Inserting and removing contact lenses

Our eyes are exceptionally delicate instruments that we use on a daily basis, so protecting our eyes should be paramount for everyone. But this is especially true when you are inserting and removing contact lenses on a daily basis.

Those of us that wear contact lenses should take great care in how we protect our eyes during the process of putting contact lenses in, or taking them out. It’s also beneficial to know to keep your contact lenses in good shape and protect them from wear and tear. Take a look at last week’s article on “Eye Care Tips for your Contacts” to find out more, but today we will concentrate on the actual act of inserting contact lenses or removing them and how to do it safely.

How To Insert Contact Lenses

Step 1: Wash and dry your hands. Keeping your contact lenses clean is exceptionally important; if anything gets under your contact lens, it could cause damage to both your eye and the lens itself. 
Tip: Use a soap that doesn’t contain oil, lotions or perfumes 
Tip: Use a lint free towel 
Tip: Plug the sink drain

Step 2: Place the lens on tip of the index or middle finger of your dominant hand and inspect the lens and its edges for contusions, scratches or dirt. Tip: If lens shape looks like a bowl with the edges turned up, this is correct and you may proceed 
Tip: If the lens shape has a lip on the edge, it is inside out and needs to be turned the right way up before inserting.

Step 3: Using your free hand, hold open your upper eye lid to prevent yourself from blinking. Using the hand with the contact lens on the index finger, hold your lower lid down and gently place the contact lens on the lower half of the eye while looking up. 
Tip: If you feel air bubbles under the contact lens, close your eye and massage the lid gently while moving your eye left and right, or up and down. This should remove the bubbles.

Step 4: Once the contact lens has been inserted, close you eye for a moment, then blink several times to centre the contact lens on the eye.

Step 5: Once your contact lens in in, don’t forget to rinse the lens case and let it air dry. This will keep your case clean and prevent damage to your contacts in the long run.

How To Remove Contact Lenses

Step 1: Wash and dry your hands. We do this for the same reason we did it when inserting the contact lenses, so the same tips apply.

Step 2: Use you non-dominant hand to hold your upper eye lid away from the eye. Then while looking up, use your middle finger to hold down lower eye lid and slide the contact lens downwards to the lower part of the eye. Now use your thumb and index finger to gently pinch the lens and remove it. 
Tip: Try not to pinch the lens too hard or excessively fold the lens as this could damage it.

Step 3: Clean and disinfect the lens immediately after you have removed it, then put the lens in its case and fill the lens case with fresh contact lens solution and replace the lid.

Video Tutorial For Inserting And Removing Contact Lenses

For those that prefer a video tutorial, below you will see a video tutorial for inserting and removing contact lenses. If you have any questions, no matter how small, feel free to contact one of our eye care professionals here at EyeQ. Our optometrists will be happy to walk you through the process, offer advice that is specific to your needs and suggest the best contact lens solutions for your eyes.