I will try to remember all of your questions and answers them as best as I can.
I learned braille 34 years ago. However, I still remember the day that everything changed for me in reading braille. I learned the word banana in grade 2 braille. I kept reading it correctly but mispronouncing the word. I learned that the contractions are contractions but not phonetic. I don't know why that was a roadblock but that word and that moment opened the door to fluency.

I'm queer. Welcome to the club. I honestly haven't had the best experiences in the LGBTQ+ community. I'm male and I have round many of the other males are a little too superficial for me. I hope things have changed and that you have a more positive experience.

I think one thing to think about is that in general blind people don't really hang out together all that much. I have a friend who is deaf. The deaf community spends lots of time together because they share a language. Blind folks have braille but we don't hang out in group settings passing braille notes around. I have been a part of a blind bowling league and blind groups but the groups really rely on our sighted participants. Usually we need to people who can drive, describe things, explain layouts etc.

My vision did force me to change careers. That was fine. I enjoyed both experiences.

Feel free to private message or reply here. Hopefully I remember most of your questions.

This is my experience and opinions. Everyone will have a different experience. Hopefully yours will be great!

Hi there!! I’m newly low vision and while I also don’t know any of the answers to your questions, hello and welcome to this community

Hiya Splat!

You and Snoo have brought some much needed enthusiasm to r/Blind and I'm glad to have you both here. Welcome!

*are there any groups specifically for queer blind people? This is something id be really interested in!*

There are gay members of r/Blind but I don't know of a separate group. We've seen a whole bunch of very specific subreddits begin then go inactive because the user base is just too small to keep the subreddit active enough to make people want to visit every day.

*my brain is having trouble learning braille. Any tips or tricks for new braille learners?*

The Braille question is best left to someone else. I haven't learned it and don't plan to. The only word in Braille I know is MEN, and the only reason I remember it is because it's shaped like a drooping penis. I'm convinced that was done on purpose by Mr. Braille. I guess if I need to pee in the airport I'm supposed to feel around the walls until I find a Braille sign, and if it's shaped like Mr. Droopy I know I'm in the right place, but am I supposed to yank my hand away and say "No homo" before I go in?

Seriously though, my phone can read text messages aloud. It can read Reddit aloud. It can read any book, magazine, newspaper, web site, anything. I can even point my phone's camera at a sign in Braille and it will read the translation to me in English. Braille is a cool skill to know and I wouldn't discourage who wants to learn it from doing so, but I don't think it's as necessary as it used to be. Technology has made Braille obsolete. Most people on r/Blind disagree with me on this and I certainly don't want you to not learn Braille just because a flaming old man on the internet said it's outdated. Make your own decision. If you feel learning Braille will enrich your life then do it.

*what are yall favorite things and pet peeves as far as accesibility and social media go?*

This might sound odd but I just don't think that way. If I have to zoom or switch to dark mode or turn on NVDA I just do it. I don't feel like it's an imposition.

It's not just internet accessibility - it's my whole life. My blindness isn't a tragedy, it's merely an inconvenience. I'm having too much fun working through my blind bucket list to let something as minor as having to press CTRL+ a couple times ruin my day.

If there's a web site I need to spend a lot of time on it's much easier in dark mode. Web sites without a dark mode option are the closest thing to a blind internet pet peeve I have, but don't pet my peeves and we'll all be happy today.

Welcome to the sub, that was a lot of questions so not sure where to begin. This was all typed using braille so might as well start there, I am still learning myself but it has only been a couple months sence I started learning It takes time and I have had more trouble reading it than using it for writing, but have found both to be a practice makes perfect type thing..

In regards to connecting with other people who are both queer and blind. The internet is statistically more than likely the best place to find others who share in the intersectionality of the queer blind experience.

Another possibility is perhaps expanding into connecting with LGTBQ+ people who experience other disabilities. The greater disability community is vast and like most things, not everyone shares the same perspective, outlook, or daily living experiences. Nevertheless, there are some larger themes at play regardless of the disability. This includes adapting to a new life style if the disability is acquired or as it changes through out one’s lifetime.

Hi and welcome I suppose and welcome to this blind complex community as they call it or sometimes I call it the madhouse. Lots of drama sometimes.I am glad you’re no longer in denial over your blindness and more ready to adapt and change and accept it.


Sometimes connecting with your state agency is not that easy and needs a lot of following up from you and they’re not the best most organized so you have to be a bit proactive with them.


No I don’t know I don’t belong in that community and don’t know of any such groups.


I think more practice and continual learning of braille will help practice makes perfect just learning it is not easy at first but keep working and I think you’ll get it. Just continue practicing reading and writing is good. Get lots of braille books or get brailled materials and practice.



I think understanding your strengths and weaknesses here, where you would otherwise b good at is a good idea. Is there a way to adapt to your career somehow do a part that you can do or adapt existing things that are done and do it differently with the adaptation needed for blind people? If not look in to other things you are interested in.maybe looking in to theoretical personality systems and see if those theories may help you determine where you need to go is a good idea. What is your strengths and weaknesses where would you be able to apply these what crosses both strengths and interest stuff like that? How anyone would look at a career strength. Look amongst your interests or stuff you do anyway is there something you’d like to pursue as a career there maybe. Lots of introspecting and metaphorically look in a mirror I got in to personality because of this. Really in to the western jungian stuff or got in to it at least. Even looking in to the holland codes may be nice but dont look at the jobs more where you would see your strong and weak points. I find. Intersystem analysis is useful and just introspecting.



I wouldn’t say I have a lot of pet peeves. I tend to be pragmatic and dont complain type. And go with it or do something about the annoyance and if you didn’t do anything then you have no right to complain type of thing.

I guess mostly it would be devs who don’t really acomodate disabled people, especially after they have spoken to them about accessibility, or people really who aren’t open to accessible things and thus don’t change their app or website.