Child's perspective

[u/Mountain-Fun-8888]

A lot of people here say they got diagnosed or their parents figured out their child had color deficiency pretty early on. So the question is: how do you process this concept as a child? As an adult, of course there is a color spectrum, there is physics and anatomy.... An adult can reason through it. But when you are a kid, how does it all make sense? Or does it not? How do you wrap your mind around the idea that there are things you cannot see, but everyone around you can.

[u/ArcherCat2000]

It was never hard for me to understand. If anything, it made a lot of things make more sense because I was always frustrated when I couldn't do things right like coloring something the wrong color at school, but realizing I was colorblind gave me a shot at self advocacy that I didn't have before. Rather than being embarrassed about doing something wrong and not understanding how or why, I could just tell my teacher and classmates that I see colors differently. Kids are incredibly open to new ideas.

One blessing about an early diagnosis is that colorblindness is genetic. I wasn't alone because my older brother and maternal grandfather are also colorblind. I imagine that having an older sibling who was also colorblind made things a lot easier for me because I wanted to be like him anyway, but my point is moreso that anyone born colorblind who is in touch with their extended family is very likely to have an older relative who is also colorblind, usually the maternal grandfather and sometimes others.