Tori Spelling has revealed that she developed an ulcer on her eye from sleeping in her contact lenses while sharing a reminder about the importance of removing and changing the lenses.
The Beverly Hills, 90210 star, 49, shared the health update during the latest episode of the 9021OMG podcast, after she was recently photographed wearing a pink bedazzled eye patch. Spelling then revealed that the eye patch was necessary due to an ulcer that she developed in her left eye from leaving her contacts in.
“It’s my fault. I did this to myself,” Spelling admitted after she was asked what happened by her co-host Jennie Garth. “I have contacts but I wear daily ones. And, at the end of the day, kids, whatever, I can make all the excuses I want. I don’t take them out. I sleep in them. It’s not healthy and you’re supposed to change them.”
Spelling then revealed to the horror of her co-hosts that she has “been known to go maybe 20 days” without taking out her contact lenses.
“I know you guys. It’s shaming,” Spelling said in response to the gasps, before revealing that she is “totally transparent” about her habit with her eye doctor. The actress also reflected on her eye doctor’s reaction, with Spelling recalling that she was told she was “lucky to get away with it” considering what she’s “done to [her] eyes for this long”.
According to Spelling, her failure to remove her contact lenses ultimately caused her to develop an eye ulcer.
Corneal ulcers are open sores that develop on the outer layer of the cornea, according to Penn Medicine, which notes that the ulcers are often caused by bacterial, viral, fungal or parasitic infections, and that wearing contact lenses overnight can cause the ulcers.
According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, symptoms of corneal ulcers can include redness of the eye, severe pain or soreness, the feeling of having something in your eye, blurred vision, sensitivity to light, swelling, tearing and pus or other discharge.
To treat the ulcers, eye doctors typically prescribe antibiotic, antifungal or antiviral eye drops.
Healthline notes that sleeping in contact lenses is dangerous because it “drastically increases your risk of eye infection,” as the contact prevents the eye from getting “oxygen and hydration it needs to fight a bacterial or microbial invasion”.
According to Spelling, who admitted that the ulcer “hurt so bad,” her eye has been improving. As for whether she plans to return to contact lenses, the actress said she plans to switch to 30-day lenses once her eye heals. “I got lucky this time,” she said. “Not going to take it for granted.”
Spelling first revealed that she was diagnosed with an eye ulcer on her Instagram Story on 24 March, when she shared a photo of herself lying down with an eye patch and wrote: “Thx to all the well wishes and concern. Everyone is asking if I scratched my cornea. It’s actually an ulcer on my eye. Antibiotic drops and dr said it will ‘hopefully’ heal in seven to 10 days.”
