An Eye-Closing Experience
San Diego Center for the Blind
“What an eye-opening experience,” I say to my host at the San Diego Center for the Blind (SDCB) as I tour the facilities during their Open House in June.
“Also an eye-closing experience,” she answers.
I was invited to the Open House in San Diego in June, their first since the Covid pandemic. During the day, I learned how the center serves customers who are visually impaired and blind. Family members and I tried on different glasses. They were blotted with white-out to simulate different vision patterns. I learned that blindness is not total darkness. The visually impaired can perceive some light, and the vision may be peripheral, tunnel, cloudy, or blurry. With a cane or white stick, I navigated the walkway with the vision available to me.
I wondered what would happen if I lost my eyesight. In my career as a laboratory scientist, I had to use a microscope. In the last years before I changed into an administrative job, I experienced difficulty with my left eye. When I looked into the microscope, the field of vision appeared bright yellow and convex. I adjusted the lenses so that I would look into the scope using only my right eye.
I developed a small bump in my left eye called a pingueculum, which prevented me from wearing contact lenses, as the surface is bumpy. Now, a fleshy tissue covers part of my cornea. It is called a pterygium, and while not yet dangerous, my ophthalmologist monitors it so it may be surgically removed if it starts occluding my vision.
Clients came pouring in with their families to witness SDCB’s offerings. They have classes in kitchen skills, orientation and mobility, independent living skills, safety, sensory awareness, therapy, and counseling.
What impressed me most was the skills they taught in the kitchen - tools to help the clients build their confidence with using knives, the stove, and the sink. Bump dots help identify the dials. A kettle is moved to a still-warm burner to prevent burns.
Many of the clients I met that day expressed how they despaired when they started to lose their vision. Counseling helped them cope, and with training on their new skills, they learned to accept their reality and hope for a fulfilled life. To top it off, the Center provides these resources at no cost to the clients. Although funding had been cut with recent changes in government, the center is determined to keep serving the community.
My contributions to the SDCB Blog:
Resources:
San Diego Center for the Blind
Medical News Today: What do Blind People See?
American Foundation for the Blind
Nice tour. Eyesight we take for granted.