"It was something I had to do"
For Dottie, losing her vision meant giving up many things, and there was one farewell that hit especially hard. But after making a difficult choice to let go of something she loved, Dottie found a new perspective on what she had lost—and gained.
Hadley
“It was something I had to do”
Dottie: “Trying to get used to the darkness, as well as trying to adjust to being as normal as I possibly can.”
Marc: This is Hadley’s Insights and Sound Bites, where people facing vision loss share what has helped them cope and adjust.
Dottie: My name is Dorothy. I go by Dottie Wilson. I live in North Carolina, right outside Winston-Salem. My eye condition is NAION or non-interior ischemic optic neuropathy. This presented itself to me in 2019, in my left eye. And I lost some vision in that eye. I lost some peripheral vision that was not a really good eye to begin with.
I got over that pretty quickly. I'd say it took me about six months to adjust to that. Then in 2022, it hit my right eye. And that was my pretty much my dominant eye. And it hit it really hard. I lost all my peripheral vision. So it has been quite a battle for me because the second episode, it's been not quite four years yet and I am trying to still to adjust.
Trying to get used to the darkness, as well as trying to adjust to being as normal as I possibly can. It's probably been one of the hardest things I've ever dealt with in my life. I had just bought the car, it was four months old, and I've always driven the same brand of car since 1995. And you know, I'm getting ready to turn 70 years old, so I knew that was probably going to be my last car. And I loved it. And it was brand new.
And more than anything, I think it was just that that was just one thing that was taken away that I just loved. I love driving. I love going places. And it was really, it was really hard on me knowing that I was going to have to get rid of it, but I knew it was something that I had to do. That I could not allow myself to get in that car and possibly hurt myself or hurt someone else.
And I would have never done that, no matter how hard it was to let it go and not see it sit in my garage. And to be honest, I think about it from time to time, but I know it's gone.
I also was told by the owner, and I knew he would do this because he knows us very well and he said, I will make sure that somebody very special gets her car that loved it as much as she did. And that warms my heart.
And like I said, I can go down in the garage, which that side of the garage now is filled with my grand grandbabies, riding toys. So, I look at it in that standpoint as well, that they've got a whole side of the garage, that they can ride all their riding toys on that side of the garage.
So, you know, so it created a space for my grandchildren as well. I guess you could say that I gave them a spot to park their cars.
Marc: You never know who might need to hear your story. If you’d like to share with us, just leave us a message on our Insights & Sound Bites voicemail. By calling, 847-512-4867. Or, you can use your smartphone or computer and email us a recording to [email protected].
All Episodes
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Episode 35
For many, having to give up the car keys due to vision loss is traumatic. Deb felt it too. Then, during a call to arrange transportation for herself, a new door opened.
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Episode 34
Listen in as Anne describes how a question posed to her shifted her perspective for living with vision loss.
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Episode 33
This week, William shares how learning to continue with his favorite hobby, even with vision loss, has been therapeutic—and uplifting. Here's the link to his website https://www.blindtruths.org/
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Episode 32
This week Angela shares how she struggled to get around due to vision loss, how she tried to hide it from others, and what helped her.
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Episode 31
This week we hear from Appreciate. She found that a Facebook group, The International Blind Cafe, gave her a source of comfort and encouragement.
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Episode 30
Marian's inner voice had her living in fear. Listen in as she shares how she redirected that voice to be more helpful for her.
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Episode 29
This week Dorrie shares how technology has made all the difference for her in living with vision loss.
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Episode 28
Today we hear from Ed who shares how the source of hope for him has changed with time.
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Episode 27
Listen in as Cindy shares how advice from her son helped her adjust to her new normal.
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Episode 26
Listen in as Tim recalls a conversation with a store clerk and how it helped him adjust to life with vision loss.
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Episode 25
Listen in as Alice shares a boyfriend's advice from many years ago. Words that give her hope, even today.
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Episode 24
Listen in as Bill shares how a chance encounter changed his perspective on vision loss.