Carrying eye drops in a purse or pocket

You can carry eye drops in a purse or pocket, with a few habits. Keep the bag with you instead of leaving it in a hot or freezing car, since Quell’s label says Store between 15° to 30°C (59° to 86°F). Make sure the cap is fully closed, carry the bottle in a small zip pouch to keep lint and crumbs off the tip, and wash your hands before you use it.

Is it okay to keep eye drops in your purse?

Yes, as long as the purse stays with you. Indoors, a purse sits at room temperature, comfortably inside the label’s range. The trouble starts when the bag stays behind: in a car on a summer afternoon, on a beach blanket in full sun, or in a trunk on a January night. In those places a bottle can end up far above or below the range on the label.

• Take the purse inside with you instead of leaving it on the seat, even for a quick stop.
• At the beach or pool, keep the bag in the shade or under a towel.
• On a winter day, carry it close rather than leaving it in the trunk while you shop.
• At work, store it in a drawer or locker, not by a sunny window or a space heater.

Pockets and body heat

A pocket keeps the bottle close, which is good in winter, but body warmth works both ways. A pants pocket pressed against your leg on a hot day, or a front pocket in a sweaty workout, can stay warm for hours. Quell’s range tops out at the temperature given on its label, and a pocket against your skin on a summer afternoon can run close to it.

• In summer, an outer jacket pocket or a bag beats a tight jeans pocket.
• In winter, an inside coat pocket keeps the bottle from getting very cold outdoors.
• Avoid back pockets; sitting on the bottle can squeeze it and push liquid out the tip.
• Empty your pockets before laundry. A bottle through the wash and dryer has been well outside its storage range.

Keeping the tip and cap clean

Purses and pockets collect lint, crumbs, coins, makeup and receipts, all of which can work their way under a loose cap. The label’s tip line reads Do not touch tip of bottle to any surface to avoid contamination, so the cap is what protects it on the go.

• Press or twist the cap until it’s fully closed every time; a cap that pops off in a bag leaves the tip exposed.
• Carry the bottle in a small zip pouch or a clean makeup bag of its own.
• Keep it away from loose lipstick, pens and hand sanitizer that could leak.
• If the cap does come off in your bag, look at the tip. If it’s visibly dirty or you aren’t sure, ask a pharmacist before using that bottle.

Using drops away from home

The hard part about using drops out and about is clean hands. Wash in a restroom if you can. Hand sanitizer is fine for your hands, but let it dry completely before you go near your eyes, because it stings. Then tilt your head back, pull down your lower lid, and follow the label’s directions: Apply 1 drop 3 times per day in each eye. Recap right away.

If you’re driving, pull over first. Is it normal for vision to blur after eye drops? explains why a minute’s wait before you head off again is sensible.

Carrying eye drops when you travel

A bottle of Quell is .33 fl oz (10 mL), which is well under TSA’s 3.4-ounce limit for liquids in carry-on bags. TSA also allows eye drops in larger amounts as medically necessary liquids if you declare them at the checkpoint. Keeping the bottle in your personal item rather than checked luggage keeps it in the cabin’s temperature. Traveling with eye drops covers flights and road trips.

Should I carry a separate bottle?

Some people keep one bottle at home and another in their bag, so the home bottle never leaves the drawer. That’s a reasonable setup, as long as each bottle stays in range and you use each one the same careful way. Keeping spare bottles of eye drops has tips for keeping track of more than one. Never share your carry bottle with a friend; one tip, one person.

If a bottle got too hot or too cold

Let it return to room temperature, then look at it. The Do not use line reads If this product changes color, and the label also notes: Product appears as a milky brown solution. The eye drops have a naturally milky-brown appearance. This is normal and does not indicate a problem with the product. If it looks different from when you first opened it, start a fresh bottle and ask a pharmacist about the old one. The full label is on the Drug Facts page.