My name is Jared. I was born blind with no useful vision. Today, I am employed full-time as a Senior Software Engineer – a job I couldn’t do if I hadn’t learned braille. I am also married and a father to two young children, both of whom are sighted. Because I can read braille, I am able to read them bedtime stories and pass along to them my love for the written word. My parents and teachers deserve much of the credit for my being braille-literate today. They insisted that…
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When I was 22, my senses narrowed to four; and really, my sense of smell has never been that great, so, it became more like three senses. And crikey, what’s a girl to do? Several infections slammed my body simultaneously. I was expected to die, but as all my independent ladies can attest to, we tend to be survivors. Sitting among family and friends, I became a brave soul and was often eulogized. With raised brows, I said, “Sure,” and sauntered towards my future. The future was unclear, a bit…
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As a young, shy girl with a visual impairment, I felt isolated and alone in crowded school hallways. I questioned my worth and was surrounded by self-doubt. There are so many stories of blind people not only succeeding at life, but thriving – yet I felt ostracized, incapable, unaccepted and lost. I grew up with aniridia syndrome alongside my sister, father and grandmother – all of whom also had this hereditary condition. My brother was totally deaf, though fully sighted. My mom was the only one without a disability. I…
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My name is Gabriella Mendonca and I am a digital content creator. A singer. A college student majoring in communications in digital media. A daughter. This is my story – because my disability does not define who I am. I was born with vision, but lost my sight at the age of 18 months due to a tumor on my optic nerve. Losing my vision has never stopped me from achieving my goals and chasing after my dreams. I have always attended mainstream schools instead of the schools created for…
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My name is David, I’m Spanish, and 20 years ago I moved to Finland. So currently I’m a hybrid, everyday a little bit more Finnish, which is not bad actually. I worked for 15 years as a researcher in acoustics, sound propagation and sound perception, the so-called psychoacoustics. Two years ago, I wanted to do something different than what my boss was ordering me to do all the time. (I could not stand him any longer to be honest.) So I tried to create my own research project. In that…
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There has always music in my life, for as long as I can remember. Mom was a professional singer, and dad was an avid vinyl collector who was always making us mix tapes of his favorite songs. Between the two of them, and the piano and guitars we had at the house, I became a musician without really even being aware of it. I admit though, I never expected to play music professionally when I grew up. I’ve been visually impaired/legally blind since birth, but my parents didn’t realize until…
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Your stories are jhe foundation of the #BlindNewWorld community – and there is no limit to who can join us here. Our 2019 contributors came to us from all over the U.S. – and around the world. They’re stars from Hollywood and hip-hop. Champion athletes. Savvy young adults. Internationally recognized gamers. Eloquent bloggers. Published poets. Accessibility-minded inventors. Talented craftspeople. Passionate artists. Innovative businesspeople. Determined doctors! Staunch advocates and committed allies. And above all, they are change-makers. These are people who are willing to share their voices and their stories to…
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My name is Hilda and I’m the mother of a child born with septo-optic dysplasia. I started an Instagram account to share about what it’s like raising a little boy who is blind – and how amazing he is. I changed the name of the page to @OurBlindSide because I’d like to change the way others see raising a child who is blind. When Ashton was born and I was told he was blind and had septo-optic dysplasia, I was heartbroken thinking about all the challenges and all the things…
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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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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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