White Cane Assessment

Charlotte has had an evaluation for a white cane. I set it up because I want her to have access to all the tools that she might need but I think I was also hoping that the verdict would be: "She's fine, she doesn't need a cane." 

Not so, she does qualify.

We took her to an area with a grassy bank, a step and a pathway; very uneven terrain and quite a steep slope. She tried out a little cane - which was actually too large for her - and she got the hang of it quite quickly. She seemed very pleased to have a new piece of equipment and she also completely understood how it could help her navigate the ground.

The instructor is going to get back in contact and arrange some times for training in the streets around  our house.

I really worry about this step for us. It feels so huge. It is such a visible marker of blindness. People don't see the person, they only see the cane. I want them to know Charlotte first, not her equipment. It is a tool that I want her to have if she needs it, but I really hope that she won't need to use it.

Will this make her less physically adventurous? What about riding a bike, or going for a run? How do you those things as a cane-user? She jumped down the front steps this morning, will she suddenly stop doing that because she wants to feel the surface all the time?

But... it was clear, from the moment she had it in her hand, how much it would help her on uneven and unfamiliar ground. She was so confident with it. When she handed the cane back to the instructor she immediately reached for her hand as a replacement. I was struck by the difference.

I think I need a bit of an attitude adjustment. This is not a marker of blindness, this is a tool which will give her greater independence.

Press Clippings

More Achromatopsia in the news today. I am in danger of turning this blog into a clipping service!

Local newspaper article about two sisters living with Achromatopsia. This previous article about one of them is better written and is, to my mind, more interesting.

This week, the BBC featured research into retinal ganglion cells: Drug lets blind eyes see light. It does not refer to Achromatopsia but includes a magnificent picture of the retina.

First Magnifiers

I'm constantly amazed, and humbled, by the generosity of the NHS. If Charlotte needs it, she gets it. We were back at Great Ormond Street Hospital this week for an appointment for magnification devices and visual aids. I had been expecting that we would purchase these for her, but they were all freely given.

This was her first appointment of this type. At 4, she is just old enough to start to make use of them, including understanding them and looking after them. Plus, at 4, she has started her first year of school.

First up is this little beauty: Coil Bright Magnifier, 5850 (the magnification is not shown). She was able to use it immediately, putting over a page and identifying the objects underneath. It is sturdy and she can handle it very easily, she just slides it over the page. I think we will leave this one at school where she can use it for looking at detailed pictures and maybe letters and numbers. It would not be great for reading, it would be a pain to slide it between the lines, but I believe older children use them for reading maps and anything where the details are concentrated in one place.

She was also given this stand magnifier to try out: Coil Stand Magnifier, 5123 (7x magnification). She liked this one better than the dome, perhaps because the magnification is strong and maybe because the dome adds a lot of light to the image underneath. (She kept her sunglasses on for the duration of the appointment, including all eye tests). I'm a little concerned about the durability of this one so I think we will keep it for home, rather than sending it to school. Tonight, she used it to explore the back cover of a Mr Men book, getting a good look at each of those tiny Mr Men.

This is my personal favourite: Eschenbach, Microlux 4x13 Monocular (4x magnification). It is teeny-tiny, light as a feather, has auto-focus and fits into her little pocket like it isn't even there. This could be the thing that she wears on a string around her neck for the rest of her life. Right now, she can use it ok but she doesn't seem to find the world fascinating. It works better for much longer distances, it doesn't focus within a few meters. I love how it folds even smaller by pressing the sides together.

She was also given some binoculars to try but she didn't seem to get the hang of them. They might be useful when she is older. Magnification is kind of an abstract concept, when you think about it. You look through a lens and the picture appears closer, but it isn't inside the device, when you take the device out of the way for a closer look at the object, it recedes and you can't see it properly. So strange!

She had her eyesight tested again. The measurement of her visual capabilities has been an ongoing curiosity for me, so I was really pleased when she co-operated so nicely and was willing to identify smaller and smaller pictures held at a distance. Eventually, she couldn't make out what the pictures were and she kept trying to get off the chair to get a closer look. Her range came out at 6/38, which is far, far better than the 6/60 cutoff for Severely Sight Impaired/Blind. Apparently, children are registered differently from adults and we are not going to change her registration right now.

