Chance meeting inspires woman facing sight loss

A woman who is losing her eyesight to a rare condition has found the confidence to speak openly about it thanks to a chance encounter.

Helen Cain, 55, from Pakenham near Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, was diagnosed with Stargardt's disease about 10 years ago.

The condition affects one in 8,000 to 10,000 people in the UK, but she was shocked to learn her new yoga instructor, Dawn Blezard from Sudbury, similarly had the condition.

Mrs Cain said the instructor had given her the confidence to "be known as all of me" and talk about the condition.

Up until her 40s, Mrs Cain had been fully sighted until things started to "shift and change".

After numerous visits to opticians and the hospital, she was diagnosed with Stargardt's - a rare, inherited condition which causes a loss of central vision.

Mrs Cain's life changed dramatically over the years and she had to stop driving, change her career and move house.

"Now that I look back I think that is quite a decade to have done all that within," she said.

"I'm only in my 50s and I want to continue working, contributing and having a sense of value, meaning and purpose."

Recently Mrs Cain found a yoga class at the Self Centre in Bury St Edmunds and she told instructor Mrs Blezard about her condition beforehand.

"She said, 'No way, that's the same [condition] as me'," she said.

"It was just the most incredible moment and such a relief.

"It's been an absolute godsend to be known as all of me, rather than hiding this part.

"It makes for a much better experience; she's such a powerful force of energy, she's amazing."

Mrs Blezard, 50, was diagnosed with Stargardt's five years ago following a routine eye test and she has lost most of the vision in her left eye.

Recalling the moment she met Mrs Cain, she said: "Because of my personality, I've just gone, 'My blind buddy!'.

"She looked horrified and I said, 'I've got exactly the same condition as you'.

"That was the icebreaker and ever since then we have had lots of conversations about how our life has changed for the better."

Mrs Blezard said there was a lot of support for those losing their vision at a young or old age, but not so much for those middle aged.

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