Do You Assume a Person is NOt Blind if they do not wear dark glasses

shanam

shanam

62 is the new 40 LOL
Aug 15, 2006
2,093
4
#1
yes - Blind people all wear dark glasses
no - You can be blind and not wear dark glasses

I am posting this because it seems that this is perception
people have. It was true when I used a cane and now that
I have a guide dog I hear people ask if I am training the dog or they say to their child she is training the dog.
I do not wear dark glasses. I need as much light as possible to use my usable vision.

Please be honest. I am really curious as to what people
think. Thanks so much:smile:
 
#2
I do not assume one is not blind if they're not wearing dark glasses. Frankly, thinking otherwise is just ignorance on the perceiver's part, but also an opportunity to inform and educate too, right?

Not to ramble too much but I have done quite a bit of volunteer work at schools for blind children, a radio station and talking book library and had a blind employee when I used to manage helpdesk teams who used a braille reader to capture data on the computer screen and translate to her fingertips. None of the folks I met ever wore dark glasses.

Hope you and L are doing great, shanam!!

XXXOO PG
 
#4
Definitely not - there is a girl at my university who I have had a bunch of classes with who has a guide dog and doesn't wear glasses, and I work with a special olympian who can't see a thing and doesn't wear dark glasses either.

I can see why people believe that all blind people wear dark glasses, considering the images of blind people that are shown in the media.

I hope you and your new dog are doing well Shanam!
 
#5
No - I assume they're either blind or have very poor eyesight.

Joyce, you and Loretta must be really doing well if people ask you if you're training the dog....;)
 
#7
I've never assumed that, but then again I knew blind people who did not wear dark glasses, so perhaps my exposure was different than that of others.

But, I have always wondered why some people do wear dark glasses.

I have found in general that there is a lot of ignorance and misinformation out there regarding people with disabilities (and, yes, I realize that for some, the word "disability" is not PC). With my DH, we encountered a lot of...ummm...lack of knowledge....about amputees and people in wheelchairs. Given the number of times people addressed me instead of him, it became apparent that some people think that those who use wheelchairs cannot hear or speak!

Children were always the best, though. They are simply, innocently curious. Kids would see that DH was missing a leg and simply be genuinely curious about what happened. That was okay and often led to interesting conersations and bit of education. Less okay were the parents who would jerk their child away, as though the guy with the missing leg were somehow contagious. The parents who would take the opportunity to turn it into a teaching moment....losing a leg....blindness....these things don't have to stop you from leading a full life....love those parents.

There is a guide dog training facility in our area. I am always fascinated when I see the dogs out on the streets training. The relationship between the dog and the owner...I just think it's an amazing thing, what guide dogs can do. I was so happy for you when you got your dog.
 
#8
My understanding was that some blind people wore glasses to hide their eyes which may be closed or glazed over or milky. It's more of a vanity thing to keep people from staring than anything else. If you have any vision at all or can see some light as in your case, then no, I wouldn't make any judgements.

I know some people must wear dark glasses to protect their eyes from light if they are hypersensitive.

I try to take people at face value.

I could imagine some people thinking someone with a cane and no glasses might be faking somehow, but not with a guide dog.
 
#11
If I saw someone with dark glasses and a guide dog, I would probably assume they were blind, to be honest. If they did not have glasses and had a guide dog, I might think they were training the dog or that it was another type of helper dog (like for seizures or something).
 
#12
If I see someone wearing dark glasses around where I live, I assume they're hiding the bruising from the eye work they've just had done at their cosmetic surgeon. I guess I'm kind of jaded!
 
#13
Leah411 said:
I've never assumed that, but then again I knew blind people who did not wear dark glasses, so perhaps my exposure was different than that of others.

But, I have always wondered why some people do wear dark glasses.
Click to expand...

My DH has retinitis pigmentosa like Shanam. He usually wears dark glasses outside. His retinas have some light perception but what he sees are often confusing flashes of light, distracting images that make no sense. And the light is often very painful to him.

He was asked to participate in a marathon run across a frozen lake and said he couldn't imagine anything more painful to his eyes. All that light and glare of the bright sun reflected off the ice and snow.

When he doesn't wear dark glasses people are often very confused to see him with a guide dog, and I often get questions from neighbors. Is he really blind? And to what degree? He navigates so adeptly around the neighborhood--and without dark glasses his eyes and face look normal--so people assume he has a great deal of vision when he actually has none.
 
#15
Swanky Mama Of Three said:
I don't really have a perception of that, it's more of the mannerisms . . .

I don't think it's ignorance so much as a stereotype.
Click to expand...


Can you elaborate please swanky. What type of mannerisms do blind people have (or not have) By that mean, do blind people walk differently do they lack confidence?

Isn't stereotyping a form of ignorance.
This was the reason I posed the question. I cannot adequately explain what it feels like to say to someone
*i am blind* and they look at me and say, *you are kidding* why would I ever want to pretend/lie?



Swanky, Please know I post this with no animosity or criticism; there are just times I simply do not understand.
 
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