The appointment was really great, our best visit ever. Everything she tried and liked, the answer was, "OK, keep that one. What about this one?" I could hardly believe it. I certainly wouldn't go shopping like that, it's usually an either/or, but not for this outing. She went home, her monocular tightly zipped in her pocket. She proudly showed her family all her lovely magnifiers, before putting them safely in the cupboard with her sunglasses.

Tinted swimming goggles

I got the darkest tinted goggles I could find for Charlotte.  (These ones from Amazon)

She has been wearing them fine at indoor pools but they did not cut the mustard yesterday at an outdoor pool on a sunny day.  She isn't swimming independently yet so they weren't a problem in the pool but when she got out, she was really cautious about where she was walking.  It was obvious that she couldn't see well at all. The contrast with her behaviour once she put on her tinted glasses was remarkable.  Clearly, the glasses make a huge difference.

I'm not sure how we are going to be able to help her with swimming as she gets older.  Contact lenses under goggles seems like they would easily get lost.  She can wear her glasses for casual swimming but not in the ocean, or proper kid swimming where they are jumping in  and going under the water all the time.  Living in the UK, I guess this is not going to be much of a problem on too many days of the year ;)

Sunglasses A/B testing

I know there is some variation of opinion about red lenses within the Achromatopsia community but I thought I would share this little experience from yesterday. 

Charlotte is finally old enough to start to make proper decisions and communicate them in ways that I can understand.  We ventured out in bright sunlight, she was already wearing her third tier pair of sunglasses, her off-the-shelf Julbos.  She seems to like wearing them indoors, she often goes and finds them for herself (and calls them her "special brights").  I suspected that she can't see as well with these as her Moorfields pair with prescription and custom tinted lenses (her "school brights"), so I stashed these in my bag as we walked out the door.

As soon as we stepped outdoors, I could feel her hand grip me tighter and her steps get smaller and more tentative.  The difference between that and her ususal behaviour was remarkable.  I stopped her and made her try on both pairs of glasses before choosing which to wear.  She didn't want to experiment but quite quickly settled on the prescription lenses and we set off as normal.

 

New glasses

I finally picked up Charlotte's new sunglasses from Moorfields. 

They have done a great job on getting the colour really dark.  It is not red so much as a very dark brown.  When she put them on, she was peering around the room, appearing to look at things in a whole new way.  I do hope that the prescription increases her vision and her visual interest in things.

The only issue with them is that the lenses are much heavier than her plastic sunglasses.  They slide off her face and I don't think she likes wearing them that much.  Hopefully they will fit her a bit better as she grows.

Monoculars

I'm fascinated by other blind people.  I can't get enough of watching them and trying to glean information.  We went bowling recently and witnessed another low-vision kid there.  He was much older than Charlotte, maybe 8-10, and he was using a monocular to see the scoreboard screen.  He wore it on a string around his neck.  I suspect he had Ocular Albinism because his hair was very fair.  I watched him for a while, he was with a group of much younger kids, helping them with their balls and checking the scoreboard for them.  I'm not sure if he could see the pins or not, he didn't use his monocular to look at the end of the lane so I decided that either he didn't need it or it was no use.

The most interesting experience for me was the different reactions of those close to us.  It was my mother-in-law who pointed him out to me.  Then she said, "He's having a terrible time."  I watched him for a bit and then decided that he was managing extremely well.  I guess she meant, he is having a terrible time seeing the scoreboard without assistance.  It is so interesting how we could have had two totally different points of view about exactly the same situation.  Perspective is everything.

I really wanted to go over there and ask him all about his monocular: where he got it, when he started using one, how it helps him, etc.  But it would have been inappropriate so I didn't.

Prescription lenses

Charlotte has been prescribed lenses now, +4 in each eye.  After finding the Noir eyeshields online and ordering them from Misouri, I was quite worried about not getting her the right type of lens tint.  Everything I've read from adult Achromats has said that their childhood prescriptions were never as useful as dark sunglasses.

I went to Moorfields to attempt to get the prescription filled there.  I know they customise lenses and also have great frames for kids.  As we are patients there, I thought we had a pretty good chance of being seen.

They were utterly superb in their service!  I feel so fortunate that we have the most marvellous healthcare for Charlotte, they checked the tint, offered to custom tint to try and match the colour, had an exceptional range of frames and were so patient with her when she was being unco-operative.

I can't wait to pick them up and see how they look...

Too dark!

