I’m on a podcast!

I’ve previously written about how being diagnosed with a rare disease was a catalyst for change.  I delved deeper into simple living and ways to save and invest and, more than a decade later, it led me to set up Edit & Reset so that I could help others transform their homes and relationship with money.

What I haven’t revealed is that the same diagnosis also led to me becoming disabled. I am visually impaired and, due to Stargardt Disease, have been blind for almost three years.

Medically-speaking ‘blind’ means different things.  In my own case – which is typical of the vast majority of people who are blind – I still have a lot of useful vision.  Day-to-day my disability remains incognito, unless I make it known to others, perhaps by using a white cane or a magnifier in public. 

Very few blind people are totally blind, which runs contrary to what many people might think.  Content creator Lucy Edwards is a well known example of a person who is totally blind.  Like Lucy, myself and many other blind people, our limited vision doesn’t hold us back regardless of how much or how little of our vision is preserved.  People who are blind find success in all sorts of careers and it’s an asset – not a hurdle – when I support clients to declutter and coach them about habit change and money.

When Caroline Thor asked me to feature on an episode of her popular Living Clutter Free Forever podcast I initially felt a bit reluctant.  Visual impairment is not uncommon – according to charity the RNIB there are an estimated 2 million people living with sight loss in the UK.  But the stereotypes and dialogue about disability and blindness in particular are often focused on deficit and I was concerned that, if potential clients found out about my disability, they might lose confidence in my abilities before I’d had opportunity to demonstrate them.  I was worried about trolling and about simply being defined by blindness.  But speaking on Living Clutter Free Forever helped to dissolve some of these fears.

You can listen to me and Caroline on episode 138 of Living Clutter Free Forever.  We discuss:

1.     How disability and being blind is an advantage when it comes to decluttering and strategising about simple living.

2.     How living clutter free helps everyone, including people who have a disability.

3.     The importance of being empathetic and non-judgemental.

4.     Steps you can take if you are feeling overwhelmed need support to gain control over your belongings.