Almost everyone fails the first two attempts. Your eye will blink, it will water, and you will feel like you are doing something you are not supposed to do. That reflex is your body working correctly. It goes away after about a week.
Before you start
Wash your hands with soap and dry them on a lint-free towel, not a bath towel. Do this sitting down at a table with a mirror flat in front of you, not standing at a bathroom sink — if you drop a lens you want it landing on a table, not in a drain.
Trim the nail on your index finger if it is long. Most first-attempt scratches come from a nail, not the lens.
The six steps
- Take the lens out of the blister and put it on the tip of your dry index finger. It should sit like a small bowl. If the edges flare outward like a saucer, it is inside out — flip it.
- Check it. Look for tears or grit. If you dropped it, rinse it with solution — never water, never saliva.
- Hold your upper lid open with the middle finger of your other hand, pressing up against the lash line so you cannot blink.
- Pull your lower lid down with the middle finger of the hand holding the lens.
- Look up, not at the lens. Bring the lens onto the white of your eye below the iris. Looking up is the trick — it moves your iris out of the way and stops the blink reflex firing.
- Let go of the lower lid first, then the upper. Close your eye gently for a second and the lens will centre itself.
If it will not go in
Stop after three tries and take a break. A stressed eye waters, and a wet finger will not release the lens. Come back in ten minutes.
Taking them out
Look up, pull the lower lid down, and slide the lens down onto the white of your eye with your index finger. Pinch it gently between index finger and thumb. Do not pinch it while it is still over your iris.
The rules that actually matter
- Eight hours maximum on day one, even if they feel perfect. Build up from there.
- Never sleep in them. Not overnight, not for a nap. This is the single most common cause of eye infection in this category.
- Never share a pair. Not with a sister, not with a friend. Lenses carry bacteria from the eye they were worn in.
- Fresh solution every night. Topping up yesterday's solution does nothing.
- If your eye hurts, goes red, or your vision blurs — take the lens out and leave it out. If it has not settled within a few hours, see an optometrist. Do not push through it.
Every Ay Contact order ships with solution, a case and a card with these steps on it, because a first pair should not require a separate shopping trip.
