Panic is usually the first thing that hits. You're standing in front of the bathroom mirror, poking at your cornea, and the lens just... isn't there. You know you didn't take it out. You can feel a scratchy, irritating sensation like a grain of sand is hitching a ride under your eyelid. This is the classic contact stuck in eye scenario, and honestly, it’s one of those minor medical dramas that feels way more terrifying than it actually is.
First, take a breath. It is physically impossible for a contact lens to slide behind your eyeball and get lost in your brain. There’s a thin, moist lining called the conjunctiva that folds back to cover the white of your eye and the inside of your eyelids. It creates a dead end. The lens is in there somewhere. It’s just playing hide and seek.
The Science of Why They Get Stuck
Lenses don't just decide to migrate for fun. Usually, it's a matter of moisture—or the lack of it. When your eye gets dry, that soft silicone hydrogel material loses its lubrication and creates a sort of suction effect against the conjunctiva or the cornea. If you've ever fallen asleep in your lenses, you know the feeling. The lens essentially shrink-wraps to the surface of the eye.
Dr. Glenda Aleman, a noted optometrist, often points out that many people mistakenly think the lens has fallen out when it has actually folded over and tucked itself deep into the superior fornix—that’s the pocket under your upper eyelid. This happens most often if you rub your eyes too vigorously. You think you're relieving an itch, but you're actually shoveled the lens into the "attic" of your eye.
Step-By-Step Rescue Mission
Stop rubbing. Right now. If you keep rubbing, you risk a corneal abrasion, which is basically a paper cut on your eye. It hurts like hell and can lead to infections.
1. Wash Your Hands (Seriously)
This sounds like "IT Support 101" advice, but don't skip it. You're about to go fishing in a very sensitive mucosal membrane. Use plain soap. Avoid anything with heavy perfumes or oils because those will sting worse than the stuck lens does.
2. The Great Rehydration
If the contact stuck in eye feels like it's glued in place, you need to flood the zone. Use a generous amount of sterile saline solution or rewetting drops. Avoid tap water. I cannot stress this enough: tap water contains microorganisms like Acanthamoeba that can cause permanent vision loss. Just use the drops. Blink a lot. This helps the eye's natural mechanics move the lens toward the center where you can actually see it.
3. The Eyelid Flip
If the lens is under the upper lid, look down as far as you can. Grab your upper lashes and gently pull the lid out and over the lower lid. Blink. This can sometimes "catch" the lens and pull it down. If it's under the lower lid, pull the lid down and look up.
When It’s Not Actually There
Here’s a weird psychological trick your body plays: the "foreign body sensation." Sometimes the lens has already fallen out. Maybe it's on your cheek, or stuck to your shirt, or sitting in the sink. But because the lens scratched the surface of your eye slightly while it was moving around, your brain still thinks something is in there.
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How can you tell the difference?
If you've flushed your eye with saline for five minutes and you've looked in every corner with a flashlight and a magnifying mirror and you still see nothing, it might be gone. If the pain is sharp and localized, it's likely an abrasion. If it feels like something is "rolling" around when you move your eye, the lens is probably still in there.
Myths and Misconceptions
People tell some wild stories. No, you cannot use a vacuum (obviously). No, you shouldn't use tweezers. I’ve heard of people trying to use a Q-tip to "grab" the lens, which is a terrible idea because the fibers can get stuck in the eye along with the lens.
Another big one: the "it'll dissolve" myth. Contact lenses are medical-grade plastics. They don't dissolve. If you leave a contact stuck in eye for days or weeks, you aren't going to absorb it. You're going to get a giant papillary conjunctivitis (GPC) or a nasty bacterial ulcer. There are rare medical cases, like the famous British case documented in the British Medical Journal where surgeons found 27 contact lenses matted together in a 67-year-old woman's eye. She just thought she had dry eyes and old age. Don't be that person.
The "Contact Stuck in Eye" Toolkit
If this happens often, you might need to change your habits or your lens type.
- Switch to Dailies: Daily disposables are thinner and generally hold moisture better than monthlies.
- Check Your Fit: If your base curve is too flat, the lens will slide around. If it’s too steep, it will suction. See an eye doc for a refit.
- Keep Drops Everywhere: Not the "get the red out" drops—those constrict blood vessels and can actually make dryness worse over time. Use preservative-free artificial tears.
Practical Steps to Get it Out Now
If you are reading this while staring at a red eye in the mirror, follow this specific sequence.
First, tilt your head back and put three drops of saline in the corner of your eye near the nose. Close your eye and gently—GENTLY—massage the eyelid in a circular motion. This breaks the surface tension.
Second, look in the opposite direction of where you think the lens is. If you think it's in the outer corner, look toward your nose. This moves the conjunctiva and often forces the edge of the lens to pop up.
Third, use a mirror with good lighting. Use your phone's flashlight if you have to. If you see a tiny sliver of a line, that's the edge. Use the pad of your finger (not the nail!) to slide it toward the center of your eye.
When to Call the Professional
Sometimes you just can't get it. It happens. If your eye is becoming extremely red, if your vision is blurring, or if the pain is making it hard to keep your eye open, stop. Call your optometrist or go to an urgent care center that has a slit lamp. They can flip your eyelid properly and use a yellow dye called fluorescein to see exactly where the lens—or the scratch—is.
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Most offices will squeeze you in for an emergency "foreign body removal." It takes them about thirty seconds because they have the right tools and the right angle. It’s worth the $50 or $100 co-pay to avoid scarring your cornea.
Actionable Next Steps
Check the sink. Seriously, look in the basin. If it's not there, use a high-quality lubricant drop to see if you can flush it out. If the irritation persists for more than 24 hours after you think you got it out, you need a professional to check for a corneal ulcer. Take a break from contacts for at least 48 hours to let the surface of the eye heal. Switch to your backup glasses. If you don't have backup glasses, let this be the wake-up call to get a pair. Relying 100% on contacts is a recipe for a bad Saturday night when one gets stuck or lost.