I've been very neglectful of this blog recently. Life has been good, Charlotte is a total cutie who makes us laugh every day, and I have not had anything to say about Achromatopsia. No news is good news! I thought I would share this cute anecdote from this evening though: I had the light off in the kitchen and on in the hall outside. Charlotte said, "Too dark! Ligh' on in ki'ken!" So I had to turn on the light.

Disability Living Allowance

Charlotte has qualified for her DLA. She is getting the middle rate and we can apply for more when she is 3. I'm pleased for her, we'll save it up and hopefully it will make a difference to her future. It feels strange, she seems so normal. I guess she is one of those people who the government will move from disability to jobseekers benefits. Probably right, she probably doesn't really qualify but while she does, we'll save it up for a nest egg for her.

Disabled parking

This thing is not without it's silver lining: Charlotte has qualified for a disabled parking permit. Never mind the fact that she is too young to drive and doesn't have good enough vision to qualify for a licence anyway, she gets parking perks. I'm sure we'll be suitably grateful if she has significant mobility issues in the future, but for now they're perks.

Now, where we live, these parking perks are particularly valuable. We can park in any resident's parking bay almost anywhere in London. Given the fact at there is no free parking anywhere in central London, this is huge! To put it in perspective: if we go for a playdate by car, we would normally have to put the car on a meter; I have to buy an annual parking permit just to park the car outside our own house. Thanks to Charlie, I never have to pay for parking again!

Adaptive technology

Great video from the Achromatopsia Convention on one of their sessions here. Thanks for uploading guys - can we have any more?

It is a session showcasing adaptive technology available to Achromats and it's a bit salesy but I don't mind.

Products to remember:
Digital Handheld magnifier - quick, easy, small and light, shows you anything up close.
Colourino - who knew, a machine can tell you what colour something is!
CCTV - while I am not sure many Achromats actually need them for reading, the mobile arm could make a big difference in seeing across the room as well as up close magnification.
Voice-to-text software - to make typing email or notes quicker

But to my mind, the very best thing about this video is the presenter. It's not shown in the conference materials and it took me a while to work it out, but I think he is an Achromat. I only worked it out because he was talking about what works for him, otherwise, he looks like a regular but super-confident guy: giving a presentation in front of a room full of people, seeing hands raised for taking questions, talking about his grad school, his wife - yay! I looked really closely and wondered if he was wearing red lenses but couldn't really tell and he dislike of peer into reading materials, but nothing that would make anyone point and stare.

Point to remember: other people don't notice or care. He told the story of being self-conscious using his monocular in class and the guy sitting next to him for a 10 week course noticing on the final day!

Disability Living Allowance

Today I sent off Charlotte’s application for Disability Living Allowance (DLA). 
 
I have been going through a lot of conflicted feelings about it in general and have put it off for over a year now.  But that’s not fair on Charlotte so I have to do the best I can to secure her any money that she might be able to claim.
 
My conflicted feelings centre around guilt, that handmaiden of mothers everywhere:  she seems so capable and is developing so normally that I feel guilty claiming disability for her, like she doesn’t need it and might be taking it away from someone who does.  I counter that by remembering that she does have significant difficulties that will slow her down in life and she is entitled to support for them.  I have been answering the questions on the application form based on her abilities when she is outside in daylight, without adaptive eyewear/assistance, I realise how helpless she really is and am grateful for the aids and support that she can receive.  I also feel guilty for claiming benefits when we are a family with a good income. 
 
I expect that she might be granted the middle rate of allowance which, at almost £50 per week, could quickly add up.  My intention is to put it in a bank account for her and keep it as a nest egg/trust fund for her when she is older.  She will probably have extra expenses in her life (eg sunglasses, taxis, living in central London, might find it difficult to find employment/a sugar daddy etc) so I hope that this money can make a little difference to her in the future.
 
Hence, my desire to put these benefits aside for her future and not fritter them away ourselves.  I believe in the welfare state and universal benefits should be available to all regardless of means.  Plus, family means do not always translate into future personal means and who knows what circumstances any of us may find ourselves in the future.  I’m reminded of the Chinese proverb, “From rice paddy to rice paddy in three generations.”

White cane travel

Paddington Station is quite the location for white cane spotting today, we've been here 5 minutes and I've already seen 2!

