Blind and Visually Impaired Community
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Advice or suggestions for things that make day-to-day simpler? (self.Blind)
submitted by leekerie
Hello all! My friend has recently gone through significant vision loss due to complications with her diabetes. She just moved here from out of state and she’s in the process of getting set up with the division of services for the blind to help her adapt to her new normal and gain back her independence. I know that their services will be a tremendous help but I’m not sure how quickly she will get set up and be able to start working with their programs.
She is in the process of getting a glucose meter that will read her blood sugars out loud for her, and we’ve enabled a couple of accessibility things on her phone that have helped some. I was wondering if you all might have suggestions on other things like this that might make navigating day to day life a bit easier for her. We are here with her and more than willing to help with whatever she may need but I know she’s struggling with the her sudden loss of independence, so any suggestions on things that can help her gain some of that back would be much appreciated.
She is in the process of getting a glucose meter that will read her blood sugars out loud for her, and we’ve enabled a couple of accessibility things on her phone that have helped some. I was wondering if you all might have suggestions on other things like this that might make navigating day to day life a bit easier for her. We are here with her and more than willing to help with whatever she may need but I know she’s struggling with the her sudden loss of independence, so any suggestions on things that can help her gain some of that back would be much appreciated.
KillerLag 2 points 2y ago
Definitely contacting the services for the blind would help, they can help get her access to services and rehabilitation training. They can also discuss if she is eligible for any government funding for devices.
If she is on a lot of medication, she can also talk to the pharmacy to see if her medications can be put into blister packs rather than bottles. That would making taking large amounts of pills easier (pop out the blister back for the medication cluster, rather than trying to sort through multiple bottles that look similar).
Depending on how bad the blood glucose is, she should also talk to her endocrinologist regarding foot care. It is harder to monitor (it could be harder to see the feet, and neuropathy often comes up in the feet first) and complications can be problematic.
If she is on a lot of medication, she can also talk to the pharmacy to see if her medications can be put into blister packs rather than bottles. That would making taking large amounts of pills easier (pop out the blister back for the medication cluster, rather than trying to sort through multiple bottles that look similar).
Depending on how bad the blood glucose is, she should also talk to her endocrinologist regarding foot care. It is harder to monitor (it could be harder to see the feet, and neuropathy often comes up in the feet first) and complications can be problematic.
leekerie [OP] 1 points 2y ago
Her meds are liquid because she has trouble swallowing pills. She’s mentioned asking the pharmacy if they can give her pre-measured doses but I’m not sure she has asked yet. Do you know of things the pharmacy might be able to do to help with liquid medications? Thanks for the response!
tree_trunks96 1 points 2y ago
Hi! Depending on the sight loss and the person, it is very difficult to estimate timescales without an assessment of needs. It would be useful to contact local support and speak to a rehabilitation worker for the blind and partially sighted for bespoke advice & training; to help with independent living, orientation and mobility and accessing technology, services, mainstream society etc. I'm from the UK and a charity nearby has a really helpful websites with blogs & videos for general 'top tips', they're called Henshaws:
https://www.henshaws.org.uk/knowledge-village/
Hope this helps!
https://www.henshaws.org.uk/knowledge-village/
Hope this helps!
xmachinaxxx 1 points 2y ago
I suddenly became legally blind from diabetes a little over two years ago. It was a huge adjustment. If she enjoys cooking, one thing that really helped me were these measuring cups. They are the only ones I can see enough to read.
https://www.amazon.com/Chef-Craft-42019-Measuring-Piece/dp/B00RLDI17S/ref=sr_1_5?crid=17EM1F8NP2MWR&dchild=1&keywords=chef+craft+measuring+cups&qid=1621403886&sprefix=Chef+craft%2Caps%2C201&sr=8-5
https://www.amazon.com/Chef-Craft-42019-Measuring-Piece/dp/B00RLDI17S/ref=sr_1_5?crid=17EM1F8NP2MWR&dchild=1&keywords=chef+craft+measuring+cups&qid=1621403886&sprefix=Chef+craft%2Caps%2C201&sr=8-5
leekerie [OP] 2 points 2y ago
She definitely used to cook but has been unable to lately. One of the programs she’s in contact with I supposed to help her relearn her way around kitchen— I’ll ask her tomorrow if she thinks these could be useful. I know she had still some vision, especially up close, so she may be able to read the numbers on these. Thank you!
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