Eye health resource
Debunking 5 Myths About Contact Lenses
Can a contact lens get lost behind your eye? Are contacts always uncomfortable, difficult, expensive, or only for younger people? Here are five common contact-lens myths explained accurately.
Reviewed for accuracy by Justin Bazan, OD on .
Contact lenses can be a convenient way to correct vision, but they are still medical devices that need the right fit, prescription, and care. Here are five common myths worth clearing up.
Myth 1: A Contact Lens Can Get Lost Behind Your Eye
A contact lens cannot travel behind the eyeball. The conjunctiva lines the inside of the eyelids and folds onto the surface of the eye, creating a closed space.
A soft lens can fold, move high under an eyelid, or become difficult to find after rubbing the eye. If you cannot remove a lens comfortably, do not keep digging at the eye. Lubricating drops and gentle blinking may help, and an eye-care professional can remove a lens that remains stuck.
Myth 2: You Just Have to Get Used to Painful Contacts
Some awareness is common when learning to wear a new lens, but persistent burning, pain, marked redness, or light sensitivity is not something you should simply tolerate until you “adjust.”
Discomfort can come from dry eye, allergy, debris, a damaged or inside-out lens, poor fit, overwear, solution sensitivity, or infection. Remove a painful lens rather than continuing to wear it.
If pain, redness, reduced vision, discharge, or light sensitivity continues after the lens is removed, seek prompt eye-care evaluation.
Myth 3: All Contact Lenses Are Difficult to Maintain
Care depends on the lens type. Daily disposable lenses are discarded after one day and eliminate the need to clean and store that particular lens. Reusable lenses require the prescribed cleaning, disinfection, storage, and replacement routine.
Daily disposables still require clean, dry hands and safe wearing habits. “Disposable” does not mean a lens can be slept in, shared, exposed to water, or worn beyond its schedule.
Myth 4: Contact Lenses Are Always More Expensive — or Always Cheaper — Than Glasses
There is no universal answer. Cost depends on the lens material, replacement schedule, prescription, specialty fitting needs, how many boxes are needed per year, and whether a vision plan provides an allowance or discount.
Glasses and contacts also solve different practical needs. Many people own both rather than choosing one forever.
Park Slope Eye appreciates the opportunity to provide a contact-lens quote because we often offer competitive pricing and contact-lens sales help support the practice, but patients are not required to purchase lenses from us to receive their finalized prescription.
Myth 5: Older Adults Cannot Wear Contact Lenses
Age by itself does not determine whether someone can wear contacts. Suitability depends more on eye health, tear film, prescription, eyelid function, manual dexterity, ability to follow lens-care instructions, and the person's goals.
Presbyopia — the age-related loss of near focusing ability — can often be addressed with multifocal contact lenses or monovision in appropriate patients. Some older adults prefer contacts for sports, social use, or specific activities even if they do not wear them every day.
Another Myth: Every Prescription Can Use the Same Kind of Lens
Contact lenses come in many designs because eyes and prescriptions differ. Park Slope Eye fits spherical soft lenses, toric lenses for astigmatism, multifocal and monovision lenses, scleral and GP/RGP lenses, Ortho-K, and other specialty designs.
The best lens is not simply the newest or most expensive one. It is the lens that provides safe fit, useful vision, realistic handling, and acceptable comfort for your particular eyes.
Contact Lens Care at Park Slope Eye
A contact lens exam and fitting evaluates more than eyeglass power. The doctor may need additional measurements, diagnostic lenses, fit assessment, and follow-up before the prescription is finalized.
If you are interested in starting contacts or improving an existing fit, book an appointment.
Originally published . Substantially updated .