{"id":31296,"date":"2023-11-29T09:40:12","date_gmt":"2023-11-29T09:40:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/moabcelticfestival.org\/?p=31296"},"modified":"2023-11-29T09:40:12","modified_gmt":"2023-11-29T09:40:12","slug":"i-dumped-my-boyfriend-when-i-was-losing-my-eyesight-now-were-married-lucy-robinson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/moabcelticfestival.org\/celebrity\/i-dumped-my-boyfriend-when-i-was-losing-my-eyesight-now-were-married-lucy-robinson\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018I dumped my boyfriend when I was losing my eyesight – now we\u2019re married\u2019 – Lucy Robinson"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lucy Edwards was 17 when she lost her eyesight after being diagnosed with incontinentia pigmenti as a child. Since then, Lucy has amassed 781,000 subscribers on YouTube, 1.8 million followers on TikTok and became the first-ever blind presenter to host BBC Radio 1 in 2019. Here, she tells OK!<\/b> her story\u2026 <\/p>\n

\u201cMost of my life I\u2019ve been in and out of eye hospitals. I was diagnosed with a rare genetic condition called incontinentia pigmenti when I was a child. At the age of 11, my retina detached in my right eye, then at 17 I lost sight in my left eye due to retinal detachment.<\/p>\n

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Losing my sight was a massive loss. I had a breakdown and quit law school. I was on 100mg of Sertraline [an antidepressant], stayed in bed, not really functioning.<\/p>\n

My parents and now-husband Ollie were so worried. Ollie used to say, \u201cI know Lucy\u2019s in there. You just need to believe that you\u2019ll feel the sunshine again, even if you can\u2019t see the sun.\u201d<\/p>\n

I actually dumped Ollie when we were 16 because I was losing my eyesight and didn\u2019t think he could deal with it. He told me that I couldn\u2019t tell him what he could deal with and wouldn\u2019t go without a fight.<\/p>\n

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He\u2019s been beyond supportive \u2013 we got married earlier this year. Our guests even wore blindfolds!<\/p>\n

When I was 20, I joined the BBC on its Extend In News programme. My boss was blind, as were some of my colleagues, and I felt accepted. Little by little, I got my confidence back. I love being blind. I think that if you don\u2019t think that way and this is your reality, then what is the alternative?<\/p>\n

I grew up loving makeup but when I lost my eyesight, nothing was accessible because every bottle felt the same. Then when I became an ambassador for Pantene it was massive for me. After nine years of blindness, when I scanned a Pantene bottle using the NaviLens code I burst into tears. That was the first time I was able to distinguish between shampoo and conditioner in a shop.<\/p>\n

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I think we are so much further forward when it comes to inclusivity since the pandemic. The day we went into lockdown was the seven-year anniversary of losing my eyesight. During that time, everyone knew what it was like to have a world that they didn\u2019t recognise. We still have a long way to go with packaging, but I feel like brands are hearing us. If we could also put Braille on everything, that would be amazing.<\/p>\n

If I could tell 17-year-old Lucy anything, it\u2019d be that it\u2019s going to be OK. You will thrive again, I promise.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n