8 Year Old Wearing a Contact Lens

In fact, you may be on the right track, but backwards. I also wear the two-week disposable lenses. New ones seem to be more flexible & somewhat harder to deal with than older lenses. Add to that the fact that they sometimes seem to be packaged inside out, and even I can get frustrated with inserting new lenses--& I'm 37, not 8! And I've worn contacts since I was 14, so it's not a newbie thing.

I started wearing glasses when I was 5, contacts by 6th grade, and went through hard lenses, gas-permeable, soft, and am now in disposables. Even now I have days where the contacts just don't want to go in, and I get frustrated (and I'm 40!). If he is having frustrating days, the best advice I have is to start the process over. Put the lens back in the case, moisten in, wash and dry hands again, and then start the process over. Also, the more frustrated he gets, the more that contact lens is not going to go in. I've had those days as well. Maybe just stepping away for a couple minutes, eat breakfast, and then try again. Even a couple minutes to redirect may be enough to calm down the frustration so that when he tries again, it will be successful.

It is so great that he is wearing a patch and a contact!!! When I was younger I was not taken to the eye-doctor until 7th grade - "too late" for the amblyopia with which I was diagnosed. Still, I got the glasses with the patch. (went from 20/100 vision in that eye to 20/70 with some home wearing of patch, and covering up my good eye in history class...) When I was in my late 20's an optometrist gave me a contact for my bad eye - just to magnify things as I cannot focus with it at any distance. Apparently it is difficult to correct these things with glasses (especially at my age!!!) as the brain has learned how to overcompensate with the good eye and often (in these cases) the eyes do not really target the same location to try to focus, further complicating the issue.
So, I wore my one contact for a while until one day when it was, yet again, dry, dry, dry (I get seasonal allergies), I took it out and never put it back in. That said, I do think that it helped me. Reading your story has inspired me to go get a new contact when next I am to the optometrist (soon!). Don't worry - because you caught it early, your son will likely not have issues later.
- M.

I've been wearing contacts since 1986. When I first got lenses, I had to try out many different kinds to find one that fit without discomfort. Recently, they discontinued that lens! I had to start anew - ugh! Anyway, the first one I tried is fine - AND EASIER TO PUT IN!

I would make an appointment with the doctor for another fitting. Perhaps there is a lens that is thicker, easier to manipulate and won't fold or turn inside out as easily. I wear monthly disposables - in and out daily.

My method:
Touch the lens as little as possible
Put pointer finger in case so lens sticks to the end of it
Use other hand to take lens off finger, turn it around and put it on the end of my pointer finger, ready to go
LOOK at the edges: is it inside out? Flip it if needed.
Pull down on lower lid with middle finger (of same hand with lens)
Put lens in and blink many times, ready to catch it - just in case it flips out.

Some people fuss with the upper lid - I can't do it that way.

Even after all this time, I do have days where it doesn't work the first time.

Good luck.

I have trouble putting them in sometimes and I have been wearing them for 10 plus years! He is only 8, I think that his frustration is normal. I feel like crying when I can't get my in! I would suggest having him take a break once he has tried a few times. His eye knows what is coming and after the first few try's the eye prob feels a little irritated which causes him to have a harder time putting it in. Have him eat breakfast or put on his shoes, brush teeth, whatever comes after the contacts. Once his eye rests for a min or two have him breath deep and try again. I would explain what he is doing also,(give your eye a rest while you eat, then try once more) that might help relax him. Telling him it will be easy after his eye forgets it is trying to be stubborn might make him feel more confident it will work.
Best luck!

Dear R.,
I really feel for your son.
I tried contacts and had such a horrible time with them I swore I'd rather not see at all than have to ever mess with them again.
I mean, think about....you already can't see and you have to somehow get something in your own eyes so you can.
Every single person I know who uses them has had "bad contact days". I guess it just comes with the territory. Fortunately though, they all have glasses for back up for the days they just say "Forget it!"
The main thing I guess is just to be supportive of your son and let him take a break from it when he gets worked up. Sometimes just walking away for a few minutes can really help. Have him make sure the lens isn't inside out because that really will make them pop out.
I don't understand why glasses aren't an option at all. He should at least have some for back up. I have a friend who is legally blind in only one eye so the prescription in the lenses of her glasses are totally different. It might be worth talking to the eye doctor about.
Just tell your son to hang in there and let him know he's not the only one who gets frustrated about it.
Best of luck and wishes!

The age of the contact shouldn't matter. I have 3 month disposables - I get a new set every 90 days.

What does matter (as others have stated) is whether it's inside out or not, how wet his fingers are, how relaxed he is (and you are if you're near him), and if he's holding his eye open enough. Making sure you have enough time in the morning is crucial. Rushing only makes it that much more likely he'll fail in putting it in. You should also make sure he's washed his face and eye area before attempting to insert the contact to remove any traces of sleep that could interfere.

A trick I've found to aiding in comfort is to put one drop of saline inside the bowl of the contact before I put it in my eye - especially if I've had some trouble with it. That soothes when it first enters the eye.

