What Do You Do?

Recently someone asked, “What do you do?”

Prior to this I thought adjusting to vision loss counseling was self-explanatory.

When responding I paused, then focused on the perspective the question was coming from. Ah. Members of the sighted world do not know how hard it is to rebuild a life and a personal sense of purpose after vision loss.

So I explained, “My daily work with clients centers on emotional readiness for big challenges and finding confidence in what is possible.”

I describe my work as standing at the intersection of two streets. One called Mental Health and the other named Vision.

Traveling along the vision loss road, stigma can make progress harder. Internalized stigma is the quiet voice that tells you to doubt your worth. Social stigma shows up in others’ low expectations or awkward interactions. Institutional stigma can limit access through poorly designed systems or policies.

Breaking stigma starts with self-advocacy, connecting with others who understand, and educating the sighted world about what’s possible. But someone with acquired vision loss who feels so low or hopeless they cannot get out of bed will not rush to conquer those heights.

It turns out adjusting to vision loss counseling is not self-explanatory to most folks. They need an extended explanation to wrap their minds around what mental health care tailored to the blind and low vision community might mean.

They aren’t ready yet to appreciate the beautiful growth journey each client takes through trauma, shock and denial, mourning and withdrawal, depression, reassessment, coping and mobilization to reach self-acceptance.

The idea people navigating the road of vision loss must resolve unique communication challenges and relationship issues and societal stigma is news to people who take their eyesight for granted. Many people do not even realize anxiety fueled by societal stigma is a thing. Trust me. It is.