Unfortunately, a possible cause of making your eyes feel like bugs or gnats are crawling on them is a worm infestation: tiny worms literally crawling around on the surface of your eye.

“There are nerves on the surface of your eyes,” says Dr. Brian Boxer Wachler, MD, eye surgeon and founder of The Boxer Wachler Vision Institute, and developer of the Holcomb C3-R® procedure which treats a degenerative eye disease.

“Anything that disturbs the nerves can cause strange sensations,” says Dr. Boxer Wachler. “Dry eyes are common especially as we mature.

If the creepy crawly sensation in your eyes doesn’t respond to lubricating drops (and make sure you use the drops according to the instructions), then you’ll want to see an eye doctor.

“Having worms infested in your eyes will certainly cause that sensation,” says Dr. Boxer Wachler.

However, bugs literally crawling around or swimming in the fluid of your eyes is not the most likely reason for the sensation.

Irritation from contact lenses or a flare-up of conjunctivitis can also cause the disturbing feeling of bugs in the eye.

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dr. boxer wachler
Dr. Boxer Wachler has delivered hundreds of lectures on eye surgery to thousands of eye surgeons from around the world, and is a pioneer in keratoconus treatment. 
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.  

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