I was born with a deformed optic nerve in one eye. At a certain point in adulthood, several things went wrong with that eye, all within a short period of time. My retina detached, my eye permanently dilated, I developed glaucoma, and I started using a prosthetic contact. At first I used a simple Air Optix Colors contact, but my eye later developed a cataract that became visible enough that I had to move to a true opaque custom prosthetic contact. I have a one-year use contact that cost me around $500.
The contact has been mostly good: it helps me look more normal in public spaces, especially around strangers, and now that I have experience with it I can manage the maintenance and cleaning of the contact with less work than it used to be. But that doesn’t mean it’s use free. There are challenges. In fact, there are enough challenges that I’ve sometimes wondered if I should have the eye removed and replaced with a prosthetic eye. I may have no choice at some point; my eye has deteriorated since my detached retina and there is always the chance that it could reach a place where it fails or where pain becomes too much. But for now, I’ve decided to live with my real eye and a contact over it.
Here are a few things the contact brings with it.
1. Maintenance
Because I use a one-year contact, I have to clean it carefully and using specific, recommended solutions. I soak it in BioTrue solution every day, and I clean it after every use with a solution called Lobob Sof/Pro 2. I can’t used hydrogen peroxide cleaners, which can fade the contact, and if I don’t clean it regularly protein will form on the contact that is irritating. I also replace my contact lens case once a month.
2. Irritation
Sometimes the contact is irritating even if I clean it. That forces me to take it out, clean it more, soak it a bit, and try again. I’ve had a few frustrating mornings where it took me a while to get it fit in comfortably.
3. Long periods of time
It is hard on the eye to wear it for really long periods of time, like more than 8-9 hours. There have been a few occasions were I’ve had to wear it for longer, forcing me to find a private place where I can take it out, let it soak, and let my eye breathe a little. If I leave it in for 10+ hours my eye gets dry and irritated.
4. Water activities
I can’t swim with the contact. That’s a problem. It means that if I go to a public pool and I’m not wearing sunglasses (sunglasses, thankfully, do hide the eye), anyone nearby who looked at me would probably notice my cataract-filled eye. Because of the worldwide situation I didn’t go to any public pools this summer (2020), but there’s no question it’s changed how I think about swimming or getting into the water, especially on days where I can’t wear sunglasses.
5. Wear and tear
My Air Optix Colors were month-use disposables, and were easy to replace. My prosthetic contact is a single use. It’s expensive and I currently only have one of them. I’ve noticed after several months it’s fading a little in places, and while it’s not yet visible to people looking at me, in time it probably will be. I’m always aware that it could tear or wear out, which is why I’ve been considering ordering a second one. They’re not cheap, but getting a new one every six months or so might be a good idea, so I always have two on hand just in case.
Hi Josh, I sympathize with your situation. Many decades ago, I tried contacts (hard lenses and gas permeable) to replace glasses, but due to the irritation and constant problems with allergens and pollen particles, I had to go back to glasses. In 2016, I had cataracts surgeries. 2 years ago my right eye developed retinal tears and detachments, leading to several surgeries and PVR “proliferative vitreo-retinopathy” – so now what I see from the right eye is just light and shadow. Thankfully my left eye is OK. Doctors don’t know what causes this, theories include heredity, aging, nutrition and environmental factors leading to an overactive immune system. I use RX Prednisolone and OTC Lumify eye drops, as well as Refresh tears, to soothe my right eye which tends to get red and irritated. Are there any online coupons like “GoodRX” and similar that can help offset your contact lens costs? Good luck & take care.
I can relate so much to both your experiences. I’m afraid I will have to have a prosthetic soon. My eye is starting to atrophy. But for a while I was considering it. I went to see one of the people in St Louis who makes prosthetic eyes and when I said I didn’t think I could go through the process, she said that when my eye is bad enough that I need it, it will hurt so much you won’t think twice about it. So I have that to look forward to. My eye was sooo irritated all the time so I started wearing a bandage contact then my eye started getting sooo irritated with that. So I stopped wearing the contact (it was just a soft lense. Much less expensive than an actual bandage lense) my eye is actually better without the contact now. It is still irritated but I guess I’ve learned how to deal with it. Until then I’m just trying to accept my weird looking eye. No one has specifically said it but I think that eye has a cataract. I’ve had several people ask if my eyes are two different colors. Haha. They weren’t but they are now.
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