January 2025
What’s Popular
Pouring
Some practice and a little bit of planning help you pour hot and cold liquids safely and accurately.
Preventing Falls
Let’s face it, no one wants to fall—and we truly need to avoid it, no matter our level of vision. The good news is there are some simple things we can all do to reduce the chances of falling, so let's get at it.
White Cane Types
Learn how to find one that's best for you, because not all white canes are the same.
Gems You May Have Missed
Let’s Talk Lighting
Good lighting makes a lot of things easier to see and do. Choosing the best type of lighting and placement can make all the difference.
Cooking: Is it Done?
Whether you’re cooking for yourself or whipping up treats for your family and friends, you can make sure every dish is cooked to perfection, no matter your level of vision.
"Insights & Sound Bites" Audio Podcast
"I was given a ticket to travel without embarrassment."
Bruce's vision had been decreasing for years. When it reached the point where he was tripping over objects and bumping into people, he felt embarrassed and kept his vision loss a secret. His wife convinced him to try something new.
"You start doing what you can"
Marie grieved the loss of her vision and still does. Yet, on a sunny August morning, she came to a realization that made all the difference in the world.
Please consider sharing your own insights. What has helped you cope and adjust to living with vision loss? There are several ways to share. Hit the “Submit your insights” button on Hadley’s Insights & Sound Bites web page, email a recording to [email protected], or leave a voicemail at 847.512.4867.
"Hadley Presents” Audio Podcast"
Vision Loss and Marriage
Vision loss can add additional stress to any relationship, especially close ones like marriage. This week we chat with psychologist Ann Wagner and her husband Eric Ringham on how they navigate some of the specific challenges vision loss has presented to them.
Smart Glasses and Vision Loss
Eyeglasses aren’t just for improving vision anymore. Smart glasses use built-in cameras to scan what’s in front you and speakers to describe what’s there. Join us as we explore the most popular options on the market today, Meta and Envision. Listen in as the Hadley team shares their personal experience with using these glasses in daily life.
Listen to Hadley audio shows on the phone
You can listen to Hadley Presents and Insights & Sound Bites on the phone. Hear inspiring stories and conversations on topics unique to vision loss. Just call 847.558.1317, follow the prompts, and listen as long as you like.
Discussion Groups
Learn from Hadley and others who share your interests in these live call-in sessions. January topics include mental wellness for winter months, tech terms demystified, and table setting tips. Need a text or email reminder? Call 800.323.4238.
Someone You Should Know
Dennis Wright from Moberly, Missouri, made a living driving a truck. So, when he noticed a change to his vision, he sought help quickly.
“I must have seen seven ophthalmologists from all over the state of Missouri,” he remembers. Eventually a neuro-ophthalmologist discovered the cause of Dennis’s vision trouble was an optic nerve condition called non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy, or NAION.
“My daughter researched it and it’s like an eye stroke. And in my case, over the course of two weeks I pretty much lost sight in my right eye. The doctor said there’s no treatment. There’s no way to stop it. There’s no way to prevent it. And there’s no way to correct it.”
“The only good news,” Dennis’s doctor relayed, “was that it wasn’t going to happen to the other eye.”
Dennis’s truck-driving career ended at this point, and he chose instead to work on the warehouse end of the business.
Then a year after he lost sight in his right eye, he noticed a spot on his left eye. As it turned out, Dennis was in the unlucky minority where the disease affected both eyes. While the left eye still has some vision, Dennis describes it as “looking through glasses that have been smeared with Vaseline.”
At that point Dennis retired and began looking for resources to help him live with diminished sight.
“Not one of the doctors I saw gave me any ideas of how to live with this. No one even gave me a pamphlet of what to do next. The doctor just said good luck rather than giving me a list of agencies that could help me learn how to live with this.” Dennis recalls with amazement. “Instead, I learned everything I know from another blind guy on the bus!”
The first agency Dennis’s newfound friend from the bus recommended was Resources for the Blind out of Jefferson City, which was a tremendous help. In addition to helping him directly, they pointed him in the direction of many other resources he could take advantage of, including Hadley. Dennis began to piece together a new way to live his life.
He discovered audiobooks, for instance, and audio-described TV and movies. His love for audio description, in fact, is an episode on our Insights & Sound Bites podcast, “I’m not excluded from life.”
Dennis’s family has been a great source of support. While his ex-wife and best friend of 34 years unfortunately passed away last year, he is very close to his daughter and grandchildren who live close enough to see him just about every Sunday.
“The kids love playing tricks on their Pawpaw. We go to a Chinese restaurant here, and they’ll make concoctions to get me to try. It’s awful and I love them for it. They even fight over who gets to help me at the store.”
One thing that Dennis discovered that made using websites and apps still possible for him was to reverse the contrast. Reversing the background color to black with text in white cuts down on glare and makes it possible for him to read online.
Much to his amazement, not all sites have this option. Even websites designed for people with vision impairment don’t always make that option available. To access the information on these sites, Dennis needs to use his phone’s color invert feature to browse the screen, which means searching for books or songs takes hours. And because websites for Walmart, Amazon and Domino’s don’t offer this option, Dennis’s options for home delivery are a lot smaller than they should be.
On the Hadley site, Dennis appreciated that he could select dark mode right away as part of signing up, but he found the large, white play buttons on our videos to be a problem. He wrote to us and jumped on a call to describe the issue. The Hadley web team evaluated his concern and realized we could do better by members who prefer dark mode. We made some small changes to the design, and Dennis couldn’t be happier.
For taking the time to point out how we could improve Hadley’s member experience, Dennis was given a Hadley Hero award this quarter.
Thank you, Dennis, for making the Hadley community stronger by your contributions.
Hadley Hint:
Have an idea for a workshop, podcast, or discussion group topic? We’d love to hear it! Send us a note to [email protected] or give us a call at 800.323.4238.