Child Blindness

Through His Eyes

“Having a blind child is frustrating and scary and heart-wrenching at times; not because of the blindness itself, but because of how other people view it.”

There is an estimated 1.4 million children under the age of 15 that are legally blind and for every minute that passes, another child in the world goes blind. Yet, when we see a child who is visually impaired, we automatically develop our own opinions- “That child will never succeed, never be truly happy, and may never find their place in the world.” We jump to the conclusions without really understanding. Blindness is a disability, meaning a difficulty or trouble. Visual Impairment may detain a child from learning as fast as a child who can see, but that doesn’t mean they can’t learn. Nothing is impossible.
My nephew (who I will refer to as KB) is two years old and is visually impaired. We really don’t know what he can actually see, whether it be light, shadows, or outlines, but the doctor says that the main nerve in both of his eyes is damaged. Blindness, among a few other disabilities, limits how quickly KB learns. Every small thing that he learns is a major accomplishment and is greatly celebrated in our family. Teaching blind children is different in some ways, but in a lot of ways it is the same as teaching a normal child. You have to explain sight in great detail and let the child feel objects to learn how they work. A blind child may believe that things magically appear in their hands if we don’t explain to them where it came from or show them where to get it from. Just like any other child, blind children need love, attention, and lots of recognition for their accomplishments.
I want to really emphasize that just because a child is blind, doesn’t mean you should treat them any different than a sighted-child. It is said that when a person goes blind, their other senses grow stronger. The child can probably sense when don’t believe in them or when you think that they are unable to accomplish a task. The greatest thing you can give to a visually impaired child is your faith. It is really amazing to see what blind people can accomplish when they believe that they can do anything. I read an article about a small boy who went blind at a young age, but learned to cope with this new way of life. This article is really inspirational. It proves that anything is possible as long as you believe. To read this article, click the linkà http://www.justreader.com/2010/04/boy-who-can-see-without-his-eyes.html .
More than 75% of the world’s blindness is preventable or treatable. I think what really bothers me about KB’s vision is that it probably could have been prevented. Although it cannot be proven, I have come to believe that his visual impairment was caused by poor treatment and lack of nourishment. KB is my brother’s child, but he had nothing to do with him until it was already too late. KB’s mother may have consumed alcohol and drugs during pregnancy. As a baby, he was undernourished and dehydrated. Because of this, KB had a stroke when he was 3 months old and was put on life support. He could have died because the doctors were about to shut off the life support. KB pulled through at the last minute and began to recover. This is a moment that has shaped his whole life thus far; just when you think he is incapable of pushing through, he does. I’m not entirely sure when he officially went blind, but I do know for sure that he was not born blind. He could have been a normal little boy, but instead, his sight was taken from him at such a young age.
My life has drastically changed in the last year; in fact it’s changed for the better. From the day that KB first came to live with my family, I knew he was a miracle. He was a year old, but all he could do was lie on his back and shake a toy rattle. I look back at that day and realize that he has come so far. KB is almost walking, feeding himself, and really understanding the world around him. I remember the day that I was told that KB may never walk. I look back now and smile because pretty soon KB is going to prove all those doctors wrong. It is amazing to see what he can accomplish when we believe in him. The following quote sums up the last experiences of my life:

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be."

Farther Reading:
http://www.brailleinstitute.org/facts_about_sight_loss
http://hubpages.com/hub/Raising-a-Blind-Child-The-First-Year
http://www.worldaccessfortheblind.org/node/123
http://onemorethingtofeelguiltyabout.blogspot.com/2010/05/where-i-needed-to-be.html
http://www.wonderbaby.org/articles/raising-a-blind-baby.html