Putting Eye Drops in a Blind Eye

I’ve been legally blind in my right eye for my entire life, but for most of my early life, well into adulthood, I didn’t have any medical problems with the eye. That all changed dramatically after my retina detached and I developed glaucoma. At the outset I found myself taking four drops twice a day. That number gradually went down to two (and then back to three, when a shortage forced me to take two separate drops rather than a combination drop I’d been taking), and then finally back down to two again. My optometrist suggested I experiment dropping one of the drops to see if I could manage it (eye pressure in my case is less important than comfort) but I couldn’t manage it.

The doctor did say I could elect for laser surgery to reduce fluid into the eye. I asked him which option — drops or laser — had the fewest risks and side effects. He said drops. I stayed with the drops.

So, best case scenario is that, right now, I’m taking two drops twice a day. Four eyedrops into the eye.

Did I mention I can’t see in that eye?

Because of my situation, I’ve had a chance to experiment with a few methods of delivery. I’ve ranked them from, in my experience, worst to best.

The Worst Option: Unaided Self-Delivery

Putting an eyedrop into a blind eye, unaided, is a great way to drip prescription medicine onto your skin. Hitting the target is hard, and I would know. I’ve experimented with (less expensive) preservative-free moisturizing eyedrops, and even after a lot of practice, muscle memory alone isn’t a guarantee of success. I would say that, at best, I’m about 50/50 with hitting the target in that case. That’s no big deal with a cheap moisturizing eyedrop. It is a big deal with prescription eyedrops.

If, for some reason, you feel you have to do it this way, here’s what I’ve learned.

One, it pretty much only came to me through practice, and even then it’s not perfect. I practiced a lot with the preservative-free moisturizing drops, which at least helped me get a “feel” for where I needed to put the tip of the drops, but I could still miss. On top of that, each eyedrop dispenser has a different size and sometimes even a different delivery method (one of my drops is dispensed by pushing on the bottom of the bottle), so lining up things for each dropper is a little different. And when you’re talking millimeters, “little” can be the difference between hitting your eye or your cheek.

Two, I had a hard time using mirrors to help. I use mirrors to put in my prosthetic contact, and that’s very helpful, but because of the physics involved I didn’t find them helpful. In most cases, your eye has to be staring at the sky to get the drop in, and that means either leaning back in a chair or lying down on a couch or bed. Putting a mirror anywhere near you where you can see the process probably requires a really fancy extendable custom mirror. I tried putting a simple makeup mirror on a nearby table, and I just couldn’t get the angle right. And holding the mirror was generally out of the question, since applying a drop requires holding the eyelid open with one hand and holding the dropper with the other … in other words, two hands.

Three, various techniques all had their pros and cons. Holding the drop above the eye and squeezing the dropper is what a seeing person would do, but it takes a lot of practice and muscle memory for a blind person to do the same thing. I experimented with putting my thumb on my eyebrow and using that to help “measure” the distance to my eye, but that requires a bit of fine motor coordination, which is not ideal, especially if you’re older.

The Middle Option: A Drop Aid Device

At some point, during my Googling on the subject, I discovered that there are actually devices out there to help aim drops into the eye. Many people don’t know this — in fact, my own eye specialist didn’t. But they exist. They’re primarily designed for people with arthritis or other conditions that cause their hands to shake, but they work perfectly fine for drop delivery.

The best option I found was AutoDrop, manufactured by Owen Mumford. It’s relatively inexpensive — in most places it’s currently about $4-5 — and pretty simple to use. In most cases it has to be ordered online, but it’s possible you might spot it at a local pharmacy or store. Essentially, you place the dropper in the AutoDrop, place it over your eye, and squeeze.

For me, as long as I’ve pulled my lid back correctly, it hits dead-on every time. That’s a big positive.

There are a few drawbacks, though. One, because it’s so close to the eye, I don’t always feel the drop hit my eye, so I’m not sure if a drop actually dispensed. That means I have to either dispense more drops than needed (wasting drops) or risk not being sure I got the medicine.

Two, while it fits most droppers fine, I had one long-stem dropper that I had some difficulty fitting it in. That’s a consideration depending on your drop bottle design.

Finally, because it’s plastic, it can wear out, especially at the hinge. Fortunately, it’s cheap.

The Best Option: Someone Else

In my experience, the best option for getting drops in right is another person. Another person can lean over you, aim, and hit the target better than I can, and they also can see if the drop hit the target, which I can’t do. This means you have to have someone who can do it, and, on top of that, someone who can do it accurately, but if you have such a person, that’s the route to take.

What I Do

As of the time of this post, my wife puts in my drops 98% of the time. She gets up when I get up for work to put them in, and she puts them in around dinnertime in the evening. She’s in good health so right now that’s not a problem for her.

As for the other 2%? If she’s sick, out of town, or otherwise unavailable, I put the drops in myself using an AutoDrop. I probably use more than normal that way to be sure I can “feel” the drops in the eye, but it pretty much always hits the target.