January Newsletter No. 331
How Visually Impaired People Ease Social Awkwardness
A study highlights the range of uncomfortable situations people living with blindness or visual impairment encounter due to interpersonal communication challenges.
https://goodmenproject.com/featured-content/how-visually-impaired-people-ease-social-awkwardness/
New Research: Bad Sleep, Snoring, and Sleepiness During the Day Could All Increase Your Risk of Permanent Sight Loss
New findings highlight the importance of sleep therapy for those at risk and eye exams for poor sleepers.
A recent UK Biobank study published in the journal BMJ Open suggests that poor sleep quality, including too much or too little sleep, daytime sleepiness, and snoring, may be associated with an increased risk of developing glaucoma, a condition that causes irreversible vision loss.
The findings highlight the importance of sleep therapy for those at high risk of the disease and eye exams for those with chronic sleep disorders to check for early signs of glaucoma.
5 Daily Habits That Affect Your Eyesight
Excessive screen time; smoking extensively; not regulating other health conditions; not maintaining adequate sleep and exercise and not staying hydrated can all impact on eye health.
https://doctor.ndtv.com/eyes/5-daily-habits-that-affect-your-eyesight-3648386
How to Use Your Smartphone to Cope with Vision Loss
‘How I wrote my first novel while going blind – and kept it a secret’
Writer with retinitis pigmentosa shares his experience of coping with losing his sight.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/dec/27/first-novel-writing-blindness
Glaucoma sufferer learned Braille in lockdown after losing sight
Remote learning was a struggle for many people during the Covid-19 pandemic but for Dawn Hopper it presented a particularly tough challenge. The 42-year-old was diagnosed with glaucoma three years ago and is now registered as severely sight impaired. “Audiobooks are great but there’s nothing like enjoying a book in peace and quiet. Hearing the book with your own voice,” Dawn added. “I suppose it’s just what I’m used to having used my vision to read up until my glaucoma diagnosis.” Dawn is now passing on her skills to others. She recently taught her 10-year-old goddaughter Lyra to read Braille.
Constant stress can speed up vision loss
Constant stress can impair your vision over time, a new study has found. Researchers from the University of California found that high levels of stress happening repeatedly can accelerate the ageing of cells in the eye, causing them to die off sooner and increasing sight loss.