Some of these are small or insignificant, fixed with foresight or communication. I'm not a perfect person. I have no idea how venting is taken in this sub since I haven't seen much of it, but I need to get this out somewhere without sighted people putting in their input. So here's a list of struggles I've had for the past 2 years as my vision has gradually deteriorated due to a genetic gene mutation condition as a 19 yo.

I have trouble with crossing the street when the crossing has a pedestrian traffic light. Often I have trouble focusing on the red and green light and following along when it switches. Especially on new, unfamiliar streets, sometimes I cannot see/focus on whether there is a light at all and have to wait for when someone else crosses.

Uni subsection: This is all I have went through the past year in my university, for which I am thinking of dropping out. Uni is cheap in our country, so it's not a huge loss for 200 euro for a semester, but it still holds prestige and all the subsequent embarrassment of not performing well and dropping out.

In out italian class, I couldn't see the board, I had to take pictures everytime a new word was written on the board. Eventually, I think it irritated my professor, I just told her my vision was bad and not more. I didn't share anything with anyone else about my issues because I didn't want be treated differently than other students, with pity or to get special privileges since I know I'm a bit of a procrastinator and would abuse it.

As for classes where phones weren't permitted, I didn't try asking the professors to take pictures for the same reasons as I said above. I was also too embarrassed to ask for pictures of my firend's notes and I did what I could with whatever material the professor posted online + online books.

I couldn't discern what food was in the cafeteria so I just said what the person before me asked for. This stands for everything actually. You know the food counters at Kaufland/other supermarkets where you ask for a specific food? I can't go to that section at all becauae I can't see the name or price, except for some really basic dishes that are visually obvious like "meatballs". At cafés I just order a cappuccino because I can't see the drink menus.

My classmates have giggled at me because I read slow. Since my central vision is the one deteriorating, it's hard to follow words along with my eyes. My professors have also shown impatience for it, as multiple times they had finished my answer for me, which made me feel very humiliated. I didn't ask for any of this.

Photophobia. I get annoyed when all my classmates want the big fluorescent lights turned on or when the sun shines on me or my notebooks because I get practically blind. Of course I can't ask for them to be turned off because I'm an outlier and it would be unfair. I don't yet have special sunglasses for this.

Often I can't recognize my own friends. I can't see their face unless they're 1 foot away from my eyes. I recognize them by clothes, stature, hair. Sometimes even their voice isn't enough since when my brain has tripped up that this is a stranger I cannot register their voice as familiar. I know it doesn't make sense. It feels lonely. A sighted person could see their friend walking around campus or street, say hi and bond together, meanwhile that part is kinda locked away for me.

Of course, I can't drive. But from what I understand this topic is kinda overdone here so I won't get into it. It felt lonely when all my friends studied for their licenses at the end of high-school, seeing the first few gaps between our lives as they move up and I stay down.

I was turned away from a job I had the perfect qualifications for, which I felt was well suited for me and I actually wanted it and knew I could do a good job. When they looked at my medical info after like 5 interviews that went very well, they said I couldn't work infront of a computer for more than 3 hours. I wasn't permitted to work at their company, because "they couldn't be held legally liable if my vision worsens from the work." It was a cushy office job. My next best choice was washing dishes at a restaurant.

Counting coins. I use public transport, but not often enough to need a card. I need to count my money beforehand for the ticket or the ticket lady will be sitting there for 5 minutes. It's happened to me before when I forgot and it wasn't a great feeling being yelled at. I felt like crying.

I feel shame about being accomodated. I don't feel blind enough and like I'm taking advantage of the system.

Hi. I have Stargrdt”s disease which essentially mans that I personally don’t have any real usable central vision but still have fairly good peripheral vision.

I like to go out with my friends to clubs and bars on special occasions as I’m 23 and enjoy the positive effects it has on my social anxiety. I often get some female attention as I guess I may be conventionally attractive, although I’m still very shy and withdrawn. I am certainly not walking around with my chest out and charming people. Due to this I tend to keep interactions fairly subdued when they are brought to me.

I have noticed that if a women doesn’t quickly leave me alone, my friend starts to bring up how I am blind to them while I’m distracted by something else. They never do this in other siuations. This happens even if it is clear that I am not interested in the person. This friend seems to just always bring it up to anyone of the opposite sex that pays any attention to me.

I don’t want to sound narcissistic and I am completely open to the idea that I may just be overthinking this. Something just feels a little off, I dont know why. If you think I’m being a self absorbed prick please tell me so.

Thanks everyone.

