What should I do if a contact lens is stuck in my eye?
Do not keep picking at it. Put lubricant drops in, wait a few minutes, and try again with clean hands, looking in the same direction as you move the lid. If it will not move, treat it as a clinical problem and be seen the same day rather than persisting.
- Subject
- Glasses & contacts
- Topic
- Contact lens safety
- Kind of question
- Other questions
- Procedures
- Contact lenses
- Last reviewed
- 22 September 2026
This answer explains what the symptom commonly indicates. If it has come on suddenly, or together with pain or loss of vision, seek urgent care rather than waiting for an appointment. This page cannot examine your eye.
In more detail
A lens that will not come out is often folded or displaced under the upper lid, and the eye will usually settle with drops and time. What must not be delayed is the case where the eye is painful, red or the vision is reduced: those need examination rather than another attempt.
What this answer depends on
- Whether the eye is painful or just uncomfortable
- Whether vision is affected
- Whether the lens was damaged before it went in
Related guides
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Where this answer sits
It is one of 483 answers in the vision and eye health knowledge base, filed under Glasses & contact lenses in Contact lens safety . The subject page carries the answers either side of it, and the hub is searchable.
Subjects this question touches
The pages that answer the subject behind the question, rather than the question itself.
- Non-surgical option Contact lenses
- Non-surgical option Glasses
- Comparison Glasses vs contact lenses
This information is for educational purposes and does not replace an examination by a qualified eye-care professional.
General answers cannot tell you what is happening in your own eyes. Only an examination by a qualified ophthalmologist can do that.
Sources & further reading
We prefer primary sources. Where a claim comes from a manufacturer, a single study or a regulator, it is labelled as such below.
- EyeSmart: eye health information for the public
Patient-facing material from the largest ophthalmology professional body, covering conditions, tests and treatments outside refractive surgery.
Used for Cross-checking patient-facing explanations of non-refractive eye conditions; Describing what tests such as dilation and OCT involve.
Link checked 23 September 2026