Falling asleep with contacts?

Question

I have soft lenses and my mom's always yelling at me because I fall asleep with them in. She says I'll go blind in time. Is this true?

Answer 1

It is unlikely that you'll *go blind* by leaving your contact lenses in when you fall asleep.  It is possible, however,  to damage your eyes by leaving your contacts in when you sleep.

Your corneas (the front surface of your eyes) are the only tissue in the human body to get its oxygen supply from the air rather than the bloodstream.  All contact lenses (despite what some lens companies will try to tell you) decrease the amount of oxygen to some degree.  Some lenses more than others.  Your eyelids also decrease the oxygen supply to the corneas.  When you sleep your eyelids and the contacts are both creating a barrier to oxygen.  (This is why it becomes more of an issue when you are sleeping rather than all the time with contact lens wear).  

How much can you wear lenses without causing damage?  It varies.  Everyone's eyes are different.  And various lenses are also different.  Some lenses are FDA approved for overnight or continuous wear.  That doesn't mean, however, that EVERYONE can wear them safely when they sleep.  Your eye doctor needs to evaluate the lenses on your eyes after you've slept in them to know for sure.  And even then, your eyes can develop an intolerance to the lenses over time.

If your eyes have any pain, any blurry or foggy vision or any redness after sleeping in your contacts, you are probably causing some damage (temporary or permanent) to your eyes by wearing your lenses when you sleep.  If not, you may be safe, but you should still be cautious and consult your eye care professional.

Answer 2

I believe you can damage your eyes because the lenses are not very breathable but I don't know to what extent or how long it takes. If you have this problem, see about getting extended wear lenses that last for 30 days and are meant to be slept in.

Answer 3

i have soft monthly contacts and my docter said i should sleep overnight in mine but i can nap in them. check with ur eye doctor because some you can sleep in others it will hurt your eyes.

i think ur mom is being sarcastic, i pretty sure you won't go blind you could just hurt them or make them worse.

Answer 4

Yes you can damage your eyes.  My son in his 20's did this and it infected his eyes and permanently damaged one of his eyes and he now can only wear his contacts a limited time.  He used to wear them all the time since he was 14.  He is now 25.

Answer 5

Falling asleep in your contacts is extremely bad for your eyes.  I was told my by eye doctor that in time it can actually make your vision worse and cause infections which usually leads to worse eye sight.  

I know that for some time period I use to fall asleep in my contacts all the time and now I'm about half blind and before my eye sight wasn't that bad.  Take your contacts out before you fall asleep.

Answer 6

You wont go blind, necessarily but when you fall asleep your body continually produces the chemicals that clean your eye. The problem is that with contacts in they either cannot reach the surface of the eye or they get trapped somewhere and can breakdown into materials that actually help bacteria grow. So yes you can get a bacterial infection and go blind.

Answer 7

No, but it is not good for your eyes. I have done the same thing many times, but it ain't good. And NEVER keep them in overnight. The eye needs to be uncovered for most of the 24 hour day.  My doctor said not to wear them overnight. It is really bad for your eyes. Wear contacts responsibly or not at all. Your eyes are too important to mistreat them.

Answer 8

no you wont become blind, BUT you will have your eyes infected because you do not put them in the cleaning solution which cleans all the bacteria on the contacts. trust me it happens to me

Answer 9

It depends on which contacts you have. Some are ment for sleeping and some are not. What brand are you wearing?

Answer 10

You won't go blind but your eyes can get damaged. If you leave them in they can become gritty and dry out.

Answer 11

It's not healthy for your eyes.  My sister is in the habit of leaving hers in for weeks at a time, and capillaries grew over her eyeballs.  She had to stop wearing them for several months.  You can develop infections and ulcers on your eyeballs.  I would get in the habit of taking them out before bed.

Answer 12

I had a friend who always left his in,

they got very infected.

He needed steriods injected into his eye directly.

Might wanna start taking em out hun

Answer 13

only if you get an infection

clean and/or change contacts every once in a while

---ive been doing this for 6 years

and twice a year when i go to get my checkups everything is normal