You are more than welcome to start looking and applying for a guide, regardless of vision. What they will check for though is to make sure that your remaining vision isn’t getting in the way of the work that your dog will do, e.g. you’re using your vision to try to avoid obsticals instead of letting the dog do it’s job. Additionally, do you have any orientation and mobility training/have you any experience with using a cane? In order to get a guide, you need to be proficient in using one first. :) I’m happy to chat with you more on this if you’d like.

That’s an interesting question! I do tend to use a lot of hand gestures when talking...whether or not they’re “typical” hand gestures, I’m not sure haha. I think I just tend to move them around a lot, and if I’m embarrassed I cover my face. I’m not really sure why I do this, or how long I’ve been doing it for...but no, I’ve been fully blind since age two but have no memory of vision prior to that. I know I struggle a little bit with making sure I’m fully facing the person I’m talking to. 9 times out of 10 I make pretty decent “eye contact” but it’s hit or miss.

When I was two, both my eyes were completely removed and I was fitted for artificial eyes, which are made from medical grade acrylic. They are in the shape of a $1. Therefore I have no light perception and also can’t see darkness. I do have some muscle structure beneath them so I can move them to look in different directions.

I’m sorry to hear this...just know that despite the diagnosis, your son is fully capable of living a fulfilling and successful life. :) Look into familyconnect.org. There are a lot of resources there for both your son and the rest of your family, including different toys/adaptive games for him, and support for you as the parents. Let him play, jump, run, fall and get up again just like any other child. He will most likely also learn best from hands-on experiences, and building concepts from a smaller picture to a big one rather than the reverse which is how sighted children learn. Please let me know if I can help in any other way! I’m happy to answer any questions. I wish you guys the best.

Your concern about hot things is completely valid. Honestly it just comes down to spacial awareness, and knowing where you have put those hot things in relation to the rest of your baking materials at the time. I tend to leave all hot things on the stovetop if I’m actively working on them so I don’t accidentally spill them. As for checking if food is done, I use the good old toothpick method if I’m working with cakes or similar. I also utilize timers heavily and make sure to set for a few minutes earlier than the recipe calls for just in case; it’s always easier to cook it just a bit more than to reverse burning, lol. I also rely on the smell and texture on the top of the product to see if it’s still squishy/raw, not crispy enough, etc. Timing really does help though, once you learn if your oven runs hot or if it typically cooks things at what recipes suggest, if that makes sense.

Hi there!

On an IPhone, I’m using Voiceover. I also use windows 10 and 7, and utilize JAWS for Windows. I have no trouble with Amazon on an IPhone as the app itself is very accessible, however I do not enjoy using the website on a computer as I find it slow and a bit cumbersome...not sure if this is everyone else’s experience though. I’m happy to answer any questions about this if I can :) thanks for your hard work!