Sorry you had such a hard time....I know it can be very annoying when that happens...I have dry eye so have to use eyedrops every morning and evening..but before I had it, my eye Dr. told me to keep just regular eyedrops on hand for when you get something in your eye..yes, the natural tears will wash it out eventually, but when you need quicker relief, regular eyedrops would have been a big help for you, as well as not taking so long.......