Life with Night Blindness

Hello Everyone,

Welcome to The Invisible Vision Project’s Blog.

As you can probably tell from the title, this is a disability-related blog. So today, I’m going to share with you a story about fear, and that is my fear of the Dark. The reason I have this fear is due to an eye condition I have, it is called Night Blindness.

Can you see the stars and the moon at night? Are you afraid of walking home all by yourself in the dark? As for me, I could never see the stars, and the moon has always appeared to be a huge blur. When I think about walking in the dark, I would be so scared that I tremble with fear, and my anxiety level would rise up really high.

As some (or many of) you may already know, I am Visually Impaired, this means that I don’t see too well, like a sighted person can/or do. I have multiple eye conditions in which they affect my vision differently, making it difficult for me to see. Despite this, I still have some remaining useful vision (especially during the day). I am able to navigate the world around me, without too much trouble. However, when it comes to night time, even the useful vision I had during the day would disappear and I would be left seeing nothing at all.

When I was younger, I dreaded of going out at night, or even going into dark places (like a movie theatre); even when I knew my parents would not let me run-into things or have me get hurt in any way. But, as I got older, I felt more uncomfortable going out at night. I don’t want other people to find out this ‘weak’ side of me or see me as a coward, just because I am too afraid of the dark.

Then last year, I started training through Orientation and Mobility in using a White Cane, I find it so helpful, in many ways. For the very first time, I could walk alongside another person, rather than having to hold on to them all the time. I could walk in a normal pace, rather than walking in snail-pace. I could at least feel my way around with my cane, when I see absolutely nothing at all. Now, with the cane as my guide, I know that I definitely feel a lot safer and also a lot calmer when walking in the dark. I feel more independent, and proud of myself that I was able to get out of this fear. It is such an incredible feeling that is beyond the use of words could use to describe them! 🙂

Thank you for reading to the end!

By: The Invisible Vision Project