Deafblindness Awareness Week

West Sussex charity 4Sight Vision Support is supporting Deafblind Awareness Week from 27th June to 3rd July. This national initiative, from Deafblindness UK, is designed to make sure that even more people are more aware about deafblindness.

During the week, Deafblindness UK will run various events, activities and campaigns to raise awareness of dual sensory loss. 4Sight Vision Support will provide free support and specialist information to blind and sight impaired residents across West Sussex. Staff and volunteers are experienced in assisting people with dual sensory loss and are happy to lend their support to the awareness raising campaign.

Deafblind symptoms and how it affects people

Deafblindness is more common than people realise – around 400,000 people in the UK are affected. Everyone is affected differently, some might need to adjust settings on their TV or turn up the volume on their phone, others might need assistance dogs, canes and more formal care.

A deafblind person won’t usually be totally deaf and totally blind, but both senses will be reduced enough to cause significant challenges in everyday life. According to the NHS, these problems can occur even if hearing loss and vision loss are mild, as the senses work together and one would usually help compensate for loss of the other.

To find out how 4Sight Vision Support can support you or someone you know living with sight and sight/hearing loss, call 01243 828555 or visit www.4sight.org.uk.

For more details about Deafblind Awareness Week visit deafblind.org.uk