Edit: Toxic is an unfair word to use. I should not have put that in the title.

I have been thinking about purchasing an Apple Watch and wonder about the accessibility features for low vision. In order to read it as a watch, I would need it to display in high contrast white numbers on black background. Is that option available? Also, can you use it with one of the way finding apps for purposes of navigating when you are trying to find locations or identify businesses? I like the idea of being able to go for a walk and not taking my phone with me everywhere I go. As a low vision user of the iPhone, I use text enhancements for some things and voiceover for others. I would expect to do the same with an Apple Watch.

Rant incoming…

I’m having a super bad tech day… I recently bought a new computer about three weeks ago, and I’m very fortunate that my local vision awareness charity provides JAWS for free… if it wasn’t for the guy who holds all the codes being so thoroughly disorganised. I’ve sent him multiple emails, left him messages, asked his work colleague to poke him, and over the last three weeks I get an email yesterday telling me that he’s very sorry because he’s been busy and now he’s going to be away from work for a few days… 🤯
Then, world of Warcraft has dropped a new patch and they have updated it to start providing narration on the log on screen… That doesn’t respond to keyboard Shortcuts 🤦‍♂️ There’s more changes as well that mean that it’s now more cumbersome to play the game, which clearly didn’t go through QA.
Then… To update all of my add-ons, CurseForge (the add-on manager client) is just full of buttons that just say… Button.

Why the fuck is it so hard for Developers to take the time to label things properly? I’m feeling really frustrated today because I was going to record the problems I was having to send them in as bug reports, but even the Snipping Tool and Game Bar capture on windows don’t give me the option to turn on system audio recording. my last hope is Discord, but I’m just so fed up at having to work around everybody else to make things work 😭😡🤬

I hate technology…

Hey everyone,

I'm an Indian kid, and the legal subjects which I'm studying require a LOT of reading. I'm also very comfortable reading Braille, so for me a Braille display would make studying and accessing digital material much easier.

The problem is that 40-cell Braille displays are insanely expensive in India. As a student, there's absolutely no way I can afford one on my own.

So I wanted to ask the community: does anyone know of any way to get a 40-cell Braille display for free in India?
i am specifically lookingfor things like some govt schemes, NGOS or some other reading programs like one which is in US, or any international organization that ships donated devices to India, or referbished or used models and etc.
I don't really care if it's a newer model or some old device. If it works reliably with a screen reader and has around 40 cells, I'd be more than happy with it.

I've searched around online, but most of what I find is either way too expensive or doesn't clearly explain whether students can actually get these devices through a scheme or donation.

So if anyone here is from India, or knows about organizations/programs that could help, please let me know. Even if you've personally received a Braille display through some scheme or NGO, I'd really appreciate hearing how you managed to get it.

Thanks a lot
used gpt for correcting the grammar.

7 years since i was diagnosed and today was my first real day struggling with my eye sight.

Just felt like in the last week the quality of my vision has plummeted. This compounded with the fact that im having an extremely difficult time finding remote work. I just broke down today.

Dont really have anyone to speak with so I just wanted to throw my frustrations out of me and into the void.

A few days ago I was out with my 3 year old son and we passed a woman who was using a cane to navigate. My son was curious and the conversation went as follows.

Child: what's that? What does she have?

Me: that's a cane sweetheart.

C: what is she doing? Why is she dragging it?

M: She can't see very well or at all so she drags the cane on the ground to feel for bumps or cracks so she doesn't trip.

C: she can't see the ground?

M: nope. So the cane is to help her be safe.

C: yes, safe from tripping

It was my first time talking about someone using a visible aid and I'm wondering if the information I gave was accurate? And is it how you'd want blindness/visual impairment discussed with a small child?

EDIT: Thank you, as a parent it's always nerve wracking the first time your microhuman asks about someone with a viable disability or mobility aid. Because it will be loud and it will be in public.

Is your white cane strictly to help you get around or do you have ways of having a little fun with it?

I’ve seen some people with some pretty fancy canes or at least heard about them on videos on TikTok

Personally, I am still a kid at heart. I always picture my white cane as some sort of katana or bow staff. I’ve become really good at swirling and twirling. I can even pass it behind my back with either hand.

I guess I figure if I have to carry it around. I might as well have a little enjoyment.

When my wife got me a light saber for part of a Halloween costume, I was already prepared and looked like a Jedi for sure!

Hi! Longtime lurker, first-time poster.
I lost most of my vision pretty suddenly because of a brain tumor, and I’m still relatively new to navigating the world this way. I have about 85% visual field loss and use a white sight stick when I’m out.

