Blind and Visually Impaired Community
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My wife can finally see what I see (self.Blind)
submitted by Agreeable_Morning_60
So today my wife had an idea. What if she could see what I do even for just a few minutes. So I the idea of getting a pair of low tint wide lens sunglasses and a china pen to draw my blind spots on the lenses. It actually worked, she described what she was seeing and it was like 95% accurate to what I see. She was so taken aback by it. Then I said , hey lets go for a walk so you can see how it is. Not even 10 yards and she broke into tears. She finally got to experience what its like to be me. I have a video if anyone wants to listen to our reactions or for the VIs to watch it. Not a lot happens and I didnt want to capture her balling her eyes out on camera haha.
smarthome_fan 15 points 2y ago
I'd like to point out that this is actually a common misconception about disability that is often harmful to people in the disability community. When you say "why don't you blindfold yourself so you can see what it's like for me," you're forgetting that the person isn't actually experienceing your world.
For the sighted person, they probably have feelings of fear, panic, and confusion. They have never learned how to adapt and don't know how to react. It would be like sending someone to the other side of the world and expecting them to feel like everyone in that country is constantly confused and culture shocked.
You, on the other hand, have adjusted and adapted, and know orientation and mobility techniques that take a long time to practice and develop. Your wife doesn't know these techniques, or at least hasn't practiced and lived them like you have.
Now this is more of an issue with the public, not with your wife of course since she understands you more than anyone. But many blind people are actually opposed to these simulations.
For the sighted person, they probably have feelings of fear, panic, and confusion. They have never learned how to adapt and don't know how to react. It would be like sending someone to the other side of the world and expecting them to feel like everyone in that country is constantly confused and culture shocked.
You, on the other hand, have adjusted and adapted, and know orientation and mobility techniques that take a long time to practice and develop. Your wife doesn't know these techniques, or at least hasn't practiced and lived them like you have.
Now this is more of an issue with the public, not with your wife of course since she understands you more than anyone. But many blind people are actually opposed to these simulations.
niamhweking 3 points 2y ago
That is interesting to hear, and I do understand it, spending 40 minutes in a wheelchair is not the same as being a wheelchair user but I do think it can help people realise and experience a small aspect of what it is like. I would think 30 minutes in a wheelchair while trying to navigate a town or mall would really open people's eyes (no pun) to the small daily hassles, rather than the medical or psychological difficulties that come with a condition.
Our Visiting teacher for the the blind got us as parents to try on glasses smeared with vaseline and for my husband who has always had perfect vision it really helped him learn more about our child. I've always had correctable terrible vision so I had some understanding.
I've seen it suggested too that if a child or professional was doing a presentation in school that they should make the projector go out of focus to help the classmates understand also.
I've also seen cane trainers be blindfolded and practicing using canes.
I didn't realise some didn't agree with the practice. Thanks
Our Visiting teacher for the the blind got us as parents to try on glasses smeared with vaseline and for my husband who has always had perfect vision it really helped him learn more about our child. I've always had correctable terrible vision so I had some understanding.
I've seen it suggested too that if a child or professional was doing a presentation in school that they should make the projector go out of focus to help the classmates understand also.
I've also seen cane trainers be blindfolded and practicing using canes.
I didn't realise some didn't agree with the practice. Thanks
smarthome_fan 6 points 2y ago
So a couple things:
Professionals, including mobility instructors (e.g. people who train others to use white canes) absolutely should be blindfolded and have to walk around with a cane as an essential part of their training. Otherwise they won't be nearly as effective educators.
But these are professionals in the field of blindness education. For “civilians”, it's very context dependent. I'm not against the practice, I just think "it has to be emphasized that blind and partially sighted individuals learn skills and techniques to compensate them for their vision-loss.
Personal story: my grade eight science teacher asked to borrow my cane so she could blindfold the class and get them to experience what vision loss is supposedly really like. The class had a fun afternoon stumbling around, banging into things, and laughing. Looking back, I actually have a fair amount of disgust for this experience. If I could do it over again, I would flatly refuse to give up my cane. And I disagree with the teacher's lesson plan. The problem is these kids experienced blindness as a bizarre, almost comical, experience where they could experience almost nothing normal. But that's absolutely not what my life is actually like.
