UK Keratoconus Self-Help and Support Association

Hi I'm not sure if anyone can offer me a bit of advice, tips etc. I have worn RGP contact lenses for 28 years but do to reducing wear time I asked the hospital I attend if there was any other lenses I could try so last Wednesday I came away wearing soft contact lenses for the first time and I know its very early days, don't know if the sight will diminish too much with time etc but at the moment my problem is i can't remove them without a battle each evening.

Was told to pinch the lenses between my fingers and it'll come away but I spend ages chasing the lenses around my eye, my problem seems to be a combination of no technique and lack of vision to actually see the lens once I've managed to get one out. Any ideas are gratefully received .

I've had that problem too! - in my case, with the soft lenses that form the underneath layer of "piggybacking".
NOrmally, the soft one underneath comes out withthe hard one on top hen I take that out. If it doesn't, it's a long mad panic!
Do you still have a set of hard lenses? If so, and if you can get one soft lens out and not the other, could you put the hard one in temporarily to see what you're doing getting the other soft one out?
I suppose you could try putting the hard one in on top of the other, nd see if they will both come out together. If they don't, that's no help.
i've never found a reliable way of getting the lost soft lens out - so would be glad to hear if you get a good answer.
Good luck.
Rosemary

sounds like i to have some fun times ahead when i get my kerasoft , as your aware rgps are a doddle to get out!! gareths your man for removal techniques on soft lenses or the lovely lynn white..all the best

Hi Carol!!

yes it can be quite a lot of fun with soft lenses - but once you get the hang of it, you'll wonder why you had all the problems!

It sounds like you are not gripping the lens hard enough, which is understandable as your brain thinks you are trying to pinch your eye. Once you have done this successfully without hurting yourself, your brain thinks.. aha! This must be OK! So first make sure your nails are short. Then,either look up and slide the lens down or look to the side (towards your nose) and slide in the opposite direction. Sliding it onto the white tends to break the surface tension. Grasp each side of the lens and pinch, making sure you press down on the lens, otherwise the pesky thing will just slip away under your fingers.

Handling afterwards tends to depend on what sort of case you have? let us know.

Sometimes if that removal technique does not work, you can use the top and bottom lids to remove, rather like an RGP. Separate the top and bottom lids so they are above and below the lens and make sure your fingers are on the lid margins. Push firmly against the eye, so the lids are jjust above and below the lens edges. Then push the lids together - in a perfect world the lens just pops out!

Let us know how you go on!

Lynn

We found this to be a problem very early on with the Kerasoft 3 lenses as they are so slippery due to the type if silicone hydrogel material.

The best way we fuond was to take them out as you would an RGP using the eylids. Just pul the eye lids apart and make sure the lid marging is tight against the eye and push the lids together. They will catch the edge of the lens and it will roll out. If you get uit wrong there is no pain unlike an RGP lens when you stab the ye lid with it.

What soft lenses do you have?

Lynn beaten me to it but I'll post anyway because I can't be botherd to change my post

Hi Thanks for all your wonderful tips, at the moment I'm using the eyelid technique but I hold the top lid tight and push up with the bottom lid which easier with the left lens as I see it coming away and grab it with my fingers but the right one usually lands up on the mirror or the floor.

Lynn I like the idea of using my RGP's to give me vision but at the minute I'm trying not to use them so my eyes can demould and see if I'm then able to stay with soft lenses, which I'm really hoping I can, first time in 28 years that I can go outside with the wind annoying me and see, its like being set free.

Gareth I've followed your diary with great interest and as many have said on here before you have helped KC people like myself so much I can't say thanks enough times. Without this forum and people like yourself I would never have asked to try soft lenses in the first place and even though I've only been wearing them a week today they have already made such a big impact on mine and my other half's life. Anyway I'll stop waffling, I think the lenses are from Acuity.

Carol,

We are all here to help each other. It would be very inetresting to know how you get on with your soft lenses. I think the more information we have about lenses from different manufactures will help us all in making informed choices and being able to have increased involvement in our eye care.

It is nice being able to go outside regardless of wind and have no worries about (well fewer at any rate) of dust getting under the lens. Your are quite correct it is like being set free.

Errr Carol?

I wasn't saying anything about using RGPs? I was just saying you can take the lens out like an RGP!!!



Lynn

Lynn White wrote:Errr Carol?

I wasn't saying anything about using RGPs? I was just saying you can take the lens out like an RGP!!!



Lynn

Er, actually, I think that was me.
Rosemary

I reckon that if I hadn't been paying attention, I'd not be so confused.

Lynn, surely you can't 'blink' a soft lens out of your eye? When I had my short experiment with soft lenses I used to 'pinch' it out; a procedure that looked spectacular but felt a bit ordinary.


Andrew