Getting Used to New Glasses: What’s Normal in the First Two Weeks and When to Come Back
13 October 2026
07:18
Most firework injuries to the eye happen in back gardens and streets, not at organised displays. A rocket that tips over, a firework that seems to have gone out, a sparkler waved too close to someone’s face. They happen fast, often to someone standing nearby rather than the person lighting it, and often to children.
What happens in the first hour makes a real difference to how an eye injury turns out. Knowing what to do, and just as importantly what not to do, is worth two minutes of your time before the fifth of November.
For the serious injuries in the box above, go to A&E. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s advice is the same: eye injuries that need treatment straight away go to your nearest A&E.
For something less serious, such as a speck that has been rinsed out, an eye that stays gritty or red, or a minor scratch, your optometrist is the right first call. We can examine the surface of the eye under magnification, use a dye that shows up scratches, remove a loose fragment, and refer you the same day if it needs hospital care. If we are closed and it cannot wait, NHS 24 on 111 will direct you. How this all fits together is in our guide to emergency eye care in Glasgow.
If the eye looks fine but something feels wrong, come in anyway. Some of the most important injuries are the quiet ones, which I have described in eye injury prevention in club sport. Blunt injuries behave the same whether it is a hockey ball or a rocket.
A scratched eye usually feels much better within a day or two. If it is getting worse rather than better, becoming more red, painful or sensitive to light, or if your vision is not back to normal, it needs to be looked at again.
Watch for new floaters or flashing lights in the days after a blow to the eye or head, which can mean the retina has been affected. I have explained what to look for in eye floaters and flashes. If redness is the only thing left, red eye: when to see your optician will help you judge it.
Smoke and drifting residue on Bonfire Night are hard on contact lens wearers. If your eyes become gritty, take your lenses out, rinse with sterile saline and wear glasses for the rest of the evening. If an eye is injured, only remove the lens if it comes out easily, and tell whoever examines you that you were wearing one. More on safe lens wear is on our contact lens page.
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Stop the person rubbing it, do not press on it and do not try to remove anything stuck in it. Cover it loosely with something rigid, such as the bottom of a paper cup, and go to A&E or call 999. Blunt and penetrating injuries from fireworks need urgent hospital assessment.
Rinse it with clean, lukewarm water for at least ten to fifteen minutes, holding the eyelids open and letting the water run from the nose side outwards. Then have the eye checked by an optometrist, or at A&E if it remains painful or vision is affected.
Go to A&E for anything that has entered the eye, cuts, burns, blood in the eye, a hard blow or a sudden drop in vision. For minor injuries, such as grit that has been rinsed out or an eye that stays gritty and red, an optometrist is the right first contact. NHS 24 on 111 can advise out of hours.
Yes. Sparklers can cause burns to the eyelids and the surface of the eye, especially when they are waved near faces. Children should wear gloves, use one at a time with an adult watching, and put used sparklers in a bucket of water. Sparklers are not suitable for children under five.
A minor scratch to the surface of the eye usually feels much better within one to two days. If pain, redness or sensitivity to light get worse, or vision does not return to normal, the eye should be examined again, as infection or a deeper injury may need treatment.
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