[NFBOH-Cleveland] Article: As A Blind Person, COVID-19 Has Changed My Daily Life In Ways Most People Don't Consider

Wed Jan 27 13:26:28 UTC 2021

As A Blind Person, COVID-19 Has Changed My Daily Life In Ways Most People
Don't Consider

"The isolation of the pandemic is exponentially worse for me than it is for
a sighted person."

 <https://www.huffpost.com/author/dorianne-pollack> 

Dorianne Pollack <https://www.huffpost.com/author/dorianne-pollack> 

Guest Writer

Courtesy of Guide Dogs For The Blind The author and her guide dog, Dime,
pictured on Guide Dogs for the Blind's campus in San Rafael, California. 

The COVID-19 <https://www.huffpost.com/news/topic/covid-19>  pandemic has
affected everyone, but those of us who are blind
<https://www.huffpost.com/topic/blindness>  or visually impaired have been
compromised in ways that the sighted community may not realize.

People who are blind or visually impaired already experience loneliness and
isolation at much higher levels than the general population. With the
pandemic, there is a whole new set of physical and psychological barriers
when it comes to maintaining our independence.

Due to COVID-19, governments and businesses have adopted necessary safety
measures, such as social distancing and limited-capacity rules, to curb the
spread of the virus. But people with visual impairments, like me, don't have
the opportunity to adapt to these rules, because they are communicated in a
way that is impossible for us to observe. For example, in many stores and
other places, there are now directional arrows, signage and taped-off
measurements to ensure distancing ― but you need to be able to see them to
know they're there. Our guide dogs don't understand them, and our white
canes can't feel them. Unlike sighted people who have learned to navigate in
a socially distanced world, we've been left to fend for ourselves.

Two things happen for us as a result of this lack of inclusion. First, we
are on the receiving end of a lot of chiding and humiliation in public.
People who follow the rules and who don't want to get infected are quick to
insult people who do not physically distance. Because so many sighted people
have flouted the rules out of ignorance or politics, rule-abiding folks have
become quick to lash out because of their own fear and anger. I've heard
people say things like "You're way too close to me!" and "What's wrong with
you?" There have been numerous other insults I can't repeat.

Transportation has become a new obstacle and an occasion for more verbal
attacks. I can't get on a public bus and ask my guide dog, Dime, to find me
a seat, because many seats are off-limits as part of the distancing. Of
course, Dime can't read signs, so her years of precision training and
practice are now rendered ineffective without intervention from a stranger,
who might shout obscenities at me.

A simple trip to the grocery store is now unnerving, exhausting and even
dangerous, so I avoid it.

You might not think that public criticism is such a big deal. But I'm not
really a rule breaker. More than most, I long to be active in my community,
and I desperately want to abide by the safety measures so I can do my part
in not spreading COVID. It's harder for me to avoid close contact with
people in public than it is for a sighted person. And failure to do so not
only opens me up to criticism ― it could raise my risk of contracting the
virus.

The second thing that happens is we begin to self-isolate, because of the
treacherous conditions of being out in the community. A simple trip to the
grocery store is now unnerving, exhausting and even dangerous, so I avoid
it. When you're blind or visually impaired, you automatically lose much of
your privacy, which I took for granted until I began to lose my sight more
than 15 years ago. It's necessary to ask for help in many situations. This
eliminates anonymity in public settings. But asking for help during the
pandemic can have disastrous consequences for us. And since a lot of us rely
on public transportation to get anywhere, the isolation of the pandemic is
exponentially worse than it is for a sighted person.

When it comes to the blindness community, I'm one of the fortunate ones. I
have a husband and friends who can help get me what I need. A lot of blind
and visually impaired people I talked to over the past few months are living
with food insecurity.

For some, it's because they lost income or jobs, and they simply can't
afford enough food. But for many, it isn't about the money; it's because
they have isolated and won't go as often to the supermarket. Many of us end
up rationing our food so we don't have to go out in public to get it.
Delivery of food and other household items is the new way of shopping in
this pandemic world. Consider that older people, who account for a large
part of the blindness community, may not have access to the internet or the
devices needed to place online orders. And they are often not computer- or
app-literate, which renders food delivery nearly impossible. As a result,
many are choosing to hoard and ration what they have, rather than ask for
help.

