FACING THE FUTURE TOGETHER

When her son was diagnosed with sight loss, Lorna Davies, 34, regained focus

- CATHERINE JONES

Watching my son play with his building blocks, my husband JD, then 28, seemed worried.

‘Rex’s eyes are moving all over the place,’ he frowned.

It was October 2016, Rex was nearly one and meeting his milestones, crawling and saying ‘Mama’. I hadn’t noticed anything wrong but as JD shared his concerns, fear curdled in the pit of my stomach. Was history repeating itself?

I’d been born with nystagmus, a condition that causes involuntary eye movement, and optic atrophy, which meant my optic nerve was damaged and affected the impulses sent between my brain and eye.

MUDDLED ALONG

At school, I’d worn glasses and had large print books. I found PE terrifying, unable to see balls flying at me, and was constantly bumping into people. But I didn’t want to be different so I muddled along and didn’t ask for help.