This week’s Talking Vision is a special episode, with Vision Australia Retail Services Manager Andrew Wheeler jumping behind the mic to conduct an extended interview.
Andrew, a former Australian Army Captain, is joined by Captain William Anderson (retired), who served in the Army from 1989 – 1996.
Captain Anderson retried from the army on medical grounds following a peacetime training accident in the Northern Territory that left him completely blind.
In the interview, Captain Anderson speaks about the accident, his time in the Army and the challenges he has faced since losing his vision.
“Two patrol medics worked on me for 45 minutes… They put five or six bags of fake blood into me. The Corporal said I was lying in a massive pool of blood on the track,” Captain Anderson said.
“As a result of the accident I’m totally blind, profoundly deaf in my right ear, I’m epileptic and I suffer sleep apnoea because I’m blind. But I’m rapt I’m still alive to this day, as we know we’re here for a good time but a short time and we’ve got to make the most of it,” he said.
Listen to the rest of the interview here or on the player below: