International Day of Persons with Disabilities: Not all Disabilities are Visible. Whilst most people are very considerate towards islanders with sight loss, we hope the following points will help clear up any misunderstandings: – Most people with sight loss won’t look any different from anyone else. – Very few people with sight loss are completely blind, most have some useful vision left. Some people with impaired sight use a cane to help them get around independently. – Many people with sight loss feel too vulnerable to use a cane. They don’t feel ready to draw attention to their sight loss. – There are many different types of sight loss so you may notice things which surprise you – however this does not mean that the person you have noticed is not sight impaired. For instance, you might notice that someone is able to read text – but that person may see only what you would see if you were looking down a narrow tube. People with “tunnel vision” probably won’t notice things to the sides, above or below this limited area of vision, so may well need a cane to help them get around safely. – Certain conditions can worsen the sight of people who have sight loss. Here are some examples: Poor light conditions – indoors and out. Glare – a bright day can cause dazzle. Being outside at night. Feeling unwell, depressed, or stressed. Moving between different light conditions (we can probably all remember feeling temporarily blinded when moving into a dark exterior after being outside on a bright day). Someone who is sight impaired takes a lot longer to adjust between different light conditions – even moving from a darker to a lighter room can be temporarily blinding.