One of them was a Dad with his wife and two kids and they were clearly on a family day out. I find that so encouraging: he's got a partner, he's got children, they're doing regular stuff, he must have a job (because they weren't dressed in rags) and that is really the things I want in life for both my children. It's great to see blind people living normal lives.

Airports

I've been I've been travelling on business this week and thinking about navigating airports with a visual impairment. i was noticing the special assistance given to some passengers and wondering if Charlotte would avail herself of it in airports.  They seem like they might be great in some ways and terrible in others. The lighting is really bad but all the floors are level and smooth with wide corridors; but the signage would presumably be a problem: reading the departure boards would be a nightmare. But they have those great golf carts for assisting passengers who need it.

I would think that is she wants to be an independent soul, she would navigate airports on her own but if she feels like a big of pampering (as I do at my age!), she could book some assistance and get all the benefits of being driven to the gate and queue jumping. This would presumably not apply with a discount airline.

Of course, once she is on the plane, she has proven that she loves, loves, loves the rod lighting!

Silver linings

Picture this: it's December, you have to go shopping for gifts, the cars are queuing up at the mall just to get into the parking lot, all the spots are full, but there are 15 empty bays right by the doors. Disabled spots. Mine!

We qualify for a blue badge and I'm sure as .... going to use it. Well, once we get a car. We've got all the paperwork for Charlotte's registration and we also get 50% off our TV license and she gets free bus travel. It ain't much but I'll take it.

And if anyone wants to trade: I'll give it all up for two (or just one) retinas full of working cones. Apply below.

Registered Blind

We were back at Great Ormond Street today to see Charlotte's primary Ophthalmologist. She had a letter from Prof Cone after our appointment at Moorfields so she was able to confirm the diagnosis of Achromatopsia. I requested and she offered registration for Charlotte. They can put her down as Severly Sight Impaired/Blind based on the expected outcomes for people with Achromatopsia.

I've been expecting to register her for some time so it's not a terrible shock or anything. At the same time, it does feel that this moment has some gravity. The form quotes that registration defines her as "disabled" under the Disability Discrimination Act, so it is quite a big deal the day one's child is legally defined as blind and disabled.

At the same time, I am not really feeling the weight today. This is nothing compared to the way I felt in the early days of Charlotte's impairment. We have known this for so long that this is not unexpected, nor a huge shock. Clearly, it is a path we would rather not travel but I see these legalities more as an opening of opportunities for her, rather than limiting her capabilities. We will have an easier time accessing any available services (not that this has been difficult to date), which will be very important for her education, and we can apply for disability benefits which we will put in a bank account for her as a nest egg for when she is older.

She is also the proud owner of some new eye patches. The Orthoptist at Moorfields noticed some weakness in her right eye in May, then I saw it in some photographs. It's not obvious when you look at her but when you cover her left eye, she is really insistent on uncovering it fast. I mentioned it today so they reported on it. Unfortunately, I said the right eye and I should have asked them to identify which eye it was (consultant pointed that out to me). Anyway, she said there wouldn't be any harm in patching for 1/2 to 1 hour daily and seeing how she gets on. Clearly she (Ch) is not going to like it so she also said that if it is really not working out for us (or the left eye is getting weaker), we can relax about not doing it too. Awesome, I love no pressure medical interventions!

I guess I should go in there right now and get the first patch on her but she is playing by herself so beautifully that I hate to disturb her! Maybe when Emily wakes up and we can all play something together. I think breakfast will be a good time to patch because she likes to eat and then it is done for the day. Poor little thing, it will probably irritate her already sensitive skin terribly. But it was me who asked for this and I would hate to miss an opportunity to do something for her when it is not such a big deal and have it turn into a big deal. She will look less blind if both her eyes move in unison and her vision will be so much better if they are both working to their full potential.

So that's it for today. Quite a lot of meat but no real changes to the bones of this thing.

Future post: thoughts on working mothers of disabled children a.k.a. my justification for getting out of the house and into the office!

Sunglasses tally

I feel like I should keep a record of the sunglasses that we have been through. We keep losing them because Charlotte likes to throw things out of the pram and if we don't notice... bye bye sunglasses.

In order of appearance:

1. Heart-shaped, white frames with heart pictures

Image: too horrifying to photograph
Cost: £0.00 (gift for Emily)
Source: belong to big sister
Reason: they were the only damn things that had short enough arms that when she was lying down in her stroller they wouldn’t get pushed forward off her face.
Review: Lots of smiles and stares in the pram. Very embarrassing. “No, my baby is not wearing these because I think it is funny, she is wearing these because we don’t have anything else that fits right now!”
Current status: Unfortunately, we still have them, they sit in the medicine/sunscreen basket.

