This is a true story of my personal experience with progressive sight loss. It takes you through initial symptoms as a young teenager, to the glaucoma diagnosis, to the 10 years of medical intervention, including experimental treatment into early adulthood, to eventual blindness at age 23, to adapting to a life without sight, and to recognizing all the incredible support I have received along the way, from family, friends, government agencies, classmates, and coworkers. I also touch on how the Covid pandemic has been particularly challenging to those with sight loss. Writing this story has given me an excuse to slow down, look back, and appreciate the significance of what I have been through. No doubt that blindness is certainly a severe disability and living with the condition is challenging, but the public's perception of one's abilities is often filled with low expectations. All people deserve to be considered based on skills, experience, education, etc. And to simply dismiss someone based on assumptions is so sad. I hope that my story can serve as an example of what is possible if given an opportunity.
