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Hi Hilary .. I wish I lived near you I would read to you and help you all I could. Is there any way that you can have someone contact the organization of the blind or a local library to see if they have any program for those with limited vision? I dont know if you live in the states or not, but on the off chance you do, you have the right to get books on tape free. I know that is only a bandaid but for someone who loves books and the written word, it is a connection that is difficult now to have. Maybe your church or a neighbor can help to assist you in this ? Also for you and the others who are having visual problems, I read that this is a common pd complaint and that vision specialists should be on the lookout for this .. Why does it appear that this is a surprise? Push them to give you magnifying glass if that helps no matter how ridiculous it seems .. What is it disinterest or they have no definitive answers? See I have two friends who are pwp and one who has ms .. She has to watch her eye sight too so what ever I can find out from here often helps me both with my friend in Australia and with my woman friend 40/ 38/ ? here. My other friend is on your list so he is aware of the information you all share . Hilary if you want to off list mail me I would be happy to hear from you . ----- Original Message ----- From: Hilary Blue <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Friday, January 28, 2000 2:52 PM Subject: Re: NEWS-Parkinson's hinders patients' ability to distinguish contrast > Once again i can identify completely.. Reading - i am a librarian by > profession - i used to read 10-12 books a week - then i started reading > moostly children'se books - at first i used to saay they are well written > good stories and have happpy endings - then i realised i was bluffing myself , > it was really the large print i was seeking. Aned ulverscroft books were too > heavy. Now i cant even cope wit Harry Potter !! My hands cant hold the > book, my eyes cant focus on the print, and my mind cant concetrate o'n the > story - gets bored and wanders off on its own. I've started trying to knit > again - keeps my hands busy, dont need to see what i'm doing like crochet, and > doesnt occuppy my mind which cann go off on iots fligihts of fancy! 'And i > always know when i nedd my mesds without a clolck - i cant see the computer > screen/ And the percentage of un corroected typos goes up - i simply dont see > them. but when my meds kick in, i see perfectly (with my glasses) my neuro > thinks i'm crazy, wouldnt support my request to see a neuro -ophthalmolgist- > but during off times i cant even distinguish the letters on the keyboard!!! > i've gone thru all those phases and synptoms since i began writing this letter > hilary blue > > Mary Ann Ryan wrote: > > > > Barb wrote: > > It's not that they don't recognize my visual difficulties. but > > > rather they lump it under the "Mom's getting older"category. And > > > while I DO admit to having a birthday once a year and those years > > > ARE mounting up <GULP>, at 57 I don't consider myself THAT old! > > > > Barb brings up a major complaint of mine - that when folks get older they > > should *expect* to be sick. I'm 55 and have **no** vision problems. In > > fact, I'll bet most of the caregivers on this list don't have the visions > > problems described in Derek's article. Which means that, clearly, > > difficulty distinguishing contrast is a specific problem associated with > > PD - and not age. > > > > My husband, Jamie, has had such terrible problems reading that he no longer > > is able to enjoy what used to be his favorite pass-time. He's been seen by > > a Neuro-opthalmologist who could offer no solution to his problem. Jamie's > > neurologist just shakes his head when Jamie mentions his visual > > difficulties. > > > > I sincerely hope that active research continues in this field. It may be > > that there is a rather simple solution to this problem - at least that's my > > hope. It would be wonderful if my husband could read again. > > ----- > > God bless > > Mary Ann (CG Jamie 60/20) >