Perhaps nothing is more perplexing than losing one’s vision. The world has been flipped on its head. The previously assumed independence is shattered and falls to the ground; one’s previous existence looks as far away as another life. The issue is that everything needs to be relearned, not just one or two things. Going to the fridge for a drink of milk used to be something I could do while half asleep; after I lost my vision, it became a multi-step effort, and any mistake meant I was standing alone in a house I’d lived in for years. I felt like my options had been severely constrained, and that everything I wanted to achieve had become impossible due to my inability to work. The eyes are a person’s primary sense organ. A quick glance around us reveals how visual the majority of the information in our surroundings is. Timetables in train stations, signs showing the correct path or a potential hazard, and a billboard advertising a new product on the market are all examples of visual information that we see on a regular basis. The majority of this material is inaccessible to the blind and visually impaired, limiting their independence because information access is synonymous with autonomy. Individuals who are excessively helpful: It’s normal for sighted people, whether strangers, acquaintances, or family, to be unduly enthusiastic about assisting a visually impaired person.
