The contrast effect
A scleral lens vaults over your cornea and holds a reservoir of saline against it all day. Your cornea is kept wet and shielded from air, wind, and the rub of your lids. For people with severe dry eye, that can turn a painful day into a comfortable one.
Take the lens out and that protection is gone. Your eyes are as dry as they were before, but you’ve spent hours feeling normal, so the difference is stark. Long-time wearers often say they had forgotten how dry their eyes really were. Many with severe dry eye describe pain without lenses and almost none with them, and say they reach for their lenses first thing in the morning.
That’s the most common reason eyes feel worse without lenses. It isn’t the only one.
Other reasons it may feel worse
Removal technique. A dry plunger, pulling from the side, or not holding the lids open wide enough can leave an eye sore, gritty, or feeling poked. Wearers fixed this by rewetting with saline before removal, holding the lids as wide as for insertion, and removing from the bottom edge. See how to remove a scleral lens.
A tight fit. Redness, an ache, or an indentation ring that lingers after removal, or a lens that’s hard to take out, often means the lens has settled too tightly. See red ring after removal.
Too many hours. Some long-time wearers who had worn very long days found soreness at removal started after years, and a midday break or shorter days fixed it.
A solution reaction. Redness that builds hours after removal is something a few wearers traced to a cleaning or storage solution. See the solution troubleshooter.
Blur. Many wearers notice vision through glasses is worse for a while after lenses come out, and some say unaided vision takes a long time to settle. That’s common and usually temporary. Fog that stays in the eye after the lens is out is different: call your fitter or eye doctor promptly so they can check for corneal swelling.
Looking after your eyes when the lenses are out
Wearers, and the doctors who answer them, return to the same advice: the lenses don’t treat dry eye, so keep treating it. Ask your eye doctor which of these suit you:
- Lubricate after removal. A preservative-free drop or gel straight after removal. Many wearers keep drops in the fridge because cold drops feel soothing.
- Night ointment or gel before sleep, cleaned off the lids before morning insertion.
- Moisture chamber glasses or a sleep mask if your eyes dry overnight or your lids don’t fully close.
- Warm compresses and lid hygiene if you have oil gland problems.
- Your prescribed dry eye drops, used with lenses out and timed as your doctor says before reinsertion.
- Don’t rub. Rubbing is a habit many wearers fight after removal, and cold compresses or cold drops help with the urge. If you have keratoconus, ask your eye doctor about rubbing specifically.
Preserved drops may be fine with lenses out, if your doctor approves, but never go in the lens bowl.
What wearers say
Feeling worse without lenses is one of the most common things wearers with dry eye describe, and most see it as the price of how good the lenses feel. Some plan their evenings around it: lenses in until bedtime, then straight to drops and ointment. A smaller group describe improvement over months: fewer drops, less pain, and better night vision without lenses as their eye surface healed under the lens. Wearers also warn that dropping dry eye treatment because the lenses help can leave eyes worse when the lenses are out.
What to ask your fitter
- Is what I’m feeling after removal normal for my eyes, or a sign the lens is too tight?
- Can you watch me remove my lenses at the end of a long day?
- What should I use on my eyes after removal and overnight?
- Should I keep up my dry eye treatment while I’m wearing lenses?
- How many hours a day is right for me?
Common questions
Are my lenses making my dry eye worse?
Wearers more often describe the opposite: their dry eye is the same, but they've forgotten how it felt without protection. Some find their eyes need fewer drops and less lid care after months of wear. If your eyes feel worse out of lenses than they did before you started, tell your eye doctor so they can look for another cause.
Why is my vision blurry for a while after I take my lenses out?
Many wearers notice vision through glasses or with no correction is worse for a while after removal, and settles over time. Vision that stays foggy, or haze that lingers in the eye after removal, should be checked promptly: your eye doctor can look for corneal swelling.
Can I just put my lenses back in at night to feel better?
Some wearers with severe dry eye clean, refill, and reinsert in the evening rather than go lens-free. That's a question for your fitter, because it affects how many hours a day you wear lenses. Never sleep in them unless your doctor has prescribed overnight wear.
My eye feels scratched after removal. What should I do?
Leave the lens out and contact your fitter or eye doctor. A rough removal can scrape the surface, and wearers describe small scratches that turned into longer-lasting problems. Rewetting before removal and holding your lids wide help prevent it.