Diving while wearing contact lenses

[GrandpaScuba]

My wife starts a dive cert class in a few weeks. She wears contact lenses. I know many people dive while wearing contact lenses. I'm wondering if she will encounter any problems during training because of the lenses. The mask clearing drill comes to mind.

Thanks.

First tell her to keep her eyes closed while clearing her mask. I tell all my students that they may keep their eyes closed, I do. Secondly, have her buy a box of disposable contact lenses. Then, if one gets washed away, it's less of a financial hit.

 

[Rhone Man]

I have never had any problems diving with contacts (although I have never had someone accidentally knock my mask off, which might change my view). The one thing that I do notice is that quite often because I get water drops in my mask, the contacts will "stick" to my eye until I put some drops or saline in (I wear soft lenses).

My wife dives with hard lenses (gas permeable) and has no real problems.

But losing a lense is definitely a risk (as it is with any sport you do with lenses in).

 

[perdidochas]

My wife starts a dive cert class in a few weeks. She wears contact lenses. I know many people dive while wearing contact lenses. I'm wondering if she will encounter any problems during training because of the lenses. The mask clearing drill comes to mind.

Thanks.

I'd advise her to either get a prescription mask (best option) or to dive lens free until she finishes OW. The best thing I ever did for my diving enjoyment was buy a prescription mask.

 

[perdidochas]

What's the best way to obtain a prescription mask? Buy one that fits and send it to the optical shop or buy from the optical shop? My gut tells me that my wife should buy a mask with the proper fit and send it to the shop.

Depends on her amount of astigmatism. If she doesn't have astigmatism (or very light astigmatism), you can get lenses that replace lenses in masks in certain types. I've had a TUSA liberator with those lenses since 1987. Go to the shop and see.

 

[scubapatton]

I started diving in '96. I wore Gas Permeable contacts and it was suggested to me at the time that the lenses would have issues with the pressure change, etc. So I dove my first 15 or so dives without contacts.. things were blurry at times, but not too bad.. thank goodness water amplifies what you see... So then one day I figured I would try it on a shallow dive... no issues. then I started doing research and found it was a bunch of hoowie (sp?).

I later converted over to monthly and then semi-monthly Soft disposables. I continued to wear contacts. I have had NO issue. I have since become an instructor. I just caution students to close their eyes if the water gets close and then clear the mask. Insofar as skills, just close the eyes and I tell the students I will double clutch their arm when they can put the mask back on (eg 1min no mask, swim w/o mask, etc). I have not had a single student issue. I encourage students to keep eye drops in the car/bag so they can add fresh drops to their contacts. Also if disposables are being used, keep an extra pair handy just in case.

I personally have lost a contact twice in all my dives. Both times the contact ended up in the mask - once in the pool, once in the ocean. Really was not an issue. I hesitated closing my eyes in the pool issue since a student started to do the skill a bit "early". The ocean one was on a fun dive when salt water just got in my eye and dried it up a little. Thought it was a goner and found it during the surface interval. That contact was actually due to be disposed of anyway, but I extended its life for that trip.

Hope this long-winded post helps.. really not an issue. Just let the instructor know in advance, keep a spare or glasses around, and have some eye drops. Close the eyes the moment you start to flood the mask during the skills.. Be ready for a double clutch on the arm or a possible tap on the nose pocket if she is not breathing out the nose to clear....

My wife also dives with contacts and has had no issues at all.

Good luck to her and her class!

 

[Ber Rabbit]

Every instructor is different so you really need to contact her instructor about their policy. We do a lot of no-mask work with our students and we expect them to have their eyes open therefore we recommend no contacts just because you can lose them. Those who cannot see very well get a staff member assigned to them for close proximity demonstrations of skills. You don't need to be able to see to learn to dive, if you can dive without being able to see very well you'll do just dandy when you CAN see.

I've had students wear the daily disposables or just bring in an old pair and never lose a lens even when doing extensive no-mask work with their eyes open.
Ber :lilbunny:

 

[Web Monkey]

My wife starts a dive cert class in a few weeks. She wears contact lenses. I know many people dive while wearing contact lenses. I'm wondering if she will encounter any problems during training because of the lenses. The mask clearing drill comes to mind.

Thanks.

Get cheap disposables and toss them after each dive.

The lenses get contaminated and the lens solution isn't guaranteed to kill everything.

Terry

 

[RonFrank]

Most soft contacts are disposable, maybe All! Even monthly lenses are not very expensive. I use SoftMed and based on a years supply, they last two weeks. I generally wear them closer to three, but whatever.

I carry spares on all dive trips. If I loose one, no big deal. I try to keep my eyes closed if I remove the mask. But I've removed the mask, and squinted a bit, and they have not popped out.

If I loose my mask, then dive over. On deep dives I sometimes carry a backup, but if I loose both contacts dive over. So far with just under 200 dives I've lost.... .zero......

I did have one riding around in the bottom of my mask a few months back. It fell out when I did a couple of rapid eye movements (very rare), and there is sat for the entire 45 minute dive.

 

[diver 85]

Most soft contacts are disposable, maybe All! Even monthly lenses are not very expensive. I use SoftMed and based on a years supply, they last two weeks. I generally wear them closer to three, but whatever.

I carry spares on all dive trips. If I loose one, no big deal. I try to keep my eyes closed if I remove the mask. But I've removed the mask, and squinted a bit, and they have not popped out.

If I loose my mask, then dive over. On deep dives I sometimes carry a backup, but if I loose both contacts dive over. So far with just under 200 dives I've lost.... .zero......

I did have one riding around in the bottom of my mask a few months back. It fell out when I did a couple of rapid eye movements (very rare), and there is sat for the entire 45 minute dive.

Today, we as eye doctors are taking the disposable route---most of the time--it's safer therefore healthier for the patient...........I can remember when we fit some of th 1st soft lenses back in '74---only 2 manufacturers then--B&L(sucked then & mostly now) & Hyrocurve(the smaller but better company)...........

 

[sea nmf]

Wow, all over the board for this. I wear disposable contact lenses and have my entire 20 years of active diving. I have never lost a lens. Let me rephrase: a lense has never come out of my eye. But, I carry spares, just in case.

I went snorkeling one day and forgot to put on my mask, and still did not lose a lens. I went swimming one day and my watch came off and I swam around with my eyes open under water looking for it and still did not lose a lens.

These are my experiences; they may not be the same as everyone's.