First time lens user - struggling with redness and blurry vision
I’ve worn glasses for about 10 years. My prescription is fairly moderate (I think around -5.4 in one eye and -1.5 in the other, but I might be slightly off).
I recently decided to try contact lenses because my glasses constantly slide down my face (my skin is quite oily where they sit, and the frame I have isn’t ideal but I struggled to find one I liked). Glasses also ended up being quite expensive for me overall (about R11 000 with lens thinning and coatings), so I wanted to see if contacts might be a better long-term option.
I picked up my trial lenses this week and watched the instructional videos the optometrist sent (insertion, removal, cleaning, etc.). This morning was my first time wearing them. The right lens went in easily and I couldn’t feel it at all. The left lens felt uncomfortable and “off,” so I suspected it was inside out. I struggled for about an hour trying to remove it, and my eye became quite red during that time. My boyfriend eventually helped me get it out quite quickly. I reinserted it correctly after flipping it, and it felt fine after that.
The redness didn’t really worsen after reinsertion, but it also didn’t improve much during the day. I do have dry eyes and I work in an air-conditioned office, which didn’t help.
After a few hours, I started getting intermittent blurry/cloudy vision, which would clear after blinking a few times. By the afternoon my eyes felt quite tired.
After work, I removed both lenses (right came out after 5 min, left slightly quicker). My eyes are still red, worse in the left eye, but slightly improved now that the lenses are out.
I don’t have any pain or discharge. However, I still notice occasional blur/cloudy vision even after removing the lenses.
I’ve made the mistake of reading online experiences, and now I’m VERY anxious that I may have caused a corneal abrasion or something more serious.
Has anyone else had this experience? Just want to know how long it took for your eye to return to normal.