Coping with Low Vision

Amy A. Pais, M.S. presents some tips and techniques for coping with low vision. She says "As vision loss and/or aging occurs, some inexpensive, non-technical adaptations can greatly reduce frustration and enhance coping skills. I've included here a few that will, hopefully, be usable and even spark your own creativity to modify your environment."

Safety Tips For Solo Travelers

Women are especially smart to take precautions when traveling alone, especially when they are visually impaired. Here are some strategies to help ensure a safe trip:

• 
  Ask about security when making hotel reservations. For instance, check if the doors have dead-bolt locks, chain locks, or peepholes, if you have enough vision to use them.
  
• Request a room that is not secluded - for instance, one near an elevator.
  
• Register using your last name and first initial only.
  
• Leave valuable or expensive-looking jewelry or unnecessary credit cards at home.
  
• Leave extra cash, passport, and other valuables in a hotel safe, or carry them in a pouch or money belt under your clothes.
  
• Carry a cell phone with you at all times.

At Home

• Contrasts in wall, floor, and furniture coverings should be carefully considered. Dark furniture against light walls, for example, is much easier and more comfortably identified.
• Placing items on tables (particularly low ones, such as coffee tables) or covering them with varied colored cloths, call attention to their corners and will avoid many "shin scrapes."
• Light switches should be of contrasting color to the wall around them or a piece of tape can be placed around them. A night light near the switch allows for better visual discrimination.
• Lamps for specific tasks are helpful as well as having good ceiling lighting. A rheostat-type switch to allow for dimming can add to the ambiance of the room and give comfort as well.
• Persons who have impaired vision find that accommodating to light or darkness takes longer. A night light left on can shorten the adjustment period.
• Putting most-used items, such as glasses, house-shoes, canes, etc., in the same place each time makes finding them easier.
• Organization is essential. A box on the night stand, for example, to hold small items is a good idea.

Some tips from Gladys Loeb on organizing the kitchen for the visually impaired.

• Keep all cleaning supplies well separated from the edibles.
• In storing canned goods such as fruits, vegetables and soups, I reserve a shelf or section of it for each general line. Cardboard dividers can be used. The line of food most used (soups in my case) is placed in the most convenient-to-reach location and the remaining cans arranged in alphabetical order according to their contents. As dividing sections and for filling empty spots, position easily recognized items such as ketchup, mayonnaise, etc.
• A must in every kitchen is an electric clock and a timer. These are available in Braille. However I have found very satisfactory ones in our local department stores. I selected an open-faced decorator clock with large raised numbers and a timer with minute and second markings clearly distinguishable by touch.
• Rubber bands represent an old standby marking method. They are Practical but have their limitations in that their meaning becomes confusing after three or four bands. I put them to good use in this way. I place one band on my favorite can of soup for example, two bands on the next favorite and so on. You can do the same with your canned vegetables and canned fruits as long as you store the food lines in separate shelves. After three rubber bands I resort to other labeling techniques.

For more tips follow the links. I hope these help. I'm going to use the rubberband idea because I've opened the wrong can more than once.

Dale L. Edwards