Opening eyes to reality of sight loss
A WOMAN whose vision is affected by three eye conditions is fronting a campaign about sight loss.
Lorraine Warnock, 38, is registered blind but does have limited vision. Her sight impairment has a huge impact on her life.
And that’s why she’s backing the RNIB charity’s How I See campaign.
Lorraine, from Blantyre, Lanarkshire, said: “Sight loss is very misunderstood.
“When I tell people about being registered blind, the majority can’t get their head around me being able to read, write, have my own place or see what they look like.”
Lorraine developed chronic bilateral pan uveitis when she was 24, which makes her vision lightsensitive and painful.
She said: “It’s like being poked in the eye when you try to focus on something.
“This led to secondary glaucoma in my right eye at 29 and I lost the sight in it. I developed secondary glaucoma in my other eye at 30 and lost the majority of the sight within a year.
“I have less than five degrees of central vision left, which is like looking through a straw at a spot on the wall.”
Her condition has also triggered Charles Bonnet Syndrome where the brain tries to replace the images it thinks are missing.
Lorrained said: “I have quite a sadistic brain which makes me see objects flying in my face and cars driving at me.”
The RNIB campaign was prompted by members like Lorraine, frustrated at a lack of understanding from people about sight loss.
Campbell Chalmers, of RNIB Scotland, said: “Everyone sees differently from people with perfect sight to those who see nothing at all. That said, 93 per cent of registered blind or partially sighted people can see something.
“What we want to put across is that just because someone is blind, it doesn’t mean they see nothing, and if someone is partially sighted, it doesn’t mean their vision is fine.”