When you are first diagnosed

This section of our website has been put together using local information and a booklet from the RNIB called ‘Sight Loss What We Needed to Know’ by people who have experienced losing their sight.  We are grateful to the RNIB for their permission to use this material. The following is a link to the page on the RNIB to download the booklet as a PDF or Word file RNIB Booklet.

This information has been put together by people living with sight loss who are at different stages of dealing with sight loss.

If you are reading this, then you (or a close relative or a friend) have experienced sight loss.  You would have been to a hospital, where an Eye Doctor (Ophthalmologist) has told you that you have lost your vision or that you qualify for a Certificate of Vision Impairment (a document which states that you are sight impaired or severely sight impaired).

For some people, sight loss comes suddenly and for others, it is part of long-term health issues.  Either way it may be life changing.

It can be a difficult, worrying time and you’ll be feeling all sorts of emotions. For some people, it may be a particularly distressing time, too.  It’s perfectly normal to feel upset, angry and overwhelmed. You may be struggling to understand why this has happened to you and how you’re going to cope now and in the future.

You’re not alone.  It’s estimated that there are 1.7 million people in England living with sight loss that has a significant impact on their daily lives, and each year around 20,000 Certificates of Vision Impairment are issued.

People have been through what you’re now experiencing and asked many of the same questions you may have asked.  This is the information that they have found to be helpful, and we hope that this will give you some reassurance.  You’re bound to experience challenges and our aim is to help you to discover some of the solutions.

What happens in Newcastle

In Newcastle there is a range of help available when you are first diagnosed – the Eye Clinic Liaison service based at the RVI, a referral to Adult Services and ourselves.  Our Vision Matters Course (VMC) is a great place to start.  For more information about this course, please visit he following link VMC.