I have always been close with my father. I may make fun of his big belly now, but we are best friends. He’s my hero and he has always encouraged me to do anything. Before I was even born, my father had dreams of me becoming a pro surfer. He even named me after champion surfer Derek Ho. However, I was born blind due to congenital glaucoma. It goes with out saying that surfing is a dangerous sport. In split seconds, a crashing wave can slam a surfer against the…
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2018 has been another incredible year in the BlindNewWorld. We love hearing – and sharing – your stories of adventure, triumph, love, family, learning and so much more. These stories are what keep us going – and what keep our community strong. And we don’t want you to miss a single one of them. So to close out the year, we’re bringing together the full collection of 2018 #MyBlindStory posts. Get to know each and every one of the people who have shared their stories with us this year. And…
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Hello, my name is Holly. I’m a disability and lifestyle blogger from the UK. My story is nothing unique – I went through mainstream education, graduated university, I love all things beauty, fashion, concerts, and all the usual girly stuff. Oh, and I’m blind. I get up every day, go to work, see friends and do blogging/film content for my YouTube channel. I’m blind, but I live a pretty normal and independent life. I have things that I want to achieve. I have goals and aspirations – and I think…
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I have been legally blind since birth with my most recent diagnosis being photoreceptor disorder. From my understanding, this is a catch-all, because they cannot determine a specific disease. The number one question I am most often asked is what I can see. This is a very difficult question since I have always seen this way. I can see extremely vague details within five to ten feet. This means I can usually tell where people are, but I cannot pick up on facial expressions or other nonverbal communications. Beyond ten…
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When you lose your sight, it can make you feel incredibly lonely. The feeling of isolation, the snatch of your independence and the knock of your confidence with everyday life is a massive impact. The overwhelming feeling of grief is awful. You yearn for what you have lost, unknown whether it will return or not. At least that’s how we felt. I’m Laura. My first noticeable decline was February 2016 – the cause of which is still unknown. As time went on, I eventually lost my career as a lab…
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A little bit about me: I am an 18-year-old high-school senior from St. Paul, Minnesota. I have Stargardt Disease and I’m significantly visually impaired. A couple of years ago I started a non-profit called Louie’s Vision that works to help kids with visual impairments find adventure. About a year ago, I approached my parents and told them I wanted to do the Ironman, a one-day race that consists of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride, and a full 26.2-mile marathon. I was just 17 years old, had no experience…
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My name is Dan Mancina, I am from Michigan outside of Detroit. I was born with retinitis pigmentosa (RP), a disease that has deteriorated my vision throughout my life. I have lost about 95 percent of my vision so far. I have been skating since I was about seven years old and am now 31. When I had lost the majority of my functional vision about six years ago, I stopped skating all together, and would not even leave my house without a human guide. I felt very lost and…
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Ever since the era of the Founding Fathers, Washington, D.C. has been the de facto epicenter of political and social causes, playing host to millions of people from all walks of life gathering and marching across the striking backdrop of the National Mall. And earlier this year, another huge crowd gathered in another part of the city to support another important cause. Yes, there was lots of shouting, but this time it wasn’t in frustration or anger — it was shouts of jubilation and pride. After 44 years of struggle,…
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I’ve grown over these past three years to enjoy braille. Every time I use my braille writer or slate and stylus to write, it’s hard to stop. Braille is great for me because I have glaucoma, a progressive eye condition that could blind me, so I must learn braille for my future as well as my braille teaching career. Glaucoma doesn’t scare me because I have braille as a back up in my life toolbox. Whenever I read a braille book with my blindfold on, I can find a mysterious…
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I work at a non-profit organization that trains guide dogs for the visually impaired. As a “puppy Kindergarten manager,” I coordinate with dedicated volunteers and staff members to create a good foundation for our puppies who will grow up to be companions and guides. We expose them to body handling, different surfaces, and different noises in order to prepare them for the world outside the kennel environment. Then, at about 12 weeks old, our puppies go home with volunteer puppy-raisers for just over a year to be exposed to a…
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