Sometimes, if I think too hard, I always know that the future is exciting, but it is also daunting.
I don't often think of my diagnosed Macular Degeneration.
For anyone who does not know what this disease is, the short version is that as the eyes age (and my Ophthalmologist said that my eyes look like they are 70 years old), you can get a build up of what are called Drusen. They, essentially, create blind spots in the central part of your vision.
It is possible for people to keep their peripheral vision even if their central vision is completely gone because of this disease.
I was diagnosed at age 21... I was saving for laser eye surgery, and when I went to ask my Optometrist about it, he took some scans and told me not to waste my money. There would be no point in paying for that surgery when this disease would take it away anyways - plus the surgery itself could cause blindness, especially in people who have auto-immune and inflammatory conditions.
(This is when I went to Europe instead).
Anyways - to the point.
This future with the Macular Degeneration can be especially daunting. Obviously I will eventually be unable to drive, I will have to rely on a cane or seeing-eye dog for any mobility, I will have to learn how to read braille... But here is where I find comfort:
Rollercoasters will be SO much more thrilling!
I will get to spend time with loved ones and ask them to read to me. This will be an especially special bonding time - with whomever decides they want to be a part of this.
I will get to use all of my other senses to heightened experiences - perhaps my musicality will improve by strides!
Not to mention the fact that at least I have had sight - so I will be able to imagine everything in the world. I will have visual memories that I can draw from.
I am reading this incredible book called "All The Light We Cannot See" and one of the main characters is blind (from age 3). Whenever I read through the explanations from that character about what the beach was like for her, what stones and crystals and shells felt like, I find it enthralling. It reminds me that the world is beautiful even if you cannot visualize it. Macular Degeneration may not take my sight. But I know that if it eventually does, I am going to do my absolute best to remember this particular book and to remember that I can learn how to enjoy all of the same activities - just in a modified form.
Plus - skydiving with only periphery? That could either be absolutely incredible, or incredibly nauseating. Gotta find out though! ;)