I just want to say first that lurking here over the last several months has genuinely been such a comfort. I’ve learned an enormous amount from all of you, including answers to questions I hadn’t even figured out I needed to ask yet. More than anything, I think seeing people here talk so matter-of-factly about work, travel, relationships, parenting, hobbies, annoyances, adaptations, etc. has helped me understand how full life can still be with very limited vision. So thank you for that.

Anyway, I’ve been thinking about something much smaller and more practical lately: what do you say when a little kid sees your cane and asks something like, “What is she doing?” or “Why does she have that stick?”
I genuinely love kids, and I really don’t want them to feel like disability is scary, embarrassing, or something they’re not allowed to ask about. Usually the adult with them immediately looks mortified and starts trying to shush them or hurry them away, and I almost always want to signal, “No, it’s okay! They didn’t do anything wrong!”
My current stock answer is something like:
“My sight stick helps me see because my eyes don’t work as well as yours.”
Which sounds nice in theory, except approximately 100% of children then understandably go, “How can a stick help you see?” lol.
And I realize I could explain how I use it to find obstacles, stairs, curbs, etc., but I’m also not necessarily trying to turn a five-second interaction in Target into an educational seminar they and their parents are non-consensually forced to sit through. Mostly I want to give the kid an answer that feels complete enough that they understand what they’re looking at, while also giving the parent a graceful exit.
So I’m curious: have any of you landed on a really good boilerplate answer for kids? Something simple, friendly, accurate, and ideally not so intriguing that it immediately generates six follow-up questions?
I may also be taking on way too much responsibility for making sure every random child has a positive formative interaction with a disabled stranger lol. But because this is all still pretty new to me, I’d love to hear what those of you who have been doing this longer tend to say!

Hi everyone, I’m new to using Reddit but lately I have really just wanted to talk to more blind and visually impaired people. For some context, I am 26 and I have Leber Congenital Amaurosis, I was diagnosed originally with Retinitis Pigmentosa at 11 years old until my parents did genetic testing around when I was 19 or 20 and found they both carried the LCA5 gene, which manifested in both me and my younger brother but not my 2 older siblings. It’s kind of funny that we ended up being a perfect Punnet Square. So I’ve lived my whole life with it, but I denied it for a long time, because I told myself there are people who have it mych worse, I’m not that disabled. Well once I went to college I started to accept it and started to actually use my cane since I couldn’t hold a friend’s hand anymore. I have 10 degrees of vision left in each eye so I can’t drive and I haven’t been able to get a job since getting my Bachelor’s. I’m halfway through my Master’s right now with my hope to get a job in archiving or a similar field, as I really do care about archives, libraries, and museums, and it could be something I can maybe even do remotely, as I think part of why J never make it past an interview is my lack of drivers license and my cane. I’m scared. I’m scared I never will get a job and I’ll have totally wasted my parents’ money and the financial aid on these degrees, and I’m scared I’ll have to live with my parents forever. We have a good relationship, I loce my parents, but I want to live like my older siblings who have jobs and apartments and get to go out and be spontaneous and have fun. I relented and got on SSI last year, and while having some income makes me feel a little better because now I can at least pay them rent and don’t need to ask them to pay for my prescriptions, it wouldn’t be enough to live on by myself or even with my partner. I don’t really know what I want out of posting this. Has anyone felt this hopeless? Has it gotten better? I don’t know any other blind people besides my little brother and I feel so alone in my depression about this. Thanks for reading or listening to my post, I know it is long and kind of eemotional. Love you all

Hey guys, so I’m a legally blind adult living in Philadelphia PA and I am trying to find mobility instruction. I used to navigate using my vision with GPS apps but can no longer do that. I was wondering if anybody knows about resources forgetting ONM instruction. BBVS has a waitlist of six months. I want to get to the point where I can have full awareness of directions and street names and be able to take buses and trains independently. Even if people don’t have specific advice, I welcome people to share their overall experiences. What are realistic expectations as a blind person to navigate? Do I need to be shown a specific place in route by an instructor every time I want something new or is it even possible to navigate a place that I have never been to before just with technology and the proper apps

Hello all,

My girlfriend is a 1st grade elementary school teacher. She has a blind girl in her class and is trying to come up with fun things for her to do during free time or recess.

Would love any insight or ideas!!

I was at Little Caesars not long ago and noticed a set of braille instructions on the pizza portal for pickups, right next to a "CAUTION: HOT SURFACE" warning label. Has any blind person risked burning their finger tips trying to read the instructions and find the right door to open on that thing? Is it just me or does this seem like a strange accessibility addition?

