Hear from our #WarriorOfTheWeek, Mary! ?
Spotlight on: Mary Beony ? @marybeony
“My Visual Snow was always there, but it was only in the dark or on black objects when I was little. I remember really early memories of me closing my eyes & watching these little dots moving in front of me. But my VS didn’t really develop until I was 15 (I’m 23 now). It started to be everywhere from one day to the other & hear little rings everywhere. Extreme dizziness came with it. I didn’t know what it was but it felt strange. The dizziness was really hard for me! I couldn’t use an elevator/lift anymore or enter a high building without the feel of “falling” into the ground. After an MRT, an Eye Doctor, a Cardiologist, & an Ear Doctor, I visited a Psychologist who thought I have a mental illness (Depersonalization, Derealisation & Hallucinations). Unfortunately I started to believe this too. I became pretty depressed through my teen years because I knew there was something which wasn’t right with me. Luckily my parents didn’t allow me to take any kind of psychic medication & wanted me to find a way to make my symptoms better with “natural” things. That’s when I found out eating Gluten-free, Lactose-free & doing sports 3-4 days a week helped. Sleeping around 8 hours every day is important for me. Not more & not less, or I feel dizzy again. I try to use sunglasses when outside & trying out tinted ones at the moment, which seem to help. I live in a high building now which I couldn’t imagine a few years ago! The most important thing to deal right with VS is: You need to start thinking positive! Me for example, I use my art to process a lot of my experience & thoughts! It helps me so much to deal with my VS & keep seeing silver linings. Find something you love doing & think about your VS as little as you can. Start to enjoy every moment of your life! We might see things others don’t, but this doesn’t make us weird or different. We’re normal people with an extra touch of sparkles! ✨”