In your example, blurring the image on the overhead projector should be accompanied by the context that the visually impaired student would have asked for a copy of the presentation in advance, or learned how to use a magnifier, or done something else to compensate. It's not like they're just staring at a blurry screen and have no means of participating in the class.
Best practice in my opinion is to provide these simulations under extremely specific circumstances and emphasize to the public that they are not actually experienceing the same world as I am. It shouldn't be used for an "aww" moment, for sympathy, or to de-value the lived experiences of people who are blind.
All this is just my opinion of course.
Professionals, including mobility instructors (e.g. people who train others to use white canes) absolutely should be blindfolded and have to walk around with a cane as an essential part of their training. Otherwise they won't be nearly as effective educators.
But these are professionals in the field of blindness education. For “civilians”, it's very context dependent. I'm not against the practice, I just think "it has to be emphasized that blind and partially sighted individuals learn skills and techniques to compensate them for their vision-loss.
Personal story: my grade eight science teacher asked to borrow my cane so she could blindfold the class and get them to experience what vision loss is supposedly really like. The class had a fun afternoon stumbling around, banging into things, and laughing. Looking back, I actually have a fair amount of disgust for this experience. If I could do it over again, I would flatly refuse to give up my cane. And I disagree with the teacher's lesson plan. The problem is these kids experienced blindness as a bizarre, almost comical, experience where they could experience almost nothing normal. But that's absolutely not what my life is actually like.
In your example, blurring the image on the overhead projector should be accompanied by the context that the visually impaired student would have asked for a copy of the presentation in advance, or learned how to use a magnifier, or done something else to compensate. It's not like they're just staring at a blurry screen and have no means of participating in the class.
Best practice in my opinion is to provide these simulations under extremely specific circumstances and emphasize to the public that they are not actually experienceing the same world as I am. It shouldn't be used for an "aww" moment, for sympathy, or to de-value the lived experiences of people who are blind.
All this is just my opinion of course.
[deleted] 2 points 2y ago
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CloudyBeep 2 points 2y ago
https://nfb.org//images/nfb/publications/jbir/jbir15/jbir050201.html
smarthome_fan 1 points 2y ago
> I think it would be *very* helpful for the disabled community, for these types of experiences to occur. Though, they *must* come with proper explination. Such as, "This is an experience in the life of this individual's disability, but you *must* remember, this person has adapted and been dealing with this for much longer, so they're very used to it. Take this experience as a glimpse of how different things can be, and let it guide you toward rational compassion and understanding."
I just wanted to add that although you say you disagree with me, this is pretty much exactly what I concluded too: that these experiences should be done in specific, context-sensitive situations and should be accompanied by a lot of disclaimers.
I just wanted to add that although you say you disagree with me, this is pretty much exactly what I concluded too: that these experiences should be done in specific, context-sensitive situations and should be accompanied by a lot of disclaimers.
smarthome_fan 0 points 2y ago
Ok, so let me give you an example. I cannot imagine what life would be like without my hearing. I rely on my hearing for everything. I would give up all of my personal possessions, all my money, etc. etc. just to keep my hearing. I even sometimes don't like having the noise cancelation feature turned on for headphones as it blocks out the outside world which makes me panic.
Now, all that being said, I know that in fact people who are deaf or who experience hearing loss, have perfectly happy, fulfilled lives. They use a number of adaptations to communicate and participate in society. I have only a vague idea of how these technologies work, and I don't know how to sign, etc.. So if you suddenly blocked my ears in an attempt to show me what a deaf person's life is like, I'd likely freak out. I wouldn't want to go outside my bedroom, and I would have no idea how to engage with anyone around me.
I might think "Wow, this is what a deaf person's life is really like. Aww, this is so sad."
Except that my perception is not accurate. It's not what their life is like. They may be happy, well-adjusted, and have hopes, dreams, a career, a relationship, hobbies, etc.. They exist beyond their disability and are not in a constant state of panic that I'm experiencing in the moment.
Now, as far as I am concerned, this can be pretty much applied to any kind of disability or situation. If you blindfold someone who's had nothing to do with vision loss their entire life, they likely won't be able to do anything. They'll bump into the walls and other objects, probably would experience difficulty locating objects, maybe even pouring liquids or eating food, and certainly traveling. And they may conclude "wow, that's how blind people live. That must be so tragic."
