[Pibe-division] The Emotional Toll of Passing as "Sighted"

[Dr. Denise M. Robinson]

The Emotional Toll of Passing as "Sighted" 
Many of my 
low vision students could tell the next story, but Jody W. Ianuzzi has shared 
her personal experience with me that fits so many. She has gone through the 
experience "passing as sighted, of not using a cane and not learning blind 
skills" and how it almost killed her and her 4 year old son from not seeing a 
car. She has come out the other end to confidently travel and do anything she 
needs with blind skills. She now has a son 36 years old and a 26 year old 
daughter, who can attest to her "trying to pass as sighed."

Trying to 
pass as sighted takes a "tremendous emotional toll" on a person, as Jody 
explains, "They feel they have a horrible secret to hide and if it is found out 
they feel like they are a failure. They feel they must pick between being an 
incompetent blind person or a competent sighted person. They don't realize they 
can be a competent blind person with skills to succeed. So much effort goes in 
to 'passing skills' they miss out on learning the blindness skills they really 
need to succeed. Then when they can't succeed as sighted, they hate themselves 
and they feel like a failure.

I got past all this myself but it took 
years. I look back and I am angry at my parents and teachers for not teaching me 
what I needed to learn and for expecting me to be something I was not. On one 
hand, peope did not label me as blind, and was allowed to do more because I was 
passing and did not have that blind label follow me! Children labeled blind are 
often restricted on what they can do because the ignorance of those over them 
stops them. My self-esteem is intact now, but at what price. I know other blind 
people who had the same experience growing up in the 60s and they didn't do as 
well emotionally." 
-- Thank you Jody for this except


       Denise 
 
Denise M. Robinson, TVI, Ph.D. 
Teacher of the Blind & Visually Impaired
TechVision-Independent Contractor
Specialist in blind programming/teaching/training
509-674-1853     deniserob at gmail.com

http://blindgeteducated.blogspot.com/
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