Introduction

For the past few months I’ve been learning to accept - to deal with - the notion that I have low vision. I am partially sighted, visually impaired, physically handicapped and even disabled. The other day, a woman from the Department of Rehabilitation Services delivered a White Cane to me. It has been scary, humbling and at the same time eye-opening,  literally and figuratively. I’ve had my “disease” for years and no one ever suggested there was a significant problem or that anything could help me. The doctors all got excited when they looked in my eyes and they studied them for sometimes hours. Everyone wanted pictures of them. When I asked questions about my eyes, I didn’t get much of a response - just a “there’s nothing we can do” or “I think you should go to the retina specialist.” When I went to the retina specialist, my poor little eyes barely saw the expert doctor, much less heard anything he had to say, if, in fact he said anything at all! Later, one of my new docs would suggest that retinologists have the "personalities of fleas." How right she is. It was this doctor that put me on a new course (I’ll talk about her later.). What boggles my mind is that so little information is available to people like me and to the public at large. We hear of people with low-vision, but they are old and frail. They stay inside and use big round magnifying glasses. They give up reading and doing the things they love. They become invisible...and they wither...


I am a lucky one. I am on a journey now - accepting and learning. This blog is my way to share my experience and maybe help someone deal with his or her own visual issues or help a friend or relative. Enough for now.