Although contact lenses are designed to provide clear, crisp eyesight, sometimes they fail this task. You might find yourself squinting into the distance, frustrated by your blurry vision. Especially if this happens out of the blue, you might wonder, “Why are my contacts blurry?” Scroll down to explore some of the most common explanations for experiencing blurry vision while wearing contact lenses.
Causes of Blurry Vision While Wearing Contacts
Let’s start with the most obvious explanation: your eyesight has worsened. If it’s been a while since your last eye exam, you may simply need to schedule a new appointment with your eye doctor to update your prescription. For most people, this answer is so obvious, they wouldn’t even need to ask the question, “Why are my contacts blurry?” So, let’s dig a little deeper and explore some other common causes of blurry vision.
- You’re getting used to a new prescription. Give your eyes a week or two to adjust after switching to a new prescription or a new type of contact lens. If your contacts are still blurry after that, there may be another issue at play.
- Your lenses are dirty or cloudy. Make sure that you clean and disinfect your contacts after removing them, and store them properly. In addition, don’t wear your contacts longer than instructed. Follow the instructions of your contact lens manufacturer and eye care provider. In some cases, your eye doctor may recommend that you switch to daily contacts so that you can pop in a fresh pair every day.
- Protein deposits are building up on your lenses. Sleeping in contacts, wearing your contacts while swimming, and improperly cleaning your contacts can cause protein deposits to build up. Not only may this cause blurry vision, but also it increases your risk of an eye infection.
- You have dry eyes and/or dry contacts. Dryness can cause blurriness. So, if you forgot to store your contacts in solution, you’re wearing your contacts longer than usual, or you suffer from dry eye syndrome, you may notice blurred vision. In some cases, you may simply need to rehydrate your contacts by storing them in solution. In other cases, you might benefit from rehydrating eye drops designed to be used with contacts.
- Your contacts don’t fit properly. Your contact lens prescription takes into account your cornea’s curve, the size of your pupils and irises, and more. That’s why the initial contact lens exam and fitting are so important, especially if you have astigmatism. If your new contacts are giving you blurry eyesight, you may need to have another fitting or switch to another brand of contacts. Schedule an appointment with your eye doctor.
- Your contacts weren’t inserted properly or have shifted. Check that your contacts aren’t inside-out — this can easily happen due to their flexibility. Next, make sure that you have placed each lens in the correct eye. In addition, if you have toric lenses for astigmatism, check that your lenses are aligned properly. They should have markings that make this easy. Finally, your lenses may have simply shifted off-center. Try taking them out and putting them back in again.
- You have an underlying health condition or eye condition. A variety of eye conditions and medical issues can lead to blurry vision, including dry eye syndrome, an eye infection, floaters, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, cataracts, glaucoma, and more. Schedule an appointment with your eye doctor and/or general physician for a diagnosis.
Why are my contacts blurry? If you aren’t sure, your best bet is to schedule an appointment with your eye doctor so you can find out. Your eye doctor can help with an updated prescription, recommend eye drops, or advise you regarding cleaning solutions.
If you live near southwest Missouri, contact Heffington’s. Since 1975, the Heffington family has been assisting the Springfield community with top-quality eye care and affordable eyeglasses and contacts. One of the unique features of our family-owned business is that we manufacture lenses at our own laboratory, giving us total control over the service and pricing, and we’re happy to pass our savings on to you. To learn more about our products and services, please get in touch with us online, send an email to asktheexperts@heffingtons.com, or give us a call at 417-869-3937 (Optiland location) or 417-882-3937 (House of Vision location). We look forward to hearing from you!