{"id":9562,"date":"2021-04-28T10:20:20","date_gmt":"2021-04-28T00:20:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/arr.news\/?p=9562"},"modified":"2021-04-29T06:17:12","modified_gmt":"2021-04-28T20:17:12","slug":"going-blind-wont-change-who-i-am","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arr.news\/2021\/04\/28\/going-blind-wont-change-who-i-am\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Going blind won’t change who I am’"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Death or blindness. It\u2019s not a choice anyone would want. But it may be Steve Sun\u2019s only option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He\u2019ll find out after his next brain tumour scan in June.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After that, he faces the reality of doctors operating on his tumour \u2013 an operation that will leave him blind. If they don\u2019t operate, he is likely to die.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Steve
Eight months left: Casino’s Steve Sun will lose his sight when he has brain surgery.
Photo: Susanna Freymark.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m shit scared,\u201d Steve said at his home in Casino.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lesion on Steve\u2019s brain has mostly lain dormant since 2010 but its growth now represents a threat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After his next brain scan, he\u2019ll have a clearer picture of how fast the lesion is growing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Doctors predict he has about eight months before the tumour must be removed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe operation will cut across the optical nerve,\u201d Steve said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to lose my vision when they operate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before that happens, he wants to see his three grandchildren and family as much as possible to memorise the detail in their faces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He plans to visit the Top End and maybe catch a fish off the tip of Cape York.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steve has eight months to see the world before he goes blind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Steve
Live for the moment: Steve Sun will hand over his driving instruction so he can travel the Top End before he has a brain operation that will cause him to lose hi sight. Photo: Susanna Freymark.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In preparation for the outcome, Steve has new instructors on board to assist with his business, Casino Driving School, that has been going for 17 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steve is confident the new instructors will continue to provide the same service he did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes at home when the house is dark, he practises \u2018being blind\u2019 and works out ways to move around the house.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He has already investigated the technology that comes with the latest white canes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt will be a new phase in my life, he said. \u201cIt won\u2019t change who I am.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steve is determined throughout all this to \u201clive for the here and now\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKnowing it\u2019s not a death wish helps and I know I\u2019ll get a lot of support,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steve has lived in Casino for 17 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What he needs is sponsorship and ways to fundraise so he can buy a 4WD and head to the Top End to see the natural beauty of the Australian landscape and sear it into his memory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019d like to be on the road by July,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Richmond<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m on borrowed time.\u201d To support Steve, call 0418 282 750.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article appeared in the Richmond River Independent<\/em>, 28 April 2021<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Death or blindness. It\u2019s not a choice anyone would want. But it may be Steve Sun\u2019s only option. He\u2019ll find out after his next brain tumour scan in June. After that, he faces the reality of doctors operating on his tumour \u2013 an operation that will leave him blind. If they don\u2019t operate, he is likely to die.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":191038089,"featured_media":9569,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"'Going blind won't change who I am' I Australian Rural & Regional News ","_seopress_titles_desc":"Death or blindness. It\u2019s not a choice anyone would want. But it may be Steve Sun\u2019s only option. He\u2019ll find out after his next brain tumour scan in June. After that, he faces the reality of doctors operating on his tumour \u2013 an operation that will leave him blind. If they don\u2019t operate, he is likely to die.","_seopress_robots_index":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false},"categories":[703273106,278,103,36522,36530,703273277],"tags":[703273649,703273650,703273363,703273034,703272850],"position":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/SteveSunHeadshot.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcBp7h-2ue","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9562"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/191038089"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9562"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9562\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9569"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9562"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9562"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9562"},{"taxonomy":"position","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arr.news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/position?post=9562"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}