I think this is a legitimate question, but don't be surprised if you get negative responses. After all, this is a place where blind people congregate. An uncharitable interpretation of your question could be, "Hey, you blind people! Why don't you all just kill yourselves?"

Well, why don't we just kill ourselves? The short answer is that life continues to be worth living after blindness. Of course, some people do respond as you're suggesting, not seeing past the immediate difficulties of dealing with blindness. Think about the stories you've heard of people who end their lives after breaking up with their romantic partner in their teens. They don't have the experience or the breadth of perspective to put life after that dramatic incident into context. Because life is now unimaginable, they find it not worth living. There is also an element of revenge or anger at the world or at the reality they face. Because reality has dealt them an existential blow, they attack reality by ending it, at least as far as they are concerned.

Don't end your reality. Give yourself time to develop the perspective you need to find enjoyment in life after blindness. Blind people, as we will be happy to tell you whereever you go, lead full lives. It's not always easy, I'm not promising you that. You'll experience grief at the loss of your sight and probably also discrimination from others. You are, after all, discriminating against people with the condition of blindness through the subtext of your question. But if you give it a chance to, that will pass, and you will realize that the unimaginable is imaginable, and in fact is your life.

I'm here for you if you want to send me a message. There are also many people who would likely be willing to provide support in your community. Your stance is not an unreasonable one given the shock and loss you must be feeling. For now, you might just have to take it on faith that life will be worth living after the this happens. But, if you open to it, you will find it worth living on the other side.

I went from a healthy 18 year old to a chronically ill teen with the added bonus of rapid vision loss. By the time I was 19, I was being pushed into a school to learn how to be blind, learning cane use, learning screen readers, adaptive cooking, all sorts of stuff.

Except the mobility instructors, two of them are awful at their jobs and one is a really shitty person who deserves to be fired, I cannot recommend the Carroll Center in Newton, Massachusetts enough.

I learned fencing, orientation, computer use, smart phone use, woodworking, cooking, all sorts of things and it was amazing. Excluding mobility, I never felt like they pushed too far or too hard, plus they have mandatory group and individual counseling which, honestly, I really needed. With it, though, I became much more confident in myself as a blind person.

There, we talked about the stages of grief, and about how you can yo-yo between them. You can accept it and love yourself and your life one day, but be raging at the world for the injustice of having to deal with blindness the next, and the day after just be depressed and bargaining. There is no requirements on how you deal with the trauma, because that's what it is.

I'll be the first to tell you that being blind can fucking suck. It can be awful, people will sometimes treat you like scum or try to take advantage of you, they'll doubt you, infantalize you, but there's also the good.

I've met so many wonderful fellow blind people. I've gained so much empathy and sympathy for others. I've actually made like $50 writing, something I never considered before I went blind. I also have lost a lot of the discomfort I had with myself over petty things like blackheads or the way my bra straps look under shirts, stupid shit like that that used to bother me.

Don’t give up! You can still have a great life. With some mobility training, you can still work and travel and have a great life! There is so much amazing technology out there now.
Derek Daniel is a blind YouTuber with a channel called, Life After Sight Loss, that you might find helpful.

You can still work, you can still have hobbies, you can still have friends, you can still be independant, you still find love, still get an education, still learn and grow.

It will be very hard for a while and you’re going to have days where you’ll question yourself. You’ll probably have a lot of those. But you can still experience so many great things in life too. You’ll experience those thkngs in a different ways, but you’ll find other aspects of life to enjoy. You won’t be able to see your best friend’s smile, but you’ll sure be able to hear their laughs and live in the moment with them.

You still have value as a person.

I know this time is probably terrifying, and i’m sorry you’re going through all of this. Stay strong though

Have you gone to a training center to learn how to be blind or in other words learn how to live as a blind person?

So I went blind at age eight due to a gunshot, why continue? In my opinion, you just gotta find your own drive. People always ask me how I was able to move on, but I've just learned to adapt. Humans are incredible at adapting. I know this sounds ironic, but now more than ever it's a great time to be blind. New technology every year, more and more promising treatment, etc.

Would you like to be in contact with someone who lost their vision in their 20’s? I have a friend who did and would probably be willing to talk to you.

Why *not* continue? Sight is a big thing, but it isn't everything. Once you get used to moving and interacting with things without that sense... if you're willing to learn, you can do almost everything you could before. You might have to alter your ways of doing things a bit. It will probably go slower – especially at first, but you'll get faster with time.

Want to read? Learn braille, or listen to an audiobook. Going to cook a meal? Organize your food and utensils and such, so they're easier to find. Stick a finger down a cup's innards while pouring into it, to tell how full it is. Stuff like that.

Finding work won't be easy, but it is far from impossible. Computer (ie: data entry, etc.) and telephone jobs are easy to adapt for someone lacking sight.

Navigating can be especially difficult, but once you get a feel for an area, tippy-tapping your way around it will get progressively easier. You get out of your learning what you put into your learning. So. If you buckle down and get to adapting, you're going to be juuuuust fine, friend.

Honestly, I’ve got a wife & daughter or else I already would have. Some days are good others are bad. Just take each day at a time.

For whomever downvoted me, fuck you. I'm Legit trying to understand something. Sorry if I'm not taking it the way you think I should.

Hi. It is important to grieve your vision loss. It is important to express what you are feeling in a healthy manner whether it is journaling, hitting a punching bag, tearing scrap paper, and etc. It is also essential to learn how to live with your blindness by obtaining training from either your state’s Department of Rehabilitation or the National Federation of the Blind if you live in the United States. I would also suggest looking for role models who are visually impaired who live in your community or online. It may be hard now, but it does get easier. I hope that this helps.

Start learning your blindness skills as soon as you can.
I'd agree with some previous posters who have recommended National Federation of the Blind and their training centers.
I know you're feeling out of options right now, but you should look into some blindness training. You still have a lot of life yet to live.
Good luck.

I think you should keep on going. Sure, life feels like being sucked into a black hole right now, but after a while, you'l find out that there are lots of good things about being blind. I'd like to list them all, but I don't know how formating works. :(

I can only recommend John Hull's book $1 which chronicles decades of his progressive eyesight loss. He describes the loss of meaning brought upon by his loss of sight, and it may resonate with you. The last third of the book recalls how he found meaning in his life again after loss, and it is touching. If all else, it may help to know that you're not alone, that many have went through this process, and many come out through the other side of the tunnel.

[deleted]

I am a bit late on this ship, but I thought I’d add in my 3 cents if it is worth anything. Haha!

Blindness doesn’t mean the end of the world. As a blind person who has had many opportunities and have done quite a bit I can say your life isn’t done being exciting yet. From traveling all about Los Angeles and Orange county, to being a very successful blind student, to working for the school newspaper and running around school promoting it, to having done a lot of other things starting from elementary school and running for AS b president to being the flyer gal for this blind organization after going on numerous things such as surfing and water skiing, and deep sea fishing, to being a political science student, studying a pretty vigorous subject. Maybe law school, but we’ll see, and at that I want to study for the hardest sector of law in the US, that being US constitutional law. Blindness is a mere lost of one sight not of one self and one’s ability. My motto is in a sense I have done it, it’s not special, so you go do it too. I want an A in life and I am sure you can get an A too, even if you’re blind. Life doesn’t get boring. You don’t need to be stuck inside. I am as I am typing this on the way to the coast in Orange county to enjoy it. You can do much of what you are doing as a sighted person.

So, keep striving!

[removed]