Blindfold Experience

Being blindfolded definitely altered my sense of space. I thought I would be comfortable in a space that I'm familiar with but this was not the case. My house seemed like a different place. Everything seemed so far away and out of place. My sense of direction was completely off. When trying to find things my aim would be too high or too low. To negotiate the space around me I used my arms and legs for guidance. I would feel where things were in relation to other another in order to find what I was looking for. While walking around my house I would carefully move my feet to make sure I wasn't tripping over anything. The most difficult part of moving around my home was confronting the stairs. Going up the stairs wasn't so bad but traveling down was very challenging. My sense of balance was lacking and I felt that I was going to stumble. Needless to say I was relieved when I finally reached the bottom.


Like my sense of space I felt most of my senses were changed. Time went very slowly. After what felt like the first 15 minutes of being blindfolded I asked one of my housemates how much time had passed. He replied with a shocking 6 minutes! The entire experience felt much longer than it actually was. Apart from my sense of time being muffled my sense of touch was very sensitive. Every time I touched a surface it felt intensified. When I would accidentally bump into something with my hand or foot it felt much more abrupt and discomforting then it normally would when I have my vision.

Luckily my housemates were very accommodating with my temporary blindness. At fist they laughed and didn't understand the nature of this assignment but after the first 10 minutes or so they were of great assistance. They helped me with things I wasn't comfortable doing (ex. Pouring creamer in my coffee).

Overall this experience helped my realize how lucky I am to have my sight. A world without vision was very challenging. Little everyday tasks were no longer simple. Even though I was surrounded by my housemates in my own home, I felt alone. I'm sure that with more time I would have somewhat adjusted to being blindfolded but for the one hour it was very difficult.