Cane and Able: #6 Terribly Sorry, I Actually Can't Read

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One of the most embaressing things to encounter, personally, is that glossy paper they print nice books in and leaflets. I end up squinting and having a lot of trouble reading it. In some instances I have to turn to the person and say "I'm sorry... but I can't read this"

Even matt paper is a problem.

I was very embarressed about the whole thing and thought I must be doing something wrong. I was starting to read more documents on a computer rather than on paper, I stopped printing things off as there just seemed no point wasting money on something I struggle to read.

I didn't tell anyone about it for years, I guess I just withdraw from reading so much and hoped nobody would notice, did most of my research online instead of in books. It was only when I was at Bournemouth university getting my first assessment for Disabled Students Allowance that the assessor asked if I got heacahes after reading too long and asked for an estimate of time. He then gave me a piece of paper to try and read and asked a few questions. "Do the spaces between words form distracting patterns?" "Are you reading the same line twice?" he then held a piece of clear yellow plastic over the page and asked if it was easier to read, It made it harder and said so, he then put a piece of clear blue plastic over the page and it was... amazing. Suddenly the words seemed crisper and it was so much easier to read.

He told me I had meares-irlen syndrome, that it affects how the brain percieves writing because the white space between letters distracts the eyes and creates a glare. I was supposed to get assessed for special glasses with coloured lenses. Meares-Irlen adapts though, with age the problems change, while a blue lens might help me today in a few years I might need another colour for the same effect. It was why I was finding it harder and harder to read paper.

I didn't get the special glasses because the university left it too late to get my payments sorted, but the same things are finally rolling at Solent so should be able to get the same service. Though may have to travel to Bournemouth to the specialist eye clinic.