At some point, we’ve all had a growing pile of mail sitting on a table getting larger by the day. As the pile grows, the thought of sorting through it to figure out what is junk and what we need to read becomes more and more daunting. It’s important to stay on top of your mail so you can get the information you need as quickly as possible and to avoid missing deadlines. Reading and organizing your mail can be a challenge if you are blind or low vision. But with the right strategies, you can manage your mail in a timely way.
There are two free apps available on your phone that can help you read your mail: Seeing AI and Envision AI. Both apps, designed specifically for people who are blind or low vision, can instantly read your mail to you out loud. Just put your mail on a plain surface like your tabletop, point your phone camera at it, and the apps will read it to you. The apps will read any text that is in the camera’s scanning area, so make sure there are no other papers or screens in view of its lens. These apps are great for reading most mail, but they can struggle with bills and other documents with a lot of columns. You can also use a scanner to better read your bills and other mail on your computer with the help of a screen magnifier or screen reader program.
If you have some usable vision, you may simply need proper magnification and lighting to read your mail. Make sure you are reading in a well-lit place to avoid shadows. You can use a magnifier to check your mail as it comes in and filter out the spam from the important envelopes. You can then use an app or scan it into your computer to read it in full.
It might sometimes be helpful to ask a trusted friend or family member to read your mail to you. In that situation, make sure you both understand the system you are using, what kinds of mail you are interested in and what can be tossed.
No matter what method you use to read your mail, having a system in place to sort your mail as it comes in is important for keeping things from getting out of control. You can often identify advertisements by their size, shape and feel. Instead of coming as a regular envelope, they will often be on smooth, glossy paper. If you have a newspaper flier that you don’t want, make sure to flip through it before throwing it away in case any envelopes get stuck between the pages. You should shred credit card offers before putting them in the trash to protect yourself from scammers hoping to open a credit card in your name.
However you organize your mail, it’s important to stay consistent with your method and pick something that works for you. If you have some usable vision, try using multi-colored folders, with each color representing different types of mail. For example, you could use a yellow folder for financial mail, a blue folder for medical mail, and a green folder for personal letters. If you struggle to see colors, get small plastic bins you can put your mail into. You can differentiate the bins by labelling them with brightly colored markers, puff paint, or braille labels.
It’s important to keep a close watch for scam mail. Scams are getting more and more elaborate; you might get a piece of mail that looks similar to an official document from your bank but is actually someone trying to steal your identity. If you suspect a piece of mail might be fraudulent, call the institution or company at a number you know to be correct and ask them if it is legitimate. If the phone number on the mail is different from the phone number on their website, call the website number, since it is more likely to be legitimate.
If you need more help reading and organizing your mail, contact the Council at [email protected] or call 608-255-1166.
