From the age of 15 to 51 I didn’t use a cane. I got one late last year. I wish I had done it decades ago. It has cut down on my trips and falls. I don’t know why I believed I was clumsy, instead of seeing the obvious c correlation between my blind right side and the many times I have sprained my right ankle. The last time I broke it.

Canes are so we can safely navigate the world.

You may qualify as visually impaired due to your limited field of vision but that’s another post heh. I would say go for it. Sighted people can use text to speech when they need help reading, and it sounds like you would get a lot of use out of a folding cane. Try it out and see if it helps you get back out in the world :)

Get a cane, and get training in how to use it (called orientation and mobility training, provided by your local blindness agency) if at all possible.

It really sounds like you could benefit from a cane. I also waffled for a long time before I bit the bullet. For a while, I only used it in airport security because the workers would sometimes yell at me if I didn’t go where they were subtly waving me towards. It was also awkward when I‘d miss handshakes being offered, so now I finally don’t have that to worry about that. It’s gotten to where it’s now necessary for me even though I have some sight and I don’t care if people don’t get it. You’ll pass a million understanding people before you find one person who challenges you on why you need it, then if they ask and you don’t want to go into it, you can say “How am I going to explain a complex visual issue to you?” and then just move on.


Another option that might work for you in some settings if you have money to spend would be the miniguide. You hold it in your hand like a remote control, point it where you want, or wave it gently back and forth as you go, and it vibrates when you get close to someone or a tree or pole. It toggles between distance settings. Usually 2 meters works well for shops and 4 meters for outside. Only problem is it doesn’t tell you steps down or anything too low on the ground like a root. I think Slap Technologies is working on one that does.


Also, you can be considered legally blind if you have 20 degrees or less of vision in your better eye. Regular doctors are not always aware of this, so if you read the eye chart, they might not know to tell you. I went to a low vision specialist who was the first to tell me I qualified as legally blind. (She also told me at the time to go ahead and keep driving because she had patients still driving with less vision than me! At the time, 19 year old me was happy to hear that, but now I just shake my head. I eventually threw in the towel on driving a year after that appointment anyway. Hard to find a long enough cane for driving. Just kiddin’)

What do you mean you’re not legally blind?

Also yeah, I don’t see why you shouldn’t get a cane. What does blind enough mean. There’s plenty out there for the taking. I am totally blind for the record and don’t think you’re robbing me of cane supply. I have about 10 or so here. *looks around* yep I think there’s plenty more canes in the world, yep I think you can buy one. Or even get one for free.

Use a cane! Your safety is so much more important and you’re not “stealing supplies” either. I definitely recc O&M as well

From 3 to 25 I had majority of my vision but had a lots of problems. I really wish my parents would’ve been more proactive and I would’ve learned back then. When I lost my vision and 25 it definitely would’ve come in handy. Safety should always be your first priority. Don’t feel bad. Unfortunately there’s always gonna be stupid people that are gonna have comments but you shouldn’t let that stop you from doing what’s best for you.

https://quicklygoingblind.blogspot.com/2022/03/how-blind-is-blind.html

With the whole not feeling "blind enough" thing, I deal with that a lot too because I'm only legally blind in one eye while having pretty decent sight in the other eye, but I also don't have depth perception. And I've been using a cane for the past 7ish months and using one made me realize that it does help me and while I still deal with impostor syndrome a lot, I just remind myself that using a cane helps me and that being "blind enough" to deserve to use a cane isn't really a thing. So my point being, if you think using a cane will help you, get one and try it out, and whether it helps or not is the only litmus test needed for whether you can use a cane or not. Also if you can, you should try to get orientation and mobility training to help you learn how to use a cane.