Visual Impairment Awareness
Learn about sight loss.
Living With Sight Loss - Peter's Story
Peter is living with sight loss. This video tells his story, from losing sight to regaining independence and all the obstacles and challenges along the way.
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Peter had a tumour in one eye and has a retinal detachment in the other, which that means that he can see very little. In this film Peter talks openly about the challenges that come with sight loss and how the disability has changed his life. He talks about how he has adapted to life with low vision and how there are many misconceptions about being partially sighted.
A note on sight loss.
What does visual impairment look like?
​It’s important to note that sight loss is a hidden disability, not all people who are sight impaired wear dark glasses or use aids such as a guide dog or a cane.
This topic is really close to my heart so I wanted to make a film that can help people to try and understand how difficult life can be living with a visual impairment. There’s a lot more to it than just what you can and can’t see, it effects people in so many ways. A special thanks to Peter for sharing his story and The Partially Sighted Society for their help with the production.
There are a lot of misconceptions around sight loss. You may not be able to tell wether someone is living with vision loss or not, so upon discovering that someone you meet is visually impaired, saying something like “You look fine to me” can be quite hurtful. I have seen first hand how loosing your sight impacts your life so I hope that sharing this story and making this film helps to tackle ignorance and can help people to understand how such a statement can be so upsetting to somebody living with sight loss.
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There are around 2 million people living in the UK with sight loss, around 360,000 of these are registered as blind or partially sighted. It is very difficult to come to terms with vision loss and many people go through the same stages as they would with bereavement where they go through a range of emotions such as shock, anger, denial and finally acceptance.
People living with sight loss all deal with their condition in different ways and may all be at different stages of acceptance. You may see somebody walking down the street with a white stick or with a guide dog and your first thought will probably be that the person is blind, although this could be true, that may not be the case. Guide dogs and canes are aids for people with all levels of severity of vision loss. As there are many causes and different conditions, all sight impaired people see differently. Some people may have no side vision and only see centrally or vice versa, some may only see patches of light or tell wether it’s light or dark.​
For more information about living with sight loss, visit The Partially Sighted Society online at partsight.org.uk or give them a call on 01302 965195.
About The Partially Sighted Society
​The Partially Sighted Society are a national charity who help anybody living with sight loss.
They provide information, advice, training, magnifiers and electronic low vision aids and clear print material for anybody with a visual impairment to help them to make the best use of their remaining sight.
The charity offer sight tests and free low vision assessments, a unique range of bold-lined stationery, exercise books, diaries and calendars. They also organise support groups and have a resource centre with a wide variety of aids to daily living.