Assignment 8- Conor Kelley

Fears- Loss, especially of those around me, and the fear that people don't like me

Annoyances- Being late, whether me or someone else, Losing at something

Accomplishments- Fixing my diplopia, building my own computer

Confusions- The fact that I control everything I do and could derail my life at any second, it's pretty hard to comprehend for me

Sorrows- The chances I didn't take, or the ones I shouldn't have taken

Dreams- To graduate from college, and have a comfortable life

Idiosyncrasies- Constantly having some kind of nervous tick, tapping my fingers or clicking my teeth, or something of the sort

Risks- Arguing with my mother (not a serious risk, but true nonetheless)

Beloved Possessions, Now and Then- My vintage Harley-Davidson jacket, gifted to me by my grandfather

Problems- I'm not good at saving money, not at all

I would like to explore one of my accomplishments, fixing my diplopia. Diplopia is the medical term for double-vision, where everything I see is duplicated in the form of a translucent partner to the right of the true object. It made daily life harder than it would normally be. I couldn't tell you when it started, but I do know it was first detected in 2006, when I was 3. I told my parents I had a superpower, I could see two of everything. They were concerned, and took me to an optometrist. I was tested, and was diagnosed with diplopia. My parents were told there was nothing to be done, except for a surgery, they considered the option, but the surgery had a 12% success rate, and if it didn't work, my condition would worsen. So they declined the surgery, instead, I got glasses, they did little to help, but made life a little easier. I wore my glasses, and struggled until when I was 8, my mom heard of vision therapy. Exercises I could do every day to help my vision improve. At the time I started, I scored 0 out of 10 on the 3D vision test, and had a very noticeable cross-eye. After 2 years, I had improved to 6 out of 10, and my vision was better, I still had double-vision, and a cross-eye, but I was better. Then I stopped doing it, I refused to do the exercises, and my condition went right back to where it was. I didn't start again until March of 2019, and I hit it hard. I did the exercises every day, and started getting better. I still had double vision when I went in for the permit test, and the agreement was that I couldn't drive until my optometrist had cleared me to. I passed the test, and got my permit. I continued to do therapy, but the day I got my permit, after doing therapy, I noticed something different, my vision was single! I still do therapy, and my vision continues to get better, I started driving in August, and can now see with single vision without glasses. I hope to continue improving, and maybe even become independent of my glasses someday.