So definitely practice with that. Your eyelids, lashes, etc. are all there to keep foreign objects from entering our eyes. And there we are trying to put something in them. So you really need to gain control in order to get them in. It's like riding a bike and you'll eventually be able to do it easily.

It is important to get a training from someone patient who isn't barking at you. I am pretty good at it. Too bad you can't come see me! haha.

Do not sleep in them even if a manufacturer says to. Also, wearing lenses can dry your eyes out and many people suffer from dry eyes anyway (perhaps unaware), so try to give your eyes a rest in the evenings (or when you can). Take them off and put your glasses on. Clean them properly and don't wear them longer than you're supposed to. (whether daily, two week or monthly). So many people try to push the length of time they wear their lenses and end up coming in for infection or irritation and don't know why! lol!

Good luck!!

:flowerforyou:

So in answering to people screaming "LASIK!!!", yeah I'd say not. We're family friends with both an optometrist and ophthalmologist and when casually asking whether or not lasik was worth it (I'm sure they get that question all the time), they both said no. That and the fact that the surgery can be upwards of $2300. Yeah that's a big chunk of change.


I had a hard time at first with my contacts. I have a tendency to always lotion my hands after washing them, so yeah that plus eyeball equals STING OFNOSKEDFRAWWWR. Haha...it just takes practice, and the poster who works in eye care was right, the doctor will ask questions like your comfort level when touching you eye, etc, so you won't be completely in the dark.

Good luck!

The disposable daily wear ones are the most comfortable, but the most fiddly to handle (being very thin and flexible).

If you have to get contacts then I suggest the disposable kind and just keep practicing at putting them in; you’ll get it. Otherwise if it’s an option and if you qualify might I suggest LASIK? It may be an expensive way to go but in the long run you are saving on the expense of contacts/glasses, cleaning solutions and anything else that goes with it. The best part you don’t have to mess with glasses/contacts again (unless you need cheaters down the road – but you won’t even need them if you get the LASIK option where they tweak your eyes different).

I’ve worn glasses since 3rd grade and just got LASIK done this past September. Absolutely LOVE it!!! Only wished I would have done it sooner! :happy:

Relax and practise. My eye Dr had me practise for hours when I first got contacts to ensure I was comfortable putting them in and taking them out. You might have to try a few brands until you find the best fit for your eyes.

Make sure your contacts are comfortable for all your daily activities - I recently tried switching to dailies, and had to go back to my old ones, because no matter how comfortable they were for just normal activities, it took forever to refocus and hurt switching back and forth between using a loupe or microscope and unmagnified vision.