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Perspective of CVI - Blind woman who saw rain
Deirdre Galvin-McLaughlin
5/21/2018 3:38 PM
Post by Kayley McDonald, OTD Doctoral Candidate and Denee Kroeger, OTR/L
Have you ever wondered what it might be like to not be able to understand what you’re seeing? To step inside a person’s brain who has had a brain injury to the visual processing centers and see through their eyes (and mind) for a moment.
This video is one woman’s perspective on her personal story and experience of what it was like for her at age 29 after she had a stroke in her occipital lobe, which is the primary visual processing center of the brain. This first post is to give readers a perspective of one woman’s experience of what it might be like to live with CVI, which can occur following damage to occipital lobe.
In the video it shows where her brain was impacted by her stroke and she is able to verbalize what that experience was like. She went from seeing things, to not being able to see anything, then gradually noticing things that were reflective (i.e. raindrops on the window, water in the bath, water running in the sink). Different doctors told her she was “crazy,” however it was due to the signals being re-routed to the peripheral areas of her brain (more primitive centers) responsible for detecting movement as a protective response. The concept of being able to better detect things with movement or movement properties (reflective objects) is consistent with characteristics of cortical visual impairment. This is a short video clip (~3-minutes long) that provides a neat overview and visual of how children with CVI have an easier time detecting things with movement.
Woman who saw rain youtube video "The Blind Woman Who Saw Rain"
Speech-Language Pathologist,Parent/Family Member,Occupational Therapist,Physical Therapist,Other,Intervention Strategies
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Statement A
My child doesn't seem to have real control over his body yet.
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Statement B
My child has control over her own behaviors, but she doesn't use them to try to communicate to me.
She doesn't come to me to let me know what she wants, but it's easy for me to figure out, because she tries to do things for herself. She knows what she wants, and her behavior shows me what she wants. If she runs out of something to eat, she will just try to get more, rather than trying to get me to give her more.
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Statement C
My child clearly tries to communicate his needs to me through gestures, sounds or language.
He knows how to get me to do something for him. He uses some of the kinds of behaviors below to communicate:
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Mastered
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Only does this when prompted or encouraged to do so. Only does this in one or two contexts or with one person.
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Each question you will see is related to a certain message that your child might be able to express using a variety of behaviors. Read the question and decide whether your child is able to express the message described using any of the listed behaviors. If the answer is YES, then you must also decide whether your child has mastered the use of each behavior or whether it is still at an emerging stage. Check either the mastered or emerging box next to any behaviors your child uses to express the message. Use the following definitions to decide whether a behavior is mastered or emerging