A different perception

I have been asked from time to time, how I can cope being blind and how I deal with the fact that I can't see. My reply usually provides some food for thought to many people. I don't have to cope because I don't believe that hardship or intense pain is part of being blind. I was born blind and therefore do not have any idea what it is like to be able to see. If one has not experienced a loss then there is nothing to morn. I don't feel that my life has been any more difficult than any other persons, partly because of the support and help I have received from others, and partly because of the choices I have made regarding my life direction.

Sight is something that has always intrigued me. I find it difficult to understand what is meant by the term sight. Is it simply the ability to optically visualise ones surroundings, or is it something more than that. I believe that sight should be a term that refers to a persons ability to perceive. If that use of the term sight is preferable, then is the term "blind" the correct term to place upon a person who has a lack of vision? I find that in some cases my lack of vision helps me to perceive the world in a slightly different light to those around me. I am able to use my other senses to gather information from my surroundings which allows me to appreciate stimulants other than visual ones. When I walk into a room, I can not scan the faces there to gauge the emotions of the people, but I get a sense of emotion and a sense of the atmosphere within that room that people who can see might miss. When people who rely on vision scan their surroundings to gather information I find that they take the visual cues at face value and fail to use their other senses to evaluate their surroundings.

I am not inferring that I have a better perception of my surroundings, only that I have a different one. The cues I receive regarding my environment allow me to navigate through and communicate with the environment in other ways. While my navigation of and communication with my environment is slightly different, it is in most cases no more difficult than using visual cues. This may not always be the impression I give to the general public, but it is important for me to show that I am independent at all times. The skills required to deal with my environment are quite different from those used by those with vision, but these are learned when needed, and once learned equip me adequately.

While skills are important, spatial perception is very important as well. Spatial perception is the perception of area, distance and volume. This perception makes life so much easier for a person without vision. It allows me to evaluate the dimensions of a room almost instantly via audible cues bouncing off the walls, ceiling and floor. I guess the best way to describe this is to use the example of a Dolphin. While my audible/spatial perception is probably not as well attuned as a Dolphins, I do use a form of sonar to evaluate my surroundings. It is also possible to detect furniture or other obstacles within the room via the same method. It seems that even within those who have a visual impairment, this perception changes and some find it much more difficult to use these cues.

Technology has enabled people with a vision impairment to become equals in the work-place and in education. With the use of screen-reading software and a speech synthesiser it is possible for people with a vision impairment to gain information and communicate with the same ease as a person with vision. I can read newspapers, access encyclopedias, book my travel arrangements or look up a phone number all on-line. previously these tasks were made more difficult because someone with vision was required to read the information thereby limiting independence. In the future as technology progresses this information age can only increase the abilities of visually impaired persons.

What I have outlined above are some of the reasons why I don't find that I have to cope with blindness. I enjoy life and endeavor to seek new experiences and take hold of all opportunities which might present themselves. This is a choice that I have made for myself which allows me to look past my lack of vision and to se the ways in which I can progress into the future. Of course where I am now and where I will travel into the future must be partly attributed to the support of many people who have believed in my abilities and who have encourage me to be who I am today. Who I am today, is the result of that help and the choices I have made. I have chosen to experience life and not to focus on the fact that I can't see. This is not to say that I am in denial, but I wish to focus on what I do have rather than what I do not.

URL: http://www4.tpg.com.au/users/chrisba/perception.htm