Dry Eye and Contact Lens Intolerance: Is Ortho-K the Answer?

"My eyes just feel so dry."

I hear this all the time in my Fayetteville practice. It’s a constant complaint, especially from my patients who’ve been wearing soft contact lenses for years. They come in, frustrated, telling me they can’t wait to rip their contacts out the second they get home. Their eyes are red, scratchy, and just plain uncomfortable. For many, it feels like they have to choose between clear vision and comfortable eyes. But what if you didn’t have to choose?

Here's the thing. For years, the default solution for blurry vision has been glasses or soft contacts. And for many people, that works just fine. But for a growing number of adults, especially here in the Fayetteville area with our active community and military families from Fort Liberty, daytime lenses are becoming a real problem. They lead to what we call "contact lens intolerance," which is just a formal way of saying your eyes have had enough. If you're a teacher in the Cumberland County school system staring at screens all day, or a service member dealing with dust and changing conditions, you know exactly what I’m talking about.

Let me explain why that matters. It’s not just about a little irritation. Chronic dry eye can impact your quality of life, making work difficult and hobbies less enjoyable. Many people just give up and go back to wearing glasses full-time, feeling defeated. But there’s a fantastic alternative that many of my patients have found to be a game-changer: Orthokeratology, or as we call it at my practice, sleepSEE®.

Table of Contents

• Why Are My Contacts So Dry?
• How Is Overnight Myopia Control Different?
• Soft Lenses vs. Ortho-K for Dry Eye
• Is Ortho-K a Good Fit for Your Lifestyle?
• What Does the Science Say?
• Frequently Asked Questions

Why Are My Contacts So Dry?

It seems backward, doesn't it? A soft, wet lens should keep your eye moist. But it’s often the opposite. Think of a soft contact lens like a tiny sponge. To stay soft and pliable, it needs to stay wet. Where does it get that moisture? From your eye’s natural tear film.

Many modern soft lenses are made of hydrogel materials, which are plastics that love water. Throughout the day, these lenses can actually pull tears away from your cornea to keep themselves hydrated. If you’re already prone to dryness, this creates a vicious cycle. Your eye gets drier, the lens gets less comfortable, and your vision can even start to get a little blurry as the lens surface dries out. It’s a major reason why up to half of all soft lens wearers complain of dry eye symptoms. [1]

On top of that, a soft lens covers a large part of your cornea, acting as a barrier that reduces the amount of oxygen reaching the surface. Your cornea needs oxygen to stay healthy, and when it’s deprived, it can lead to irritation and redness. It’s a simple biological fact that covering your eye with a piece of plastic all day can cause problems.

How Is Overnight Myopia Control Different?

This is where Ortho-K flips the script. Instead of wearing lenses during the day when your eyes are open and exposed to the elements, you wear them while you sleep. The sleepSEE® lenses are custom-designed, rigid lenses that gently and safely reshape the front surface of your eye (the cornea) overnight.

You take them out in the morning, and—voila—you can see clearly all day long. No glasses, no daytime contacts. No more worrying about a lens drying out during a long shift or while you’re trying to focus on the road.

Because you’re not wearing any lenses during the day, your eyes are free to function naturally. Your tear film can spread evenly over the cornea with every blink, and your eye gets 100% of the oxygen it needs directly from the air. For my patients who struggled with dry, red eyes from soft lenses, this is a huge relief. They get the clear vision they need without the constant irritation. It’s a simple but profound shift: you correct your vision while you sleep and live your life lens-free during the day. You can learn more about how it works [blocked] on our site.

Soft Lenses vs. Ortho-K for Dry Eye

When a patient comes to me complaining about contact lens intolerance, we often lay out the options side-by-side. It helps clarify why one approach might be a better fit than another.

Is Ortho-K a Good Fit for Your Lifestyle?

I’ve treated so many different people here in Fayetteville with sleepSEE®, and the common thread is that they want freedom. Freedom from the hassles of daytime vision correction. I’m talking about the Fort Liberty soldier who can’t have glasses fogging up during training. The nurse who works a 12-hour shift and can’t be dealing with dry contacts. The parent who wants to be able to see the alarm clock in the middle of the night and then jump in the pool with their kids the next day without a second thought.

