01/25/2025
Understanding Vision Loss
Seems society is unaware of what vision loss, low vision, partially sighted or visually impaired really mean. How can sight loss be explained?
Vision loss is a complex and individualized experience, affecting each person differently. With over dozens of distinct eye conditions and varying degrees of vision within each diagnosis, no two people with vision loss see the same way. Some individuals may see clearly up close but struggle with seeing further away, while others may have the opposite experience. Seeing far away but not close up. Vision loss can affect one or both eyes, and some people may have multiple eye conditions simultaneously in one or both eyes.
When people hear the term "blind," they often assume it means complete darkness. However, most individuals who are blind retain some vision, though it may not always be useful or reliable. A person is considered legally blind when their field of vision is 20 degrees or less or when their vision is 20/200 or worse. To put this into perspective, 20/20 is considered perfect vision. If someone with normal vision sees an object clearly at 200 feet, a person who is legally blind would need to be 20 feet or closer to see the same object.
In fact, about 15% of people who are blind see nothing at all. Describing vision loss can be challenging, but let's explore some common experiences to better understand a few visual perspectives.
Central Vision Loss
Some individuals, including myself, may lose their central vision but retain their peripheral vision or some of it. This means we can see well from the sides but not directly in front of us. To simulate this, place your index fingers directly in front of your eyes and try looking or moving around the room. This type of vision loss often makes it difficult to see details, such as someone's face or objects right in front of us. For many one moment something is there and the next it is gone.
Peripheral Vision Loss
Others may experience the opposite, seeing only what is directly in front of them (central vision) but nothing from the sides. The field of view varies from person to person. To understand this, make a circle with your thumb and index finger, like a toilet paper roll, and put both circles in front of your eyes. Look around the room. If you gradually shrink the circle from the size of a quarter to a pinhole, you'll get an broader idea of how this type of vision loss varies. Moving around can be challenging as you cannot see the ground or stairs ahead, objects above your head or anything coming at you from the sides.
Blind Spots and Blurry Vision
Some individuals have blind spots scattered throughout their vision, while others see everything as blurry or cloudy. Imagine a foggy day where you can see in the distance a layer of fog. As the fog comes closer it becomes harder to see the building down the road then the house across the street. Then It is difficult to see your friend who is only a few feet away. This is a spectrum within an eye condition. This can make navigating and recognizing faces or objects difficult.
Causes and Variables
People can be born blind, lose their sight suddenly due to an accident or illness or develop a condition that gradually worsens over time. Vision loss can occur at any age and often changes with factors such as lighting, color contrast, object size, distance, and eye fatigue. One moment we might see something clearly, and the next, it becomes indistinguishable due to these variables.
Individual Journeys
Each person's vision loss journey is unique. Even with the same diagnosis, the progression and degree of vision loss can differ. Such as our Support systems at home, work or in the community. Access to training or rehabilitation, financial resources, and acceptance of vision loss vary widely among individuals. Some of us live in areas with limited accessibility and opportunities, while others may lack the necessary tools and devices that make life easier.
If you're curious about what what someone can or cannot see, the best approach is to always ask us (the person) you are curious about and never the people we are with.
Just as no two able-bodied individuals are the same, neither are our abilities, confidence, preferences, strengths and stretches. We all also have varying interests and hobbies. All these factors differ from person to person. Those of us with vision loss are different because our eyeballs don’t work well or at all, that is it. We are people first. Be kind to each other, life is tough enough.
Gina Martin
Adapting to vision loss
I offer in person and online presentations www.DiverseAbilities.ca
Photo description
There are 2 boys. One is holding a pumpkin and the other a soccor ball. They have their arms over each others shoulder and they are smiling. There is the same image but showing what Normal vision, cataract, myopia macular degeneration, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, eye floater, retinitis pigmentosa’s and total blindness look like.