I don't know what your set-up for inserting contacts is, but when my son started (he was 10 or so) - we cleared EVERYTHING off the counter in my bathroom (so I knew it was sanitary) and only had his supplies and a mirror lying on the counter for him. He'd sit/stand on his knees on a chair and look down into the mirror to put them in. It helped him to insert the contact and if it fell, it would fall onto the mirror making it easier to find.

When I wear contacts, I do notice a difference in how easy/hard it is to put them in if I am stressed or rushed compared to when I am relaxed and also the new ones are easier to put in than the ones that are close to 2 weeks old. You might talk with hos Dr about switching to dailies or switching them out weekly.

HI!
While I've never had a contact get "hard" on me unless the solution leaks out of the case (during travel sometimes), overnight in solution will usually fix that. I have a feeling his challenges are more due to his attitude. Does he have enough time in the morning? I know from experience that if you're rushing, getting lenses in can be really hard... :}
I've also found that putting one drop of solution (or saline if his solution isn't the kind you can put in the eye) in the lens before it goes in the eye helps a LOT... it seems to me to act almost like a magnet and lubricates the eye as the lens goes in. Then a very gentle rub and a few blinks to push the air out and it should be in and set. The other thing you might want to watch for is make sure he washes his hands first because even a piece of lint on that lens hurts--- I just shake my hands off rather than risk lint from a towel on my hand/fingers.
Good luck!

My only advise it to make sure he knows how to tell if the contact is inside out or not. If you try to put a contact lens when it is inside out, it will hurt, move around the eye and eventually fall off. You can tell by hoding the contact on the tip of your finger and looking at it carefully before placing it in your eye. If it is inside out, the edges will not curve in as much as when it is facing the right way. I also wear 2 week disposables and I don't notice any difference if they are a day old or 1 1/2 weeks old.

Sometimes I have trouble and sometimes I don't. I can understand his frustration 100%! Especially when I am in a hurry...I get very frustrated VERY QUICKLY! Sometimes they go in perfectly on the first try and sometimes they don't. There have been times that they just won't stop falling out and getting lint or whatever on them and I just get too frustrated to keep trying, so I go without them for that day. (I wear my glasses instead) Honestly, I would just tell him to take a deep breath and relax before trying again. My opthamologist told me to take a deep breath in as I put it on my eye, look around with my eye only and then release the bottom lid as I blow out...then release the upper lid and blink. It helps a lot! I hope this helps. (If by chance he makes it a bigger deal than it is to get your "attention"...try telling him to relax and then just walk out of the room for a few minutes to let him figure it out on his own. Hopefully he will then solve his own problem without all the mellow drama.)

Good luck and take care!

My daughter is the same age as your son and she also wears a contact in one eye, she has been wearing it for 2 years.
She also has phases where hates putting the contact in. She complains because it takes time and she is 8 so she has lots of fun things she could be doing instead!!
I make sure she has a really strong magnifying mirror and a really bright light on in the bathroom. I have noticed that it gets more difficult for her when the lens is almost at 2 weeks old. I sometimes give her anew one earlier. Also I keep her nails trimmed, this seems to help.
I do think the age is a big factor, I am impressed that they can put them in so young, I thinks that leaving plenty of time for this task will help too, also to remind your son that there is no time limit on how long it should take. lots of praise needed as always with children, hope it gets easier for him.

Late commer! I havent read any other responses, but if he has hard or gas permeable lenses, you might be able to find a suction cup tool that can help him put them in and out. I used to have one about 10 years ago. Not sure if they still make them.

If he continues to stuggle, especially if his eye doctor is a pediatric specialist see if the doctor or someone there will go through a few practice runs with him and offer a few tips. They will usually have a lot a patiemce and my little guys always take advice from a doctor or nurse better than from mom.

If I wear my contacts every day (even taking them out at night), my eyes sometimes start stinging and feeling scratchy. I don't know why glasses are not an option or if his vision is so bad he can't see, but it may help to take a day or two a week of wearing the lens. Also, you may want to ask the doctor to check the surface of his eye for surface blood vessels or scratches. These can occur if there is not enough oxygen to the eyes (or so my doc told me). It also helps, as another responder suggested, to make sure his finger is dry. I usually rinse my lens on the left hand and finger, then put down the bottle, dry my right pointer finger and transfer the lens, etc. I hope that you find a solution!

I wear contacts, and your son is right, some days they just aren't easy to put in and can make you very frustrated. He does need to make sure that they arent inside out first. If your finger is real wet with solution, the contact will want to stick to your finger rather than your eye. I use a little magnifying mirror to put mine in. You first hold the lens up to the mirror to be sure its not inside out, then pull down your bottom lid so you have plenty of room to place it your eyeball. Even tho I've been wearing them for 4 years, some mornings they just dont want to cooperate. I wear the 2 wk disposables as well, at about the end of the second week they seem to get a little more pliable and soft in the palm of your hand when cleaning, but once you get them open they should go on the eye just as easily as a new one. Look at his contact closely in the magnifying mirror, if they get a litte tear along the edge that can mess them up, it only takes a little bit to throw them off balance.
I applaude the fact that at 8 he can wear a contact at all, I think that is very cool. Kids tend to break their glasses really fast and are so cumbersome for them...
Tell him to be patient, some days are diamonds and some days are stones ;)