RGP lens issues

[LouiseBenj]

hi,
I've had a rigid gas permeable lens for about 3 months now. I find it very uncomfortable still, my eye blinks alot and it's stingy sometimes too. I can feel it there constantly, sometimes it feels really dry. Ive been able to keep it in for 8 hours on 2 days. My eye is a little more used to it now that it was at first but i really cant see me wearing it long term.

How long has it taken other people to get used to their RGPs?
has anyone else had the same experiences as me?

Louise

[lou]

Hi Louise

ive had many lenses over the last 10 yrs small and large many ive been suited to and many ive not all i can suggest is giving it time, you mentioned your eyes feel dry try artificial tear drops that might help.
I have Sjogren's syndrome (dry eyes) and my top eyelids used to get stuck on the top edge of my lenses so when i blinked only my bottom lids moved (looked pretty mad)

Hope you get sorted with them

with luv

Emma xxx

[Amarpal]

Hi Louise,

Your story sounds familiar. Don't worry, most of us find this when we start with our RGPs.

Main thing is to take them out if they start to hurt. You will get used to the feeling of having an RGP in your eye hopefully. I wore them for three years, and I never even felt them after a while (unless I wore them for too long!)

As for the stinging, I dont know what could be causing that. I suspect its just the sensation of having the lens in your eye. As Louise says, there are many lenses to choose from, so dont worry if these dont turn out to be your best match. Give them a bit of time just now and see how you get on. Try some lubricating eye drops if you feel your eyes are getting sore and uncomfortable.

It took me a long time to get used to my RGPs, so hang in there! I probably got fully used to the idea of wearing lens after about 3-6 months. It takes time. Good luck!

[GarethB]

Louise,

I find replacing the drinks I used to have with water has been a great help, I have at least 2 litres per day. Lubricating eye drops can be a great help, I found Systane best for me, initially I had to use the drops every two hours and you need to take your lenses out for maximum benefit. After a couple of months I could back off the frequency I needed them and only use them just before putting lenses in and just after taking them out.

Sit as far from air con as possible and if you can get a desk top humidifier. Should you need to use computers a lot, set a timer for 30 minutes and after that time take a brief break, a minute or two will surfice.

Such small changes can make a huge difference.

December 2005 I could only wear my lenses for 2 hours max, now I get a very comfortable 12 hours regularly through simple changes.

[Mandy]

Hi Louise

To share my experience.....

I've only been wearing RGP's since late July so it still feels like early days for me as well.

Before I was diagnosed with KC I was a soft lenses wearer. So to go from the comfort of soft lenses to RGP's was difficult but not as bad as I thought.

Lucky for, my eyes were not streaming although they were certainly uncomfortable and everytime I blinked I could feel them in my eyes. However, the vision I got from wearing them made me determined to not to give up.

In the first four months, I had a lot of good and bad days. I also experienced dry eyes. I made sure I used blink eye drops as recommended. I was also told to do "blink exercises" (you open and close your eyes with your lenses in so that the eyelids get use to them).

I would say it took a good 6 months to feel comfortable with my RGPs. Even now, there might be some days when they do feel uncomfortable but this will depend on a variety of factors - how tired I am, time of the month (eyes tend to be more sensitive then!), air conditioning etc.

I've found that a humidifier has helped, using blink eye drops and not overwearing my lenses has helped me adjust to wearing them.

My friend (sho doesn't have KC) wears RGPs to correct her shortsightedness and she said to me that it took her a year to feel truly comfortable wearing them.

I don't know if you have seen the latest newsletter and the DVD of the annual conference - it has an interesting talk on the effects of accupuncture on lens wearing time and comfort. This may be something you want to look into.

I hope that helps. It does get better!
Mandy