This 23-Year-Old Went Blind In One Eye After Wearing Cheap Color Contacts

Warning: Graphic eye photos ahead.

Meet Julian Hamlin, a 23-year-old from Florence, South Carolina, who went blind in his left eye after wearing color contacts he bought at a gas station.

Hamlin, who currently works as an administrative assistant and a receptionist, says he bought the pair for $15 without a prescription back in 2010. Local gas stations and beauty stores sold these cheap color contacts, and many teens in his area would buy them, he told BuzzFeed Life in an interview. Hamlin wore the lenses almost every day and took proper precautions to disinfect and replace them each month. "There were no warnings or instructions about the risks," he says.

Courtesy of Julian Hamlin

After wearing the same brand of contact lenses for about two years, he woke up in March 2012 with a severe infection.

"It was so out the blue. ... I just woke up and my eye felt weird, so I went to the doctor, but he thought it was pinkeye," says Hamlin. Three days later, he was in the hospital with blindness in his left eye due to a severe corneal ulcer (a sore in the lining of the eye due to an infection). Hamlin later developed glaucoma from increased eye pressure, which would require a permanent stent (pictured above, right) to help drain fluid from his eye.

Courtesy of Julian Hamlin

"It's been a long, painful journey," Hamlin says of the 15 surgeries, including seven corneal transplants, he has needed since 2012.

In a two-year span, Hamlin says, his medical expenses have topped $250,000, although there has been little improvement in his vision. "My left eye is completely blurry; it's been a big transition," says Hamlin, who has also suffered unemployment and emotional pain due to his injuries. "I've had to miss so many days of work, and I can't lift anything over 25 pounds because it increases the pressure in my eyes, so I'm limited in my jobs," he says.

Hamlin is often required to wear an eye patch or sunglasses because of the increased sensitivity in his eyes. "It's very hard to wear an eyepatch in public. ... It took my family three months to get me out of the house, because people can be so cruel and disrespectful about it," says Hamlin.

Courtesy of Julian Hamlin

"Please do not wear these on Halloween — it might be more difficult and expensive to get a prescription, but a $10 pair isn't worth the risk and pain," Hamlin says.

Hamlin is currently trying to control his glaucoma and make sure he is healthy so his most recent corneal transplant takes well. His hope is to recover enough minimal vision in his left eye so that he can be fitted for corrective glasses which can help balance his sight as best possible.

Courtesy of Julian Hamlin

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