A little mistake led to a lot of trouble for one pregnant Texas mother last year.
The mistake made by Texas lifestyle writer Rachel Prochnow is one many likely would have made — she showered with her contact lenses still in.
Everything went downhill from there, eventually leading to Prochnow being forced to give birth earlier than expected, according to the U.K. Daily Mail.
At first, her eye began to itch. Then, it slowly became more and more irritated to the point that the pain was worse than childbirth itself.
While showering, a parasite from the water made its way into her eye, giving her acanthamoeba keratitis, a serious condition.
90 percent of those diagnosed with acanthamoeba keratitis wear contact lenses, the Daily Mail reported.
The lenses themselves cause very small, seemingly harmless tears in the eye. Parasites can then enter these tears, wreaking havoc after they do so.
Prochnow later learned that exposing her eyes to water — via showering, hot tubbing, swimming, etc. — can lead to infections such as this.
It only took two weeks for the blindness in her infected eye to set in.
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As things got worse, doctors determined they would need to induce her pregnancy, even though she was only 27 weeks in.
Thankfully, her son Lachlan made it through the incredibly early delivery, which took place in July 2023.
“Had my parents and Cameron not been fully committed to getting me through this – I would have without a doubt lost it,” Prochnow said, per the Daily Mail.
Prochnow later shared her story on Instagram. Her post has since garnered over 742,000 likes.
“PSA: DO NOT SHOWER, SWIM, OR HOT TUB IN YOUR CONTACTS,” Prochnow wrote. “11 months ago, my life was completely changed. After 82 doctor visits, traveling over 12,000 miles for specialized medical care, thousands of dollars in compounded eye drops, and one surgery, I feel able to share my story.”
After two weeks of doctors visits, I finally was referred to the most incredible eye doctor in Austin and he diagnosed me with the worst infection you can get in your eye-Acanthamoeba Kerititas (AK).”
I had been wearing contacts since I was 12 and was never told not swim, shower, or hot tub in them.”
