Don't panic.
That is the first, and honestly most important, thing you need to hear right now. If you're reading this because you can't get your contact out and your eye is starting to look like a roadmap of red veins, take a breath. It is physically impossible for a contact lens to slide behind your eye and get lost in your brain. There is a membrane called the conjunctiva that creates a sealed pocket. The lens is in there somewhere. It’s just being stubborn.
The "stuck" feeling usually happens for two reasons: the lens has dried out and suctioned itself to your cornea, or it has folded over and migrated under your eyelid. Either way, poking at your bare eyeball with dry fingers is only going to make it worse.
Why Lenses Get Stuck in the First Place
Most people think their eye is just "rejecting" the lens, but it’s usually physics. Soft contact lenses are about 38% to 70% water. When you stare at a screen for too long or sit in a room with the AC blasting, that water evaporates. The lens shrinks slightly and grips the cornea. It's basically a microscopic version of a plunger on a floor.
Sometimes, you might have rubbed your eye too hard. A quick rub can fold a thin daily disposable lens into a tiny triangle. It then slides up under the upper eyelid. You feel a scratchy, "foreign body" sensation, but when you look in the mirror, the lens is nowhere to be found.
According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the most common injury from this situation isn't actually from the lens itself. It’s from the person's fingernails. People get desperate. They start clawing. They end up with a corneal abrasion—a scratch on the clear front surface of the eye—which hurts significantly more than a stuck lens ever will.
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The "Dry Stuck" vs. The "Lost" Lens
You need to figure out which problem you have before you start fishing around.
If the lens is centered but won't budge
If you can see the lens but it feels like it’s glued to your iris, do not try to pull it off. You can actually pull off the top layer of your corneal epithelium if you’re too aggressive. This happens a lot with people who fall asleep in their "extended wear" lenses. Even those can dry out.
The Fix: Blink. A lot. Then, use sterile saline or rewetting drops. Not tap water. Never tap water—that’s how you get Acanthamoeba keratitis, a nasty parasite that loves bathroom pipes. Flood the eye with drops and close your eye for a full minute. Massage the lens gently through your closed eyelid. You want to see the lens move. Once you see it "float" when you blink, you can use the standard pinch method to take it out.
If the lens has migrated (The Hide and Seek)
This is the one that causes the most fear. You look in the mirror, and the lens is gone, but your eye feels like it’s being poked by a grain of sand.
The Fix:
Look in the opposite direction of where you feel the irritation. If the lens feels like it's in the top-right corner, look down and to the left. While looking away, use your finger to gently press on the eyelid and "push" the lens back toward the center of the eye.
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Dr. Jennifer Fogt, an assistant professor at the Ohio State University College of Optometry, often suggests using a mirror and a very bright light. Lift your upper lid while looking down. If you see a tiny edge of clear plastic, use a few drops of saline to lubricate the area, then try to slide it down with the pad of your finger.
Mistakes Everyone Makes When They're Scared
Honestly, the biggest mistake is the "dry pinch." If your eye is dry, your finger is dry, and the lens is dry, there is zero traction. It’s like trying to pick up a wet piece of saran wrap with a dry hand—it just slides or sticks worse.
Another big one? Using tweezers. Please, never put tweezers near your eye. It sounds like common sense, but when someone has been struggling for forty-five minutes and their eye is throbbing, they start looking at the vanity drawer for tools. Just stop.
If you’ve been trying for more than twenty minutes, your eye is going to be inflamed. This inflammation creates a "false sensation." Even if the lens falls out onto the sink and you don't notice it, your eye will still feel like something is in there because the tissue is swollen. This is called "foreign body sensation."
When to Call a Professional
There is a point where you need to give up and call an optometrist. Most eye docs have "emergency" slots for exactly this. It takes them about thirty seconds to find a lens using a slit-lamp (the big microscope they use).
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- Your eye is extremely red and painful.
- Your vision is significantly blurred even after you think the lens is out.
- You see a "cloud" or a white spot on your cornea.
- You’ve spent an hour and your eyelid is starting to swell shut.
Dr. Glaucomflecken (the famous ophthalmologist on social media, Dr. Will Flanary) often jokes about the "lost lens," but the reality is that a lingering piece of plastic can cause a localized infection if left for days. It won't kill you, but it’ll be a miserable week of antibiotic drops.
Handling the Aftermath
Once the lens is out, don't just pop a new one in. Your cornea needs oxygen. It’s been smothered. Give it at least 24 hours of "glasses time."
If your eye feels scratchy, you can use preservative-free artificial tears (the little single-use vials) to keep it lubricated while the surface heals. If the pain gets worse over the next few hours, that’s your sign that you might have scratched the eye, and you need an exam to make sure it doesn't get infected.
Essential Action Steps for Right Now
If you're still struggling, follow this exact sequence:
- Wash your hands with mild soap. Avoid soaps with heavy perfumes or "moisturizing" oils like Lanolin, which will blur your vision and make your fingers slippery.
- Dry your hands with a lint-free towel. Paper towels are better than fluffy bath towels that leave fibers.
- Drown the eye in saline. Not one drop—ten drops. Make it a puddle.
- Close your eyes and rotate your eyeball in a full circle. Up, right, down, left. Repeat five times.
- Look in the mirror and pull your lids wide. If you see it, try to slide it to the white part (the sclera) before pinching. The sclera is much less sensitive than the cornea.
- Use a suction tool only if you wear "hard" or RGP (Rigid Gas Permeable) lenses. Never use a suction plunger on a soft lens; it won't work and can cause a "hickey" on your eyeball.
If you can't get it after this, walk away for fifteen minutes. Let the natural tears build back up. Sometimes the best way to get a contact out is to stop trying to force it for a moment. Your eye’s natural defense mechanisms are actually pretty good at pushing foreign objects toward the inner corner (the lacrimal caruncle) while you sleep.