{"id":6450,"date":"2021-11-15T10:51:00","date_gmt":"2021-11-15T09:51:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ver-ooginoog.nl\/bibliotheek\/when-she-was-a-child-dianne-got-a-chair-leg-in-her-eye\/"},"modified":"2026-09-15T15:58:04","modified_gmt":"2026-09-15T13:58:04","slug":"when-she-was-a-child-dianne-got-a-chair-leg-in-her-eye","status":"publish","type":"library_pt","link":"https:\/\/ver-ooginoog.nl\/en\/library\/personal-stories\/when-she-was-a-child-dianne-got-a-chair-leg-in-her-eye\/","title":{"rendered":"When she was a child, Dianne got a chair leg in her eye"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-post-date\"><time datetime=\"2021-11-15T10:51:00+01:00\">15 November 2021<\/time><\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When I was two years old, I was hit in my left eye by a chair leg while playing. After several surgeries, my vision was down to just 25%, and my blue iris had been removed. My eye looked like the moon\u2014black with some white patches. Around the age of 21, I underwent two more surgeries on my retina, which reduced my vision to just 2%. Around that time, I started mountain biking. I was still young and didn\u2019t see much danger in it.     <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Well-trained in &#8220;observing&#8221;<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think mountain biking has really trained me to \u201clook\u201d carefully. You\u2019re constantly scanning the trail for tree roots and changes in the terrain. When going downhill, I don\u2019t take as many risks\u2014I\u2019m very aware of the dangers because my depth perception is still impaired. Mountain biking is an exciting sport that gives you a huge rush. I also recently started taking tennis lessons. Actually, my ophthalmologist didn\u2019t approve of this because he\u2019s way too afraid that something might happen to my good eye. I love the sound of tennis, the sport itself, and the social aspect as well. I bought a good pair of safety glasses and have had my first three lessons. It takes some getting used to because I see with only one eye, but I\u2019m getting better and better! Actually, I see quite well. I often see better than everyone else. I\u2019m really focused on looking for snakes, lizards, slow worms, and birds. I notice that I see things differently and that others just don\u2019t see anything. In my free time, I\u2019m also often out and about with my nature club for kids: De Aardmannetjes. Being outdoors with animals, kids, and nature\u2014that\u2019s where I feel most at home and completely in my element.              <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Annual Presentation<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At school, I also always give <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=6D3E7jU226A\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">a presentation about my artificial eye<\/a> at the beginning of every school year. Every year, the new students are curious to see what I look like and want to know more about my artificial eye. About one or two weeks into the school year\u2014once the kids have gotten to know me a little\u2014I give the presentation. This year, I also played the slideshow from the OOG in OOG Association\u2019s website in the background. In one of the photos, I\u2019m standing next to my mountain bike. Then the photo of the woman with the child came up again, followed by the woman with the guitar, and then my photo appeared once more. And every time, the children would shout, \u201cYay, there she is again!\u201d and then they\u2019d all clap. During gym class, I also lead a few exercises using a blindfold and a tennis ball. This lets the children experience for themselves what it\u2019s like to see with just one eye and to play sports. Double the fun! In everyday life, the only thing I don\u2019t like is driving; I did get my driver\u2019s license when I still had 25% vision, but I don\u2019t enjoy doing it. I\u2019d much rather ride a bike. Traffic is definitely my biggest concern.            <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Providing information<\/h2>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I enjoy providing information. In the first few years before my eye removal surgery, I was mainly focused on searching for information. Now I\u2019m more focused on providing information. I enjoy providing information to people who are about to undergo an eye removal surgery and who want to know what it\u2019s like to live with an ocular prosthesis. I don\u2019t go to the National Contact Days as much anymore, but I always check the program for an OOG in OOG Day. A few years ago, there was a color analysis session. I really enjoyed that experience. When I go shopping, I still use my color advice: it\u2019s really nice to get that personal attention. I get a new ocular prosthesis every two years, and I\u2019ve had eight so far. I\u2019ve accumulated quite a few, but there have been times when I waited five years because I was so happy with a particular one. If you get one every two years, you could even have a set for darker weather, with a different pupil. At M\u00fcller, I get a lot of personal attention\u2014it really feels special! I\u2019m truly very happy about that.            <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I have a husband and two adult sons. In my day-to-day life, I\u2019m an elementary school teacher\u2014a wonderful profession that gives me a lot of energy. I\u2019ve been wearing an ocular prosthesis since I was 37. My vision in that eye is \u201czero,\u201d and now I also can\u2019t see movements to my left.   <\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":6452,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_daextauttol_enable_tooltips":""},"library_cat":[113],"class_list":["post-6450","library_pt","type-library_pt","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","library_cat-personal-stories"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ver-ooginoog.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/library_pt\/6450","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ver-ooginoog.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/library_pt"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ver-ooginoog.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/library_pt"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ver-ooginoog.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6452"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ver-ooginoog.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6450"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"library_cat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ver-ooginoog.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/library_cat?post=6450"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}