Healing from night blindness

U. K. S. (28), Austria

I noticed it when I was about 12 years old. I was going home after a "Krampus parade" with my mother and my sister. The moon shone very brightly, but nevertheless I couldn't see anything. Even though I knew the way inside out I proceeded very carefully with outstretched hands in order to be able to feel my way along.

When I got to the garden gate I could only estimate where the gate was and walked directly into the fence. My mother immediately said, "You're night blind like your father." When I grew up I got a driver's license like everyone else. However, I had to drive very carefully because I could only see what was directly in the beam of the headlights. Outside of that field I couldn't recognize anything - no pedestrians, cyclists, animals or road signs, for example.

I also didn't know whether a curve was coming or the road went on straight ahead. Therefore I only drove at night in emergency situations. I simply lived with it. I thought, "I can't do anything about it anyway!"

A deer was standing at the side

And then at 24 years of age I came to the Bruno Gröning Circle of Friends. On March 15 of the following year I attended a community hour. As usual at the end of the meeting our community leader asked us what we had perceived in our bodies. I remembered having felt, among other things, pain in my head. I even had tears in my eyes for a short time. After the community hour was over I felt a severe stabbing pain in both eyes at the same time. But I didn't think anything of it.

While driving home it occurred to me that I could see everything - not only the light from the car in front of me on the street. No, I really saw everything, including the trees and bushes at the edge of the road, and the funny thing was that on this of all days there was a young deer standing at the side where I previously wouldn't have been able to see it.

On that night I was able to see it and drive slowly by without it springing onto the road. At that moment I had a wonderful feeling of happiness. One kilometer further on there was an entire deer family standing in the road and I was able to see it, too, in time and drive slowly by. Since then the night blindness is gone. I can recognize everything clearly again, especially the curves. There are no longer any driving restrictions; I can drive whenever I want and with a clear conscience because I can react in time to all possible dangers. This healing has increased my quality of life enormously.

Medical commentary:

Ms. K. S. had a hereditary nyctalopia (night blindness). Her father, too, suffered from the same disease. Night blindness is a functional disturbance of certain sensory cells in the retina of the eye. The spontaneous healing after 15 years is medically inexplicable and has to be called a miracle.