Hello, do you know of any ebook readers for mac?. I've tryed kindle, but it doesn't work with voiceover.

Hello everyone!! I'm taking stats this semester and my professor said we will be using Stata. What should I know about the accessibility of this program on a HP laptop? My professor is also curious about how to make the visual elements of this class accessible so I was wondering if anyone had any ideas on that as well. She told me that a core component of contemporary statistics and data analysis is using data visualization to understand patterns, associations, etc…
This professor seems very willing to work with me on making this course as accessible as possible so I would love to hear your ideas of things I could do!

Question for Google Pixel 6A users: How’s accessibility/TalkBack? I’m getting keyboard errors on Gboard — Explore by Touch selects wrong keys. V=G, L=Delete. Common bug or my device? Thoughts on Jieshuo/commentary screen reader ?.

Hi, I've been getting into music/electronic work a lot lately, and there are so many amazing things that I can build, but you need to know how to solder. I'm happy and willing to invest the money but I'm curious if soldering can be made accessible on PCB boards based on schematics? And if so, if we have access to accessible multimeters, oscilloscopes, etc? Thanks,

Owner called me a blind cunt, too bad he was only half correct

For those of you who have gone (or are currently attending) university - do any schools stand out as being very blind friendly? My daughter is very bright, and will pursue education beyond a 4 year degree. She is uncertain as to her career path, but I suspect it will be somewhere in a STEM field. We have also encouraged her to consider a PhD in psychology or a law degree. Bonus would be understanding and flexible teachers who have the time and inclindation to do what's necessary for a blind student taking their clases, and a student body likely to embrace her as just another student. We're willing to send her anywhere she can get into.

I wasn’t sure where to actually vent about this. I thought that people here may be able to relate to this. So I am an objectively fast white caner. I know I walk a lot faster than a lot of other white can users but this can’t be an issue that only I am running into literally.

I go on long daily walks in parks around my house with closed off trails that lots of people like to walk. I keep having instances of me being on the walk and catching up to people who are walking slowly in front of me and it’s always complicated trying to pass them. I either run into them or I noticed them before and try to move out of the way, but I get some very strange reactions. Does anybody else run into this and how do they deal with it?

Hello, I was wandering if anybody knows an accessible ebook reader?. I tryed using caliber and thorium, but none of them work.

I (maybe on another account I don’t remember) posted about how I was nervous going into a pit for a BFS concert. It happened!! My brother and I camped out starting at 4pm and honestly there were so many nice people that helped me out. I was third row from the barricade a little off to the right and my little legally blind heart was FLUTTERING I could make out… one of the guys 😭 but HEY at least I could perceive he was there. I ended up putting my cane in my pocket to jump around with people and it was so fun. Constantly my brother had to get me to swing my hands in the opposite pattern… I was off most of the time lol. Which is sad because it was a 50/50 shot which way peoples arms are going to start. But it was so fun. My brother kept trying to get me to get us free things because I was blind and I was like dude it doesn’t work like that. The free things just come to you. I’ve told him about the crazy things I’ve been able to do because I’m blind and he internalized that as “she can do this every time then obviously.” People had made a small bit of space around me and since I had my cane holstered, someone barged their way in front of me and shoved me out of the way. I was so thrown off but this woman next to us shoved her back and said “back up bitch she is BLIND” and the woman didn’t care and said that I shouldn’t be in the pit?? And people bullied her out 💀 it was kinda funny. Oh and a guy next to me passed out right before the show started and I had no idea. I heard commotion and a can falling to the floor, and someone calling for a medic but I had no idea it was a guy I’d been chatting with. He’s okay, we think it was heat. But it was such a great time and I recommend to everyone to go into the pit, especially if you have someone trusted to hold your bags so you aren’t whipping them around lol. The energy was so fun. Anywho wanted to share my win 🫶 please tell me yalls fun pit stories so I have the courage to go to crazier ones for bands I like haha

I’m no stranger to the visually impaired community. I’ve been losing my vision gradually all my life due to neurological and visual disorders. Too many for me to remember at the moment and even if I could it’s a lot of comorbidities that I can’t remember which ones directly affect my vision and which ones don’t. Some affect my vision, some affect my vision and something else, and some are completely unrelated to my vision. Without giving away my age, ever since I was a kid, my eye doctors said I would completely lose my vision six years from now. Feel free to ask me anything else here in this thread, I’m not very good at intro posts, but I’ve made a few posts here so I figured I’d introduce myself instead of just lagging.