I first realised something was wrong when I couldn’t see the colours when I was painting. At age 45 my vision was almost perfect so developing an eye condition was something I had to get used to as my sight deteriorated rapidly. I can see several shadows at once which move around a lot, it’s quite disorientating!
I joined Sightline as a Volunteer Telephone Befriender just over six months ago. I am now retired from nursing and was looking for a volunteering role that I could use some of the skills I have gained over the years. More importantly, as I now live on my own, I can understand how people with limited or no sight can become very isolated without interaction with other people…
Paul seems to have many issues and has overwhelming feelings of isolation and loneliness which can sometimes be difficult to hear. I try to take heart that I am providing him with some much-needed friendship and support, albeit from a distance…
I joined the team of volunteer telephone befrienders with Sightline in April 2022. I connected with a member of the Sightline staff on LinkedIn, and she approached me for an initial discussion as the charity needed telephone befrienders to undertake a weekly call with people who are sight impaired. I also volunteer with Age UK and wanted to find more to do in the same vein…
Sightline’s telephone befriending service has provided me with the opportunity to share my life experiences so far. I also enjoy listening to the stories my befriender shares with me; the conversations range from our families to our interests and hobbies with everything in between thrown in too!
Each week, both Melanie and Tom tell me how much they look forward to my calls during their weeks. I truly believe they are my friends, and I am theirs and I am helping to make their lives a lot less lonely…
I haven’t any friends or family so my cleaner and Evie, my Sightline telephone befriender are the only people I am close to…
Whilst I am not visually impaired, my befriendee tells me she enjoys ours calls; these can often be lengthy so that to me is a good indicator that the calls are going well!
Day to day, being visually impaired can be a lonely experience. If the calls I make through Sightline can break up what can be a lonely, long day by offering a funny story or just a listening ear then I would do it ten times over…
I am a teacher at a primary school, so my days are extremely busy but the calls with my befriendee are scheduled for early on a Monday evening which fits in perfectly for us both…