2. Toddler sunnies, orange/pink with butterfly pictures


(This is Emily, not Charlotte)

Cost: £0.00 (These belong to Emily)
Source: Local pharmacy in Shoal Bay, Australia
Reason: She would keep these on better than the Baby Banz
Review: I love these sunnies, they look great! They are Emily’s proper sunglasses right now. But, despite the mirror coating, they are not that dark. Besides, they were clearly too big for Charlotte as a baby. When she is older and Emily has outgrown them, they will be saved as a backup pair.
Current status: Emily still owns these

3. Beaba baby sunglasses, beige

Cost: £11-ish
Source: online somewhere, probably Amazon
Reason: She was still rejecting the Baby Banz and these were the only style I knew of that I hoped might be small enough to fit her face closely but with actual arms instead of a band.
Review: I was never particularly sold on these. Charlotte accepted them fine but the fit wasn’t very close to her face. I think the shipping messed them up a bit and they always sat crooked on her nose. I could never get them to straighten. They were a reasonable level of darkness but there was so much light leakage around the sides that I moved straight on to really working on getting her to accept and wear the Banz. I also wasn’t very keen on the colour, beige should be a nice neutral choice, particularly since she is wearing them in all weathers, but they just looked a bit blah.
Current status: In the hall cupboard as a last, last resort emergency pair.

4. Baby Banz, aqua


Cost: £10.37
Source: Amazon (given in Christmas stocking)
Reason purchased: Couldn't find the pink ones in the baby stuff in the cellar. (Found them about a week later - of course.)
Review: Good for wraparound qualities but not that dark. The band takes a while for them to get used to (see above failed sunglasses appearances) but once she got the hang of it, it didn't bother her so much and she would keep them on. The band is bad for wearing with a hat, either summer (very important for us) or a winter wooly one. I also hated the red marks the frames left on her face.
Bonus points: if you can get the band over a wooly winter hat, they look like a way cool snowboarder!
Current status : Unknown. They were thrown out of the pram on the school run, I scoured the pavement on the way back and the next day. We even enlisted the help of the upstairs neighbours who were on their way home, but no luck.

5. Baby Banz, pink

Cost: £0.00
Source: inherited from big sister
Reason: bought for Emily as a baby for Aust trip
Review: see above for Aqua colour.
Current status: We still have these, they sit in the pocket of the stroller as an emergency spare.

6. Julbo, Looping I, Pink/grey


Cost: £24.94
Source: Little Trekkers
Reason: One morning Charlotte tossed the pink Banz out of the stroller. Martin was with her and phoned to tell me what happened but he didn’t phone me back to tell me that he had gone back and scoured the pavements and found them. (He's very thorough.) He never in his wildest dreams imagined I would have been so efficient as to have ordered another pair within an hour! I had them in mind for ages, a friend recommended them to me. I wasn’t going to buy them immediately but when the need arose, I was there, clicking away with the mouse.
Review: these have been my favourites to date. The lenses are extremely dark, 95% light blocking, the mirror coating helps. The frames are durable, comfortable, attractive and close fitting. Moorfields and RNIB even stock these frames for their custom lenses now. In fact, the pair that I took to Moorfields were these ones. Again from an earlier post where they said they wouldn’t be able to produce anything better than them at present.
Current status: Lost. I am sure these came home with me a few weeks ago but I have not found them since. There were a few scratches on the mirror coating where I think Charlotte had a bit of a gnaw on them but they were in otherwise good condition and they were expensive so I am very sad about that.
Update: Found tonight! In one of Emily’s toy handbags. Everybody in the household denies putting them in there. At least now I can wrap the Julbo IIIs she is getting from my Mum for her birthday (see below).

