The Locker

---

The Corona-Virus pandemic has caused daily difficulties for everyone. But what if you are visually impaired? The blind journalist Kate pound explores the particular challenges that has thrown The Virus .

As The Train London Waterloo approached on my last trip home from work before the lockdown, a fellow traveler he noticed did not want to press The Button to open The Doors , because the Coronavirus.

I thought. Touch as someone who can not see, I have objects and surfaces, which is much More Than your average person.

Only on The Station , I feel, in order to have the vending machines you'll find The Card reader, touch the escalator moves, railing, to see if it is me, up or down, and tap on the side of The Train door, to measure the width of The Gap , I Am reminded so often that "the spirit".

added to this obvious hygiene issues, it is also harder to find a Bad-or alcohol-gel-point, if you want to wash your hands.

So, as with other visually impaired people adjust?

Sajid Ali , to go shopping, more challenging recently,

Sajid Ali , a 40-year-old market researcher from West Yorkshire , Says A Trip to the supermarket is difficult - it keeps a week in the shop in one hand and a white cane in The Other , makes navigating a challenge.

he Says He can lose the balance and that it is hard to walk in a straight line.

he Says that He usually asks for help, the items he needs, but always, that life has proven to be important support difficult recently.

"you said you were sure you could help, because of the "latest things," he Says . "I think it was a contact thing to take because of the with, someone to arm for the guide. I waited about Five Minutes , and at The End you will help. "

is always the shops, a challenge for Cynthia Parkinson, 22, from Lancashire .

Cynthia values her independence

"There are a lot of main roads around here, and hardly any intersections, so I can't say to other shops on My Own ," she said.

her father gave her a lift last time, but she feels this is a threat to the safety of your mom, which is classified as High Risk and shield for 12 weeks.

Cynthia, a diploma in criminology and sociology, values their independence but Says you can move in with your parents in order to survive.

"Usually I get a delivery, but all the slots were taken," she Says . "Some online services say they have been primarily people with disabilities for The Delivery slots. I've seen a lot of tweets from blind people how to use these priority deliveries, but I have not seen all the answers. "

But even if you managed to get a slot, Online Shopping is No Picnic . For the blind and visually impaired people, The Process involves many steps and the matters it is far slower, when all rush to buy.

Sajid Says , by The Time he had, she heard the electronic voice of his screen reader, which tells him what is available, other buyer had already paid for the items he needed.

"I'm worried, everything will be sold out by The Time I looked," he Says .

Mandy O'malley carefully what needs to be occurs on the food you buy for your family

Another Problem with Online Shopping , if items are out of stock and replaced, which is a far bigger problem for Some People with multiple impairments.

Hampshire mum-of-three, Mandy O'malley, 42, has allergies, diabetes, and children with special dietary needs, so that when The Delivery guys come in with items they have not researched, to turn on them.

"In our delivery yesterday, we had seven items is not available, and 14 substitutions," she Says .

in Spite of she needed, she had to reject the elements, because they could not read, which meant the packaging, and the social distance, The Driver could not help.

you are not alone here. In the year 2017, the RNIB reported that The Employment rate of visually impaired people was around 25%, compared to 81% for the UK in General, you are among the poorest in the society.

The aid organization also reported higher rates of isolation and subsequent depression among visually impaired people in normal times.

Sajid , which has, as a rule, a part in their local Parkrun at the weekend, is concerned that a lack of contact with people is even worse during the current crisis.

"I think there will be some lonely days in advance. In General, I work and go out, but I spend a lot of time alone, I'm used to it, but with all the limitations that I could get really isolated. "

Sajid Says he finds the current

Despite these difficulties, many visually impaired people I spoke with reported that they were managing as well. Some feel the complications of the Corona-Virus are the same for you as for sighted people.

And Sajid thinks the visually impaired people who set the strategies, and resistance sometimes you an advantage in difficult times.

"There's always a lot to focus on for the blind and visually impaired people, it is ten times more difficult," he Says . "You gotta keep your sense of Humor.

"We are faced with this kind of stuff Every Day , so we probably have more of that Humor in The Locker room. "

for more disability News, follow the BBC's ouch on Twitter and Facebook and subscribe to the podcast.

self-isolation, coronavirus pandemic, supermarkets, disability, blindness and visual-impairment

Source of news: bbc.com