In the News
Making the most of low vision
San Antonio Express-News Web Posted: 03/10/2004 12:00 AM CST
Cindy Tumiel
San Antonio Express-News
A brain tumor took more than Nathaniel Word's eyesight four years ago.
It took his independence as well.
Word went from a self-reliant entrepreneur to a depressed and dependent man who couldn't read his own mail. He couldn't drive. People had to tell him what food was on his plate. He ended up going to a psychiatrist for anti-depressant drugs.
"I couldn't even shave myself. I had to wait for my cousin to come over to help," Word said. "When you can't see, you lose control of your life."
Finally, his former wife told him something that the doctors who treated his pituitary tumor did not. San Antonio has two specialty clinics devoted to helping people such as Word cope with vision loss and make the most of whatever eyesight they have left.
Specially trained optometrists at the Lions Low Vision Clinic, part of the University of Texas Health Science Center, and Santa Rosa Low Vision Clinic, a privately owned downtown clinic, can do detailed exams to identify just how much vision remains. They then help people get the adaptive devices and occupational therapy they need to reclaim their lives.
State agencies and nonprofit organizations like the Texas Commission for the Blind, San Antonio Lighthouse and the Department of Veterans Affairs help most patients pay for exams, special glasses, powerful magnifiers and other adaptive equipment to help them read, watch television and even return to the work force.
"There is really no reason why someone in San Antonio should not seek help because help is available," said Sandra Fox, an optometrist at the health science center. Grants from the Lions Sight Research Foundation established the clinic two years ago.
The Texas Commission for the Blind estimates that more than 35,000 people in Bexar County are blind or severely visually impaired.
Still, people with vision loss often don't hear about the specialty clinics or other support networks until they are deep into frustration or depression, said Fox and Nancy Amir, an optometrist who owns the Santa Rosa clinic.
Many physicians who treat people for eye tumors, diabetes, macular degeneration or glaucoma either don't know the resources exist or don't think to refer their patients to low-vision specialists, the optometrists said.
"Traditionally, they tell you what my doctors told me: 'You're going to
go blind; you're not going to be able to drive your car; you're not
going to be able to read,'" said Bonnie Truax, president of the Low
Vision Club of San Antonio. The club has grown to more than 700 members
since she helped form it in 1997 as a support and resource group for the
visually impaired.
Word's tumor damaged the optic nerves of both his eyes. He has almost no vision in his right eye and limited vision in one quadrant of his left eye. But high-powered magnifiers and special glasses now are helping him rediscover reading and television. Word is trying to go back to work Ñ he wants to restore an old East Side hotel as affordable housing for low-income senior citizens.
"I'm still living on disability (income), but I have no intention of retiring on disability," Word said. "With the devices I've been getting, I'm getting my life back again."
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Updated 07 March 2005