If your daily life involves any of the following, Ortho-K could be the answer you’ve been looking for:

• Working in air-conditioned offices or dusty environments.
• Spending long hours in front of a computer screen.
• Playing sports or enjoying outdoor activities.
• Simply being fed up with the daily ritual and cost of disposable lenses.

This isn’t just for a select few. Many of my patients are covered by insurance plans like TRICARE and Blue Cross NC for their general eye health, and while sleepSEE® myopia control is a specialty service not covered by insurance, we find that the freedom it provides is worth the investment. We offer flexible payment options and accept HSA/FSA funds to make it accessible.

What Does the Science Say?

This all sounds great, but does it hold up? Absolutely. My own clinical experience has shown me time and again how effective this is, but the research backs it up, too. Studies have looked directly at patients who were miserable in their soft lenses due to dryness.

One study published in the journal Contact Lens and Anterior Eye found that after switching to overnight Ortho-K, patients reported significant improvements. Their tear film, which was unstable and evaporated too quickly with soft lenses, became much healthier and more stable after just one month of Ortho-K wear. [2] They weren’t just imagining it; their eyes were physically healthier.

We see this in our practice every day. Patients who thought they were doomed to wear glasses forever are now enjoying crisp, clear vision with none of the old irritation. It’s one of the most rewarding parts of my job. Find out more about why sleepSEE is a great option [blocked].

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Is Ortho-K safe for people who already have dry eyes? Yes, it’s often an ideal solution. Since the lenses are worn at night while your eyes are closed, tear evaporation is minimal. During the day, your eyes are completely free of lenses, which allows your natural tear film to function without interference, often reducing dry eye symptoms.

2. Does it hurt to wear the lenses overnight? There is an initial awareness period, just like with any contact lens. However, because you are asleep for most of the wear time, most patients adapt very quickly and don’t feel the lenses at all. The lenses are also made of a highly oxygen-permeable material to ensure your eyes stay healthy overnight.

3. How long does the vision correction effect last? The clear vision typically lasts all day. For some, the effect can last even longer, up to two days. For the best and most consistent vision, you need to wear the lenses every night.

4. Can anyone with dry eyes use Ortho-K? Ortho-K works best for individuals with mild to moderate myopia (nearsightedness) and some astigmatism. It’s an excellent option for many who suffer from dry eye, but a comprehensive eye exam and consultation are needed to determine if you are a good candidate based on your specific prescription and eye health.

5. I have TRICARE. Will it cover Ortho-K? Like most vision insurance plans, TRICARE and Blue Cross NC typically do not cover the cost of Ortho-K, as it is considered an elective specialty service. However, we offer several flexible payment plans and you can use your Health Savings Account (HSA) or Flexible Spending Account (FSA) to pay for the treatment.

6. Is this the same as Myopia Control for kids? Yes and no. Ortho-K is a leading method for Myopia Control in children to slow down their prescription from getting worse. For adults, we use it for the same vision correction, but the primary benefit is often solving problems like dry eye and providing a lens-free lifestyle, which is why we call it sleepSEE®.

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Last reviewed: February 2026

References:

1. Dumbleton, K., Caffery, B., Dogru, M., Hickson-Curran, S., Kern, J., & members, T. W. (2013). The TFOS International Workshop on Contact Lens Discomfort: report of the subcommittee on epidemiology. Investigative ophthalmology & visual science, 54(11), TFOS20–TFOS36. https://doi.org/10.1167/iovs.13-13125
2. Ruan, J., Liu, Y., & Chen, Y. (2023). Influence of overnight orthokeratology on tear film and meibomian glands in myopic children. BMC ophthalmology, 23(1), 143. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12886-023-02883-8
3. American Academy of Ophthalmology. (2022). What Is Dry Eye? Symptoms, Causes and Treatment. https://www.aao.org/eye-health/diseases/what-is-dry-eye
4. Mayo Clinic. (n.d.). Dry eyes - Symptoms and causes. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dry-eyes/symptoms-causes/syc-20371863