Except they're wrong. I've been blind all my life and I do these things with no problem.
Does that make a bit more sense?
In regards to your book suggestion, I'm sad you think blindness is a reason to be miserable. It's not, it's merely a situation that must be adapted to.
Now, all that being said, I know that in fact people who are deaf or who experience hearing loss, have perfectly happy, fulfilled lives. They use a number of adaptations to communicate and participate in society. I have only a vague idea of how these technologies work, and I don't know how to sign, etc.. So if you suddenly blocked my ears in an attempt to show me what a deaf person's life is like, I'd likely freak out. I wouldn't want to go outside my bedroom, and I would have no idea how to engage with anyone around me.
I might think "Wow, this is what a deaf person's life is really like. Aww, this is so sad."
Except that my perception is not accurate. It's not what their life is like. They may be happy, well-adjusted, and have hopes, dreams, a career, a relationship, hobbies, etc.. They exist beyond their disability and are not in a constant state of panic that I'm experiencing in the moment.
Now, as far as I am concerned, this can be pretty much applied to any kind of disability or situation. If you blindfold someone who's had nothing to do with vision loss their entire life, they likely won't be able to do anything. They'll bump into the walls and other objects, probably would experience difficulty locating objects, maybe even pouring liquids or eating food, and certainly traveling. And they may conclude "wow, that's how blind people live. That must be so tragic."
Except they're wrong. I've been blind all my life and I do these things with no problem.
Does that make a bit more sense?
In regards to your book suggestion, I'm sad you think blindness is a reason to be miserable. It's not, it's merely a situation that must be adapted to.
Agreeable_Morning_60 [OP] 2 points 2y ago
I dont disagree with your perspective and opinion. However, what she was feeling wasnt far off from what I experience everyday. My blindness is relatively new, I was diagnosed last year and it has progressed enough now that It causes me fear, panic and confusion on a daily basis. Despite what Ive done to adapt, she still got to experience how nerve wracking it is to walk without my cane, how straining it is to focus and how my attention span is lacking with regards to anything other than my sight and issues arising from it. On the other hand, I had my mother in law and my grandmother in law try the glasses and yes, exactly like you pointed out, they couldnt really grasp the situation because they arent fully aware of what im going through like my wife is. So, I agree that “blind goggles” or whatever isnt really a good idea for the general public or schools etc. It would give them the wrong impression of our situation. However, for immediate love ones who are fully aware and have been able to experience the emotions along with us, to have a tool like my makeshift glasses would be a priceless experience for them and us.
Formal-Aardvark9968 9 points 2y ago
You'r wife sounds like a fabulous person. I am glad that you both trust and respect each other to go on an adventure such as this.
Agreeable_Morning_60 [OP] 0 points 2y ago
She really is :)
QuinnDxo 7 points 2y ago
Awww! I just want to hug your wife! That’s pretty incredible she did this and the whole go for a walk was just a great way to really introduce her to what you go through.
Agreeable_Morning_60 [OP] 1 points 2y ago
Yeah she was very emotional and loved having the chance to understand my situation more.
SecTrono 1 points 2y ago
this is something more people should experience. i do accessibility testing to make sure that websites can be used by people with disabilities. i was thinking about ordering a pair of dark tinted glasses to simulate something like this.
smarthome_fan 1 points 2y ago
The way to do accessibility testing is not to blindfold yourself so you can't read the sites you're testing. You could instead do the following: solicit feedback from end users, use accessibility auditing tools, or learn the basic commands/concepts behind a screen reader or screen magnification software.
[deleted] 1 points 2y ago
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Agreeable_Morning_60 [OP] 1 points 2y ago
Yeah, its just hard because there arent any glasses out that I am aware of that simulate what its really like. I took a china pen and blacked out the portions i cant see on the lenses, still not the same cus blindness usually isnt “black” its “nothing”. Like if you put your hand behind your head, what do you see of your hand… nothing
BlindRyan1 0 points 2y ago
I wish I could do this with my wife and roommates.
snimminycricket 0 points 2y ago
I love this idea. I bet my spouse and some of my close family would be interested in an experience like this!
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