I have tried explaining my visual deficit in multiple blogs; however, this morning I had a realization that I’m not aware of all the ways I experience vision. I woke up this morning and looked at the clock across the room. The first number was an 8. Wait, maybe that’s a 7. Wait, maybe that’s a 9. As I laid in bed looking at the clock, I watched that number change before my eyes between those three numbers. Sometimes 8. Sometimes 7. Sometimes 9. After a few minutes of this, my brain realized it was the perfect moment to learn a lesson. I’ve generally described the blind spot from the perspective of driving and not seeing a car in one glance and then seeing the car in the next glance. Makes perfect sense. I’ve also talked about missing the first letter of a word or the first word of a sign because it’s on the left side. What I realized this morning is that letters and numbers are very difficult for me because, depending on the focal point for me, and the subsequent location in relation to my blind spot, they actually change on me. Who knew! I could clearly see the top line and the right side line, which exists in all 3 numbers, but the left side line and the bottom line were coming and going. Now it makes sense why I have such difficulty reading out a string of numbers without using my finger as a guide. It also makes sense why I have to double and triple check money amounts and credit card numbers and things of that nature. (Also my human factors brain comes out for a second to comment on the importance of the font type for readability.) A new awareness for me. Starting the day off right!

As a final note. Some of you may remember my experience with an analog clock in the hospital. The analog clock helped ground me in reality because I knew what it was supposed to look like and if it looked off I knew it was my sensory perception that was jacked. Since then I have felt most comfortable with an analog clock available somewhere in the room. Now it appears that digital clocks can be my friend too! It just took some time to figure that out (pun intended…I hear your groans).

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