7. RNIB amber lenses in Julbo Looping II frame, blue/green


Cost: £22.xx
Source: RNIB
Reason: I was reading more and more about Achromatopsia (even before her confirmed diagnosis) and thought I’d better get Charlotte some more serious eyewear. But the cost put me off a bit. Then I was talking to Michael who said that amber coloured lenses really helped him with contrast. So I ordered them. Lucky I did, because they took ages to arrive and I had to chase them multiple times. Having said that, I didn’t pay their invoice for ages because I am not used to being invoiced for things and having to send a cheque. (Says the online shopper with a credit card habit)
Review: We have only just started using these in the last week (since the mysterious disappearance of the Julbos). They have been a bit too large and the lenses aren’t that dark. Charlotte seems to really like them though. They are great for cloudy days and indoor on bright days. I like that I can see her eyes through them, which I can’t with the mirror coated ones. When I look through them, they definitely distort colours and shades into simple light and dark. I don’t know if this is completely beneficial to Charlotte, I’ll have to see how it compares to the red lenses (up next). I think that Charlotte’s rods work better in the dark areas which the amber lenses just merge into shadows. I can see that they would be very helpful to someone who has vision which is mostly just light and dark shapes because they make the lights brighter and the darks darker which is obviously good contrast. Privately, I have also been avoiding these ones a bit because of the blue frames which are just so boy-like. I don’t think I am too gendered in their clothing but these are different, they cover half her face and she wears them all the time.
Current status: Perfect second pair. I think I might order a pair of yellow ones for indoor when she is a bit older.

8. Julbo Pop Toddler, Rose


Cost: £20.14 on sale (but Mum bought them as a birthday gift for Charlotte)
Source: Little Trekkers, of course!
Reason: Sad loss of Julbo Is. I decided to upgrade a size and these were cheaper than the Julbo Looping IIs.
Review: They are the same lenses as the first Julbos so that’s great: really dark, mirror coated. The frames are a bit of a strange shape though and the colours on the frame are a bit wilder/brighter than the first pair. I wouldn't get them again because the Looping styles really are better: they don't have hinges on the arms and you can't put them on upside down (which happens more often than you would think).
Current status: Was going to be her primary outdoor pair until the return of the Julbo Is, now they will be spare until Is are lost again or outgrown.

Coming soon:

9. NoIR Dark Red 4% in infant size (£49.94)
UK stockist: Optima
I have high hopes that these will be her regular outdoor glasses. Of course, I will be posting their own special review. But they won’t let me choose the colour of the frames! For £50 sunglasses!!

Other sun protection purchases:

Universal sun shade for pram: Shade-a-babe (£35.00)
Great sunshade, I move it from pram to pram and she really likes it. I hate how it hides her away from the world though.
Sun tent: Nivea (£26.90)
I thought we would use it on holiday and in the garden but I never do. It’s hot inside and very bright. I can usually always find shade instead.
Hats: £0.00.
Emily had tons. I am really aware of sun protection and we have been to Australia regularly enough that she is kept in a good supply of sun hats and swimming hats that have all been handed down in due course.

Total purchases:

Sunglasses: £138.39
Other: £61.90
Grand total: £200.29

That’s not so bad really. In light of the fact that our medical care is completely free and I am being seen by a wide range of specialists, we really aren’t shelling out that much money. A Paediatric Ophthalmologist charges a standard £205.00 per private consultation and we have seen one three times on the NHS. I should add up the market value of the NHS-paid care we have received. Wait until the genetic testing bill comes in!

No new sunglasses

I went to Moorfields yesterday to try and get some even better sunglasses for Charlotte. They only prescribed 20% instead of the 4% that I had been reading about. The woman said that 4% would be almost like darkness. Yep. She said I should stick with the ones I have right now.

I am thinking of mail ordering some from the USA which a lot of people on the internets are raving about. They are $77.00 though, presumably before tax and shipping. I don't think they will offer a good enough fit at this age.

She was enjoying her amber ones when we were out and about in the pram. It was an overcast day so I left the sun shade open.

When in doubt, be normal

That is a good motto for us, one to remember at all times. The best thing we can give Charlotte is a normal, happy childhood. When I am looking for nannies, I wondered if I should disclose Charlotte's "extra needs" in the advertisement, but I didn't, we aren't looking for a nanny of special needs children, we are looking for a normal nanny for normal children, one who is particularly caring and attentive. I met somebody lovely last night and I am definately inviting her back for a second interview. I have three more to see and I will hopefully be able to invite two of them back.

I have also heard from Moorfields about sunglasses, they have the recommended tint from the Opth team (20% light - which I don't think will be dark enough) and I have to go and choose frames. I'm going to go on Tuesday next week. We are all so sick this week that my 10 visit Bikram Yoga card is going to expire.