AIBU to feel like a fraud using a white stick?

[Boxingshibes]

Have posted in work but would like more responses.
To sum up I currently have limited sight.
I can see about 6ft in front of me clearly.
But also need glasses for computer and reading. Separate glasses.
I had cataract surgery 1 year ago but I so regret it.
I was -9.50 but now I can't actually see long distance.
Anyway my aibu
My dr has told me to use a white stick ( nhs gave it to me) but I feel like a fraud.

Aibu - you are not blind- you are just pretending.

Ainbu- medical advice told you to use it

Because people judge you unfairly...

I was given crutches after 4 months in hospital off my feet by Drs orders...people view you not with kindness but disbelief and sourness.

I got the cloudiness (it's the way the lens capsule grows around the implant) when I had my cataract replaced and it was awful. Worse, some cocky 12 year old decided I was making it up, so I ended up putting up with it for almost a year. It took me face planting over an abandoned palette that I missed due to glare to get taken seriously.

Instant relief from the laser treatment. Even before the drops wore off.

Of course you’re not a fraud. You using the white stick doesn’t cause anyone else loss or disadvantage, in fact if anything it’s helpful to others as well as to you.

Fraud is an act of deception intended to secure an unfair or unlawful gain, often involving misrepresentation or concealment of material facts to induce another party to part with something of value.

I understand. When I first got my electric wheelchair (on the nhs, for full time use, inside and out) I felt exactly the same. It took a couple of years for me to adjust but you just keep having to tell yourself it’s necessary and you’ve had it medically recommended. It’s an aid, not an accessory.

💐

This is a really nasty response.

The OP has already said she feels uncomfortable asking for help and afraid of being judged.

Its really difficult to come to acceptance with having a disability.

If it would be useful to you and keep you safe then you are someone who needs to use the stick. There is no rule about who should use them. They are a disability aid for your condition

My friend has just had his cataracts done He was told he'd need to do x in about a years time to deal with the cloudiness, but he'd only need to do it once & then they'd be fine. I'm sorry I can't remember what he was told he'd need to do, but I can ask him if you'd like me to?

im having laser treatment for sudden onset prolific retinopathy after a stroke, im nit sure if the process ys the same or not.

but to answer your actual question. Don't be a goose! If using the white stick will help you, use it! 💕

You’re not a fraud, you have a disability. If the white stick aids you, use it. I’m sorry you’re experiencing such a scary unsettling time.

I'm guessing it's a symbol cane, not a white cane?

This is to symbolise to others that you have a VI of any degree. It doesn't mean you are blind and it also doesn't matter if anyone thinks you are blind or a fraud.

It's to help you and you've been explained why it would benefit you to use one and you accepted the cane, so no one at the hospital knows you're feeling uneasy about this but there are people to help. I would call the eye hospital and ask to speak with the optom or the ECLO about how you are feeling.

You don't need to be blind. My grandmother had one as she was partially sighted. She had sight in one eye but I don't think she had peripheral vision in it, or it wasn't very good. She didn't have clear sight but could still watch TV and see people if they were close.
We didn't talk about her white stick but she used it to judge the ground around her.

I’m really sorry OP. My intention was not to be nasty. My comment has come across absolutely not as intended. I was simply trying to say ‘no, you are not a fraud, trust the medics’ - you don’t need unqualified people to try and tell you that you are not a fraud because the medical professionals who have seen you have deemed the cane necessary. I’m so sorry if my post came across nasty as I never meant that at all.

Sympathy. You've got a lot to suddenly consider. A white stick must feel like a huge step to take.
But you need it. They've advised you to use it.
It'll enable you to get around easier.

Is it a symbol cane - to let others know you are VI? Or a long cane (ie with a roller ball on the bottom to aid mobility?)

either way, if it helps you then it’s needed

Thank you, that's good of you to elaborate and I'm glad that's not what you meant.

I think if you haven't been in this position it's hard to understand the psychological adjustment process people go through. Making such a visible change can feel huge to begin with

As a disabled person I absolutely do understand, but; the post you have commented on was an apology for coming across badly when I didn’t mean to. Perhaps it can be left at that?