Foundation Fighting Blindness

Foundation Fighting Blindness

MY GOALS, AND VALUES

. ACCOMPLISHED GOALS- completed mobility training, completed the necessary tasks to obtain a Leader Dog for the Blind, raised my children basically on my own, held a job from age fifteen until age thirty six when I could no longer drive, taught Sunday school for several years, worked with arts and crafts for several years and still do, cared for my mother through the Independent Living program.
b. DELAYED GOALS- to become more independent and less dependent, take better care of my self both physically and emotionally, work on getting my GED, have stability in my life, play the piano.
c. UNATTAINABLE GOALS. I would like to go back to working a job that I am qualified to do, spend time with my grandchildren alone without the help from other family members, drive my car (Mustang) just one more time. The longest list is my accomplished goals. I think the delayed goal I would like to achieve would be to get my GED. The resources I would need to accomplish this goal would be to find a school or program that may have the materials in large print. I would much rather see the course in large print because I love to read as long as my eye sight will permit. My attitude toward my unattainable goals is self defeat and unrealistic. For example, it is unrealistic for me to drive my car. I used to love to drive my Mustangs and now I feel defeated since I can not drive.
Social standard is how others view and compare you’re behavior and performance as a visually impaired person. Personal standard is how one visually impaired person compares another visually impaired persons behavior and performance. SOCIAL COMPARSION STANDARD EXAMPLE- I had a friend I used to go walking with every day. She stopped walking with me after I had to start using my cane. I was given no explanation as to why she would no longer walk with me. I believe I was too slow for her pace with my cane. As a matter of fact she stopped coming around altogether. PERSONAL STANDARD EXAMPLE- I compare my self with my mother and how she would do certain tasks like how she could clean house and cook. I am not as good at it as she was. Cooking is a skill I have not been taught to do well yet. Mom was a very good cook and she was totally blind.
Try harder- give it more effort or find a clever way around the difficulty to accomplish the goal. Alter aspirations- adjust your goals is one way or substitute an attainable goal for an unattainable one. Relax standards- instead of trying to be the best be happy that you achieved the goal even if it was not up to your standards. Give up-after failing many times a person tends to give up. You do not have to be humiliated if you do not try. My response to failure is that I give up easily.
MOST IMPORTANT VALUES- Inner harmony- Peace of mind knowing I am saved by grace through the blood of Christ. True friendship- to me a true friendship is someone who is there for you through the good times and the bad times. A true friend will over look your faults and love you anyway. Wisdom-I have been told by a few people that I am a wise person. I think things through and use a lot of discernment. Creativity- I love to do my crafts. I make and decorate grapevine wreaths and I make little birdhouse chimes. I get a lot of enjoyment out of doing these things it sure is a fun hobby and it makes me feel good about my self. THE LEAST IMPORTANT VALUES- Body beautiful- I do not believe it is what we have on the outside that counts. We can have many flaws but have a beautiful spirit and soul. I believe God loves us no matter what color, size or shape we come in. Normalcy- normal is a state of mind. I would like to think of my self as unique. To be able to make my own choices weather right or wrong.

BASIC ASSUMPTIONS

Basic assumptions- It is not the best thing to assume that just because I am visually impaired I can not do the same things I enjoyed doing before my loss of vision. I love to do my crafts. I stopped doing them for awhile because I got frustrated and upset with my self because I found it difficult to see what I was doing. I no longer let my sight get in my way of doing what I love to do. I just found a different way of doing the crafts. I make wreaths and birdhouse chimes and now I do a lot of my work by feel. It may take me a little longer to finish my work but that’s ok the end result is the same as if I could see what I was doing. Beliefs- I believe that having this visual impairment and taking this course has helped me to learn how to set goals that I can obtain. Some goals may be harder to achieve than others but my belief and faith in God is what keeps me going forward to achieve these goals. One of my main goals is to get my high school diploma. I believe that having a good support system in place is also important. Priorities - my priority is to work on letting go of the fear, anxiety, self-pity and discouragement that I feel is related to my visual impairment. I am guilty of climbing up on my old familiar pity-pot and sitting there for a while but I always climb back down and start to move forward again. It may be one step forward and two steps time. I just want to live for today and let tomorrow take care of it’s self. I remember a time when one of these changes took place in my life. I set goals to work with Rehabilitation Services for the Blind Vocational Counselor and Orientation- Mobility Specialist. These changes were gradual changes. but I am learning to take it one day at a

