Clare’s vision for more empathy

Ennis woman who lost her sight in her 30s appeals for understanding from public for people with disabilities

AN Ennis woman who has experienced sight loss has appealed for greater understanding among the general public for people with disabilities.
While Clare Cassidy (46) was born fully sighted, her life changed dramatically in January 2009 when she contracted a rare eye condition that left her vision impaired.
Her appeal for greater understanding comes after the National Council for the Blind Ireland (NCBI) launched a public information campaign highlighting five things on behalf of people who are blind or vision-impaired.
In view of different eye diseases, the NCBI outlined there are varying degrees of visual impairment and blindness; some individuals use white canes to help them navigate, others use guide dogs and others rely on their remaining vision.
Because having a vision impairment varies so much, vision can be affected by how sunny or cloudy it is outside.
Other times it depends on eye strain, the time of day, lighting inside versus outside, and even how many trees or landscaping are around casting shadows, causing the eyes to play lots of tricks.
People who are blind or vision-impaired may rely more on their other senses and develop a strong memory or are tuned into auditory cues but they don’t have a sixth sense.
They enjoy being spoken to with normal language and appreciate verbal instructions when seeking assistance.
Like everyone else, they do lead full lives but can be hampered by many structural barriers that still exist which can prevent full participation such as inaccessibility of public transport and the built environment, digital technology and access to fewer employment opportunities.
In December 2008, Clare, who was 33 years old at the time, qualified as a chef, swimming instructor and a carer. While she was out for a walk, she tripped outside Coláiste Mhuire, Ennis, on the ice.
Following another fall in Coole Park, Gort, she went to her own doctor on January 1, 2009, seeking advice about an issue with her right eye.
Following an examination, her doctor advised her to go immediately to University Hospital Limerick, UHL.
When she went to a consultant ophthalmologist, she was told that she needed to be admitted as an in-patient, and spent January and most of February in UHL.
A series of tests resulted in the diagnosis of a rare eye condition involving the scarring of the back of her eye tissue.
“I was in complete denial about the condition. At the end of 2016, I noticed a change and went back to the consultant ophthalmologist who stated in early 2017 her worst fears had come true.
I had stopped driving the previous October.
“I can manage better in my own home surroundings. I am confident walking around Ennis. I go to Dublin regularly, get out and travel with my cane. Life is for living.
“I am living with a sight condition even though I was born fully sighted.
“People with a disability don’t have the plague. We are intelligent people behind our disability.
“Life has changed in lots of ways. I had a heart attack in 2018. Things are more difficult during Covid-19. People should stand back and listen to people with a disability or ask how can I help you.
“I have had awful things shouted at me and said to me. People have said to me ‘watch where you are going, people have walked over the cane.
“I was in Galway Eyre Square when a homeless man said ‘watch where you are going’. I politely said, ‘I think you should’. He just looked at me, didn’t apologise and kept going.
“Some people don’t understand how a person who is visually impaired is affected. I can’t be responsible for some one else’s ignorance. That is just one negative and there are always plenty of positives. People can be ignorant or extremely nice,” she explained.
When it gets dark, Clare can’t see a thing outside and would need to be guided once she leaves the house.
Like others with sight loss, she has some sight during the day, but is effectively blind at night.
She doesn’t look forward to the winter when daylight hours are reduced, but is now learning to cope with this change a bit better than before.
Things like motorists parking on footpaths or bus drivers who don’t want to lower their bus are annoying for her, but she really appreciates when officials on trains are helpful.
Before a recent train journey to Dublin, she contacted a dedicated phone number, which meant she had assistance on board the train on the way to and from capital.
It was getting dark when she was coming back into Ennis, but she gets great help from local personnel in the station who know what she requires.
The new pedestrian bridge near the station has been a great addition as it avoids crossing a busy road.
“When I am out walking, if a car is parked on a footpath, you have to examine if you can fit through the space. If you can’t, I have to find where the edge of the path is and a way to get around the car.
“I can get irritated because sometimes a car is just abandoned on a footpath or sometimes there is a person in the car who will not move even if they see me with my cane.
“Clare County Council have done some fantastic work in the town, but there are still obstacles and you have to learn how to live with it.”
She believes society must change to make it easier for people with less mobility than she enjoys such as those in a wheelchair to travel around towns and villages.
“When I was a child, people with disabilities were locked away and never seen. I grew up in this generation. Do I feel I have a disability, no, it can be an advantage sometimes when you get brought up to the top of a queue in a shop.
“You can be looked after very well. I try not to dwell on the negativity. Children are amazing. You can be walking down the street, and a child can ask why is the woman using a stick?
“The answer is it is a special stick for her to see. If I hear the child, I turn around and ask would you like to know and show them how the stick works.
“Coping with traffic can be daunting. The government has assistive technology for people who are blind, but they don’t always turn it on for public transport on or don’t tell people it is there.”
She believes that dedicated parking spaces should be provided for elderly people who are able bodied but are not able to walk a long distance to a church.
A reduction in kerb size would be very helpful for people with sight loss.
She finds assistive technology such as google maps on her iPhone can very useful. Nine times out of ten, she arrives at her planned destination and most people are happy to confirm her precise location.
However, she has had to learn various independent living skills such as how to cook a meal with sight loss
Having trained in the Birmingham College of Food and Tourism, she is qualified as a pastry chef and baker, working previously in hotels in the United Kingdom and all over Ireland.
At the age of 16, she learned her first culinary skills from O’Connor’s Bakery in Ennis.
“I worked for a long time as a chef. I had to learn how to cook again. I had techniques in my head. As a chef, you learn to feel the heat by putting your hand close to the ring on the hob but you can’t put it too close.
“Sometimes, I have to ask someone to turn off the television so I can hear the click of the gas coming on. I am constantly teaching myself cooking skills
She said she is very fortunate to have a very good consultant ophthalmologist and team in UHL
“I should be completely blind but I have some light at the back of my eyes. I have strong faith and belief in myself to overcome obstacles that might come in my way.
She was very close to her uncle, Fr Frankie Cassidy, who promised her while he was dying from cancer in Cahercalla Community Hospital, he would watch over her in the future.
“I idolised Fr Frankie because he was the closest I had to a dad, because my dad died in 1977 when I was just two years of age.
“I try to be an independent as I can. Then there is the good side and the funny side when people overreact. It is the funny things that keep you going.”
A keen swimmer, she loves swimming in Ennis Leisure Centre where she is treated with great respect by all the staff who know her well.
“Swimming is a therapy. I have been using Ennis pool for more than 40 years. I have been swimming since I was a child.
“When I negotiate the gate, I know how to get to the family changing room, I know the deep end is to my right and the shallow end is to my left.
“I know by the feel of the camber where the steps are to get into the pool. If I go too far one way, one of the staff will direct me on to the right area.
“Ennis pool has 90% natural light. When I get into the shallow lane, I go into the second lane. When I focus my eyes on the ground, I can see the two dark lines and swim to the t-junction line near the end. Sometimes, I may swim into a person.
“If there is a change, all I need is someone to describe it to me. When I swim in the sea in Lahinch and White Strand, I go back to what I was taught as a child for life-saving.
“Young life guards admire me and ask me are you sure you are blind? I look for contrasts. I love being on the promenade in Lahinch and hearing the water lapping near me. I try and visualise the skyline.
“I can’t go into one of my favourite swimming spots in Clahane any more. That is ok, I know my limits,” she concluded.

by Dan Danaher