The Blind and Visually Impaired of Central Kentucky

When a person experiences a loss whether it be the loss of a loved one or the loss of ones eyesight there are certain stages they need to go through before they can successfully go on with their life. I myself have not always been a big believer in this idea i usually thought things would work themselves out and there was no "process I had to go through to move on with my life, my thoughts changed greatly recently when i retired my first guide dog. Retiring the dog was one of the most difficult things i have ever done I was unsure about everything i was doing and did not feel i was ready to get a new dog and go on with my life. basiclly I was a mess. The guide dog school I attended offered a grief counseling session for those of us that wer retiring our dogs our had lost dogs to either age or illness and i decided to go see what this counseling was all about even though i did not give it much hope for helping my situtation. There were 5 of us there and the experience helped me more than I though possible, here i learned the importance of going through the stages of grief no matter what you are greiving about. This session taught me that all of us there were having the same questions run through our heads and we did not know the answers and were afraid of what our future held. Together we helped each other in our time of need, learning the importance of facing grief correctly helped me move on to get my new dog, since then we have returned home and our partnership at home is going smoothly.The moral of the story i guess i would have to say is that even when you think you are to big to need help as i felt, it is important to take what help you are offered, you will be greatly surprised by the outcome and the experience will make your life that much more enjoyable.