It’s easy to let your home get cluttered and disorganized, especially after the holidays. Having a messy home can cause severe anxiety for anyone, and that is especially true for people who are blind or low vision. Being unable to find something you’re looking for leads to frustration with yourself and with your vision loss. Keeping your home well organized can help reduce stress and enable you to find the items you need when you need them.
No matter your level of usable vision, your first step should be to declutter your space. Make sure that everything has a designated storage place and avoid allowing things to pile up on a table, desk or on the ground. Consider getting rid of any items that you never seem to have a use for. Using storage totes to hold your necessary items can make them easy to find and they can be stored out of the way. Depending on your level of vision, a clear storage tote may allow you to see what’s inside without opening it, while colored storage totes enable you to color-code different categories of storage. If you have little to no vision, put a tactile label on the tote to help you differentiate between storage containers.
If you have low vision, proper lighting and contrast are key to keeping things organized. Natural light can reduce eye strain, but having strategically placed lamps that minimize dark areas can be a great help when the sun goes down. For example, in the living room, keep a lamp near where you regularly sit so you can easily see your TV remote, and use brightly colored puff paint to label the buttons on it.
Making sure that everything in your home has a designated place makes it easier to find things. Marking these areas with bright, contrasting colors using puff paint or colored tape can make these designated places easy to identify. A color-contrasting tray can make its contents stand out and be easier to find. Grouping similar items together in one place, such as keeping all your cleaning supplies in one cupboard, can also make it easier to remember exactly what goes where.
Proper labeling is a big help, especially in the kitchen. If you have some usable vision, you can use high contrast and large print labels to distinguish between different cans in your pantry or the drawers that hold your pots and pans. Even with some usable vision, tactile labels can be a great help in organizing your pantry. Tactile labels don’t always mean braille; puff paint works well for labelling regularly used items like spice jars. Even a simple homemade tactile label, such as a fork tied to the handle of your silverware drawer, can help you to easily find the utensil you need. If you are a braille user, a braille labeler is a great way to create labels quickly. For more information on how to use labels to organize your home, Hadley Helps is a great resource. You can find their educational modules at https://hadleyhelps.org/workshops/labels-for-everyday-use-series.
Another helpful labeling tool is the PenFriend. The PenFriend creates personalized audio labels that the pen reads aloud when tapped on the provided sticker label. In your workplace, put a PenFriend label on filing cabinets or file folders to easily find the documents you need. Another useful piece of technology is a smart home device, such as Alexa/Amazon Echo or Google Home. When paired with something like smart lights or smart thermostats, you can have complete control over your home environment with the power of your voice. A smart home device can also be used to set reminders for when you need to clean or organize your home or office. It can even play music to help keep you company while you clean. You can learn more about organizing your workplace at https://aphconnectcenter.org/careerconnect/professionals-with-vision-or-career-changes/employment-skills/organizing-your-workspace-as-a-blind-or-visually-impaired-individual/.
No matter what system you use to organize your office, kitchen or living room, it’s important to stick with it. It’s also important to make sure your family, friends and coworkers understand your organizational strategy and why it works for you so that they don’t disrupt your system by moving things around.
If you need more help in organizing your home, the Council may be able to help. Contact us at [email protected] or fill out the vision services contact form on our website.