Vision Rehabilitation

Vision loss from macular degeneration can vary. In some people, it can progress so slowly that they never lose much of their vision. In others, visual impairment can happen quite rapidly. Some people might experience vision loss in one eye, and others have it in both eyes. Macular degeneration does not cause complete blindness, but it can lead to loss of central vision, which can significantly impact your life.

Progressive symptoms

As the condition progresses, people often report blurriness in the center of their vision. This blurry spot gets progressively bigger, or for some people, blank spots might start to appear. As vision loss progresses, you might need to make certain adaptations to accommodate your new visual field.¹

What is vision rehabilitation?

Vision rehabilitation can help you learn about new ways of doing things with varying visual abilities. According to the American Optometric Association, vision rehabilitation is “the process of treatment and education that helps individuals who are visually disabled attain maximum function, a sense of well-being, a personally satisfying level of independence, and optimum quality of life.”²

In essence, it helps people adapt to their new level of vision and maintain their existing lifestyle and quality of life.

Vision rehabilitation often involves:³

• Visual strategies
• Occupational therapy
• Mobility training
• Learning how to use visual aids

Vision rehabilitation starts with your eye doctor and expands to a larger team of therapists and doctors.³

What does vision rehabilitation involve?

Vision rehabilitation can look different for each person, depending on their needs. However, there are overarching concepts or areas that vision rehabilitation addresses.

Resources and support

Eye doctors can provide you with education about macular degeneration and what to expect as the condition progresses, give you information about visual aids that are available, and can also refer you to occupational therapists who specialize in clients with low vision. They might also be able to point you in the right direction for community resources, support groups, and reliable online sources of information.

Activities of daily living (ADLs)

Activities of daily living, or ADLs, can consist of things like personal care, cooking, cleaning, getting dressed, and managing finances. An occupational therapist or certified low-vision specialist can show you ways to adapt these behaviors to changing visual abilities, thus preserving your independence and providing you with autonomy.

An example can be something as simple as organizing your closet and labeling clothes so you can get dressed more easily. Or it can be more complicated, like organizing the household and providing instruction about lighting and contrasts to minimize any possible mobility issues around the house and facilitate ease of movement.

Assistive devices and technology

If you need assistive devices, an occupational therapist can help you get things like clocks and phones with larger numbers on them, various kinds of magnifiers, and closed-circuit television. They can help you with voice-to-text computer programs or other assistive computer technology that enable you to use your computer more easily. Working with canes, retinal implants, and therapy animals are also things that a vision rehabilitation specialist can help you with.

What are the benefits?

Aside from the practical benefits of vision rehabilitation regarding independence and autonomy, it can also help to reduce depression and reduce the risk of falls and fractures. Providing you with the education, skills, and problem-solving tools for living with vision loss from macular degeneration has wide-ranging effects on your physical and emotional well-being.³

What can you do?

If you have been diagnosed with macular degeneration, talk with your eye doctor about vision rehabilitation and what that might look like for you, either now or when the time comes. Think about the issues that concern you about vision loss, and what you would like to get assistance with. These are things that can be addressed in your vision rehabilitation.

You can work with your team to create a rehabilitation plan tailored to your needs that will enrich your life and enable you to be as independent as possible.