A mum-of-three almost lost her sight after catching a deadly eye infection from water.

Tina Norman, 54, of Bradwell, nearly went blind after water got into her eyes through her contact lenses.

She visited an optician for an eye test before being referred to hospital for urgent treatment.

Tina, who is mum to triplets Luke, Josh and Callum, 21, helps to run a family engineering company.

She said she has been a regular swimmer and wears contact lenses for every day use.

She said: “I go swimming two or three times a week at various pools where I live in Bradwell.

“It all started when I began to feel like there was something gritty in my eye causing it to weep. It was when I began to feel a sensitivity to the light I became alarmed and made an appointment at my optician.”

Tina’s infection was spotted by Specsavers opticians in Braintree and she was immediately referred to Moorfields Eye Hospital in London.

She said: “They conducted a scrape and diagnosed a rare condition known as acanthamoeba keratitis.”

Acanthamoeba keratitis is an infection by a bacterial organism which is present in the water.

The infection is caused by showering while wearing contact lenses or handling contact lenses with wet hands.

If untreated, the infection can lead to blindness.

Business owner Tina said: “I wasn’t able to do anything for days afterwards. I was in a lot of pain and I had to administer eye drops every hour during the day and night for the next four months.”

She added: “I am fine now. I was really lucky my infection was caught early.

“I’ve now been discharged from hospital and the doctors told me how surprised they were that I’ve not suffered any lasting damage. I’m an example of why it’s important to go and get yourself checked out if you’re experiencing any discomfort in your eyes.”