Warning: This article contains an image that may disturb.
An Australian woman has been nearly blinded after failing to remove her mascara for 25 years.
Theresa Lynch, 50, used mascara almost every day - but failed to properly remove it and clean her lashes afterwards.
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She was forced to seek medical help after suffering discharge, painful irritation, and swelling in her eyes.
"I had fallen into a bad habit of wearing a lot of makeup and not washing it off," Ms Lynch told Caters.
When doctors examined the underside of her eyelids, they made a horrifying discovery.
Hard calcified bumps of mascara, known as concretions, had formed under her eyelids - which could have left her blind.
"[The lumps] were embedded so deep that particles were building up on top of each other," Ms Lynch told Caters.
"I was so uncomfortable. My eyelids were swollen and heavy because I left it for so long."
Gruesome images show the amount of damage caused by her poor hygiene. It took a 90 minute operation to remove the lumps from the inside of her eyelids.
"Every time Theresa was blinking, these bumps were rubbing on the surface of the eye and they pose a risk to her vision," Dr Dana Robaei said.
"She has suffered permanent scarring on her eyelid and the surface of her cornea.
"The symptoms are like somebody throwing a handful of sand in your eye, it's constantly irritating."
Now, Ms Lynch says she's learnt her lesson.
"I should never have let it get this far," she says.
"It's so important to properly take your makeup off every single night. You can't miss a single day."
Newshub.