THE TRAMA PHASE OF THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED

. The trauma phase for the person who is born visually impaired deals with the fact they do not realize they are different from other children until they are confronted by sighted children or adults who may comment about their blindness. This may make the child feel inadequate, or as if there is something wrong with them. It may also cause them a great deal of fear and hurt. The trauma phase for someone who becomes visually impaired. Each visually impaired person reacts differently to their blindness. Some have a lot of trouble accepting the fact that they are going blind. Some may have a lot of shock, disbelief, or denial. Some individuals who become visually impaired at first may seem to be ok with knowing they will lose their sight at some point, but then the fear of the unknown sets in and the person may fall completely apart later. The person that is going blind has to make adjustments in the way they do things. These adjustments are sometimes difficult for the person who is going blind.

LOW SELF-ESTEEM AND BEING VISUALLY IMPAIRED

There are many more factors that have led to low self-esteem in my life. First, when I was first diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa I was devastated. I knew my life was going to change and I was not sure that I was going to be able to deal with that change. I was twenty six years old when I was diagnosed with RP. I am fifty three now and my whole life has changed. I am not very happy with the way I have adjusted to being visually impaired. Learning how to cope has been very difficult. I miss driving my car and getting to places I need to go. It is not easy asking someone else to help me when I have always been able to do the things I needed to do on my own. Second, I have been diagnosed with PTSD and severe depression. It is hard for me to get out and do the things I need to get done even when someone is with me. It is difficult for me to finish tasks that I start for the lack of motivation. I feel like I am not good enough and that I am just taking up space. My self-esteem is really low at those times when I am feeling that way. Third, was the death of my mother it was devastating. I not only lost my mother but I lost a role model. My mother was very good at helping me learn to deal with my visual impairment. I loved my mother a great deal and I miss her very much. She was a strong woman. I wish I was a lot more like my mother. I know she had her struggles but she some how made it through. I really hope to learn to manage my life like she was able to manage hers. I think one factor that has contributed to high self-esteem and low self-esteem is the way I see my self in any given situation.

THE SENSES

One of my favorite Helen Keller quotations from her book, To Love this Life Quotations by Helen Keller, is The Senses. “We differ, blind and the seeing, not in the nature of our handicap, but in the understanding and idealism we put into the art of living. It is only when we put imagination and feeling behind the senses that they attain their full value. “(Helen Keller, 1922) I believe that the senses of hearing, touch, smell and taste are very important to a person who is visually impaired. It validates who we really are and what we become.

MOMMA

REMEMBER ME
REMEMBER ME WHEN FLOWERS BLOOM
EARLY IN THE SPRING.
REMEMBER ME ON SUNNY DAYS IN THE
FUN THAT SUMMER BRINGS.
REMEMBER ME IN THE FALL AS YOU WALK
THROUGH THE LEAVES OF GOLD.
AND IN THE WINTERTIME-REMEMBER ME
IN THE STORIES THAT ARE TOLD.
BUT MOST OF ALL REMEMBER EACH DAY
RIGHT FROM THE START I WILL BE FOREVER
NEAR FOR I LIVE WITHIN YOUR HEART.

IN MEMORY OF MY MOMMA PHYLLIS MAE YOUNGKRANTZ LEWIS
NOVEMBER 30, 1932-OCTOBER 16, 2004

I WILL ALWAYS LOVE AND MISS YOU!!
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!