How Do I Look by Rachel | NKCF Film Festival 2016

"This video offers a very brief look into my personal experience with keratoconus. For me, the condition progressed to its worst point at a crucial time in my personal and professional development - which had all kinds of ramifications. Having never worn glasses or contacts before, I wasn't seeing an eye doctor regularly or monitoring my eye health. Not recognizing that the problems I was experiencing were related to my varying vision, I attributed my changes in behavior, focus, and self-efficacy to other potential causes - most frequently resulting in self-blame. Since my diagnosis, my life has changed dramatically. I'm still unlearning certain patterns of behavior that I'd developed, in coping with a condition I didn't know I had. In many ways, however, the experience of growing through this made me a stronger and more resilient person. My personal story may seem more dramatic than the stories of others, who caught and responded to the changes in their eye health earlier on. Knowing how significantly this experience influenced me - while progressing so invisibly that it took 5 years for me to identify the cause of all kinds of complications - I feel it's important to increase awareness and enhance understanding of the condition." - Rachel