Courtesy of Guide Dogs for the Blind The author and Dime at a Guide Dogs for
the Blind alumni reunion in San Francisco in 2017. 

I'm extremely grateful for my guide dog, who has helped me for the last five
years. Before COVID, Dime and I had mastered navigating most public
situations. I received Dime in 2015 from Guide Dogs for the Blind
<https://www.guidedogs.com/> , the largest guide dog school in North
America, and we are the perfect match. I live and work at a university in
Flagstaff, Arizona, and Dime goes everywhere with me.

Having a guide dog has played a crucial role in making me more independent.
However, during the pandemic, Dime is working significantly less, because I
no longer go to the campus daily to teach. The culture shock has affected
Dime as much as it has me. She now scratches at her bed and nudges me often.
She misses working. The few times I've returned to campus since the pandemic
began, Dime was extremely excited to be working again. She thrives when she
is navigating. Her drive to get me to my destination is incredible, and her
energy is wonderful. She knows multiple routes on campus by different names
I've given them. When she's not working, she's just not as happy.

People may not realize that dogs are often a social bridge for their owners
and other human beings. Guide dogs certainly serve as a catalyst for
conversation between visually impaired folks and sighted people who would
probably otherwise never talk to us. Dime is very much at home in anyone's
office at the university where I work. I have students who fly into my
office and say, "I just need to de-stress with Dime." She serves a community
purpose that is greater than my own needs. While having Dime with me this
year has been a great comfort, COVID has deleted the social connection she
normally provides for me.

I've not been totally devoid of contact with the outside world during the
pandemic. Like every other professional in the world, I use Zoom. But
because Zoom is a visual medium, it is not an effective replacement for
in-person meetings for those of us who are blind or visually impaired. It's
the same as a conference call for us. We can't see faces or visual aids that
people share. I never even turn on my camera, which surprises my sighted
friends.

Like every other professional in the world, I use Zoom. But because Zoom is
a visual medium, it is not an effective replacement for in-person meetings
for those of us who are blind or visually impaired. It's the same as a
conference call for us.

The promise of a vaccine has inspired hope that "normalcy" might soon
return. However, it could take months or even years before we eliminate
social distancing. And for a blind or visually impaired person, the thought
of enduring another year of this is agonizing. So, because of my own
isolation, I reached out to others via Guide Dogs for the Blind to see how
they were faring. My outreach confirmed that most everyone in the blindness
community is struggling with the new barriers to their independence that
COVID has created.

Through talking with others, I was inspired to try to improve the situation.
Working with Guide Dogs for the Blind, I am organizing a town hall meeting
for its alumni group of guide dog users from around North America to share
best practices and to enlist them to help educate the sighted public about
our issues.

While I don't like being a poster child for disability, I feel the pandemic
has given me no choice. Every uncomfortable situation should be our
opportunity to educate others. It is our responsibility to share information
that can help others understand how important communities are for all of us.
We need to help those who are alone and struggling. As part of this effort,
Guide Dogs for the Blind is creating a radio public service announcement to
help raise awareness in the sighted community that blind or visually
impaired folks may need assistance in understanding and adhering to social
distancing.

I implore everyone to remember that we all need to ask for assistance in
some situations, and if you are one of the lucky ones who does not need help
with social distancing, reach out and ask someone with a guide dog or a
white cane if they need assistance. When you do, you'll be helping to keep
us all included in the community at a time when many of us are feeling
excluded.

Collaboration and compassion could help us all to see each other more
clearly, both now and when the pandemic is past us.

Dorianne Pollack is a member of the alumni board for Guide Dogs for the
Blind, the largest guide dog school in North America. She lives with her
husband and her guide dog, Dime, in Flagstaff, Arizona, where she works in
the Disability Resources Department at Northern Arizona University,
supporting and providing accommodations for students with disabilities. She
has a long career working in public schools as a classroom teacher,
principal and school board member. She holds two master's degrees ― one in
rehabilitation counseling, and another in curriculum and instruction.

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