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“When I first lost my vision, I couldn’t do a lot of things, for example going for walks alone. I’ve always been very independent, so it was a large change for me.”
Even throughout losing a large percentage of her vision between 2011 and 2012 due to separate retina detachments, Thayana has always been someone that has valued her independence.
She went on to move to Perth from South Africa in 2015 to study at university. While she was able to find ways to navigate her studies with her vision loss, that lack of independence gnawed at her.
“Being at University has not been easy! Not being able to independently walk around campus as other students do, made me depend on the help of friends and classmates and/or request assistance from Curtin Security Officers. As a result, I realised I was missing out on the full university experience, even the leisure of grabbing a coffee from one coffee shop and then food from another shop that may be on the opposite end of the campus.”
During her time studying in 2015, Thayana woke up one morning and found that her vision had seemingly completely gone. She went back to South Africa to have emergency surgery and spent the next year recovering in her hometown of Lusaka, Zambia. Since then, she has regained 10% of her eyesight.
This time back home drove Thayana to make a decision: After seven years of living with vision loss, it was time for her to accept it.
“I knew I didn’t want to come back to the same way as I was living when I was here before. I was dependent on everyone; I was really unhappy. I knew I needed to make a change.”
Upon her return to Perth, she immediately began looking into the prospect of being matched with a dog guide. It’s been a long time coming, but she is now just finishing up/just finished her training with Seeing Eye Dogs, where she has been matched with Seeing Eye Dog – Shaylah.
For the past month they have been training together. While it hasn’t always been an easy process, Thayana is giving it her all and the results speak for themselves.
“I heard that the training could get stressful and exhausting, and while it has, as we’re training in the heat, I was super excited to receive a dog, and that excitement comes out most in the training. I’m not frustrated when I get a route incorrect. It’s being patient. It’s taught me that not every day will be the same. There’s ups and downs.”
Matt Wood, the mobility instructor assigned to Thayana and Shaylah, is very impressed with Thayana's progress.
"Thayana has been fantastic to work with, she is open to change as well as challenges. Thayana and Shaylah have bonded quickly and they are now working independently in local shopping centres and over the TransPerth transport system."
Thayana really enjoyed her time training with Matt, and had the following to say:
"My instructor Matt has done a fantastic work getting me through training. Not only was he patient with both Shaylah and me, but he also provided a calm and relaxed environment to work in. I really appreciated this as I was quite nervous going into training because this was a new experience for me. He would also provide helpful tips and information which helped build my confidence to independently and safely travel on the different routes."
Looking to the future, Thayana is looking forward to reclaiming more of her independence.
“Just going places and not having to depend on people is exciting to me. Even taking a walk around the block. If I’m tired after hours of study and I just want to get up and go out, now I can do so with Shaylah! That freedom to not have to always rely on another person to do those things are exciting to me.”
Funding for Thayana to be matched with Seeing Eye Dog Shaylah was only possible thanks to donations from the local community.