I had a successful career as an environmental health manager in London. But my life changed beyond recognition at the age of 35. I was born 50% deaf in both ears. But my world was totally transformed when I was diagnosed with deafness and eventual blindness. It was my wife Elizabeth who first noticed there was a problem. She moved a pencil past my face and was shocked to discover I couldn't see it unless it was directly in front of me. My eyesight had been failing for years but I simply hadn't noticed. I couldn't imagine how my life could get any worse, but in fact it has improved immeasurably. Of course, coming to terms with it was hard at first. My first reaction was denial, followed by severe depression. I had built effective coping strategies to deal with my hearing loss; losing my sight, too, just felt too much to handle. You absorb so much information about the world through your eyes, so the idea of that being taken away was terrifying. I spent several days on the sofa, feeling depressed. I felt all my opportunities were reduced. But I am very positive and didn't wallow for long. I have seen some people react to the news by withdrawing from life, but I chose differently. I got off the sofa and decided to train as a homeopath . Looking back, I think this was a way of working through my problems. We left London to start a farm in the country, which I combined with starting my own environmental health business. It was just what I needed: clean air, spring water and space. So many wonderful things have happened so far and now, age 50, I feel that I am living a second life. I aim to remain active and engaged with life. I don't think of myself as disabled. Instead, I've learned to live with them. The writer didn't notice his eyesight problem until   _  .
he moved a pencil past his face he found he could only see things nearby his wife discovered the problem with a pencil his wife helped him absorb enough information