{"id":23603,"date":"2021-02-22T11:30:42","date_gmt":"2021-02-22T18:30:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/?p=23603"},"modified":"2026-04-02T15:30:21","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T21:30:21","slug":"blind-woman-gets-her-sight-back","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/blind-woman-gets-her-sight-back\/","title":{"rendered":"Blind woman gets her sight back"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;\" class=\"sharethis-inline-share-buttons\" ><\/div><figure id=\"attachment_23609\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-23609\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-23609 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113625\/Connie-lead-photo-tiny.webp\" alt=\"A formerly blind woman, Connie Parke, feels her granddaughter's face with her hands.\" width=\"640\" height=\"406\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113625\/Connie-lead-photo-tiny.webp 1200w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113625\/Connie-lead-photo-tiny-300x191.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113625\/Connie-lead-photo-tiny-1024x650.webp 1024w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113625\/Connie-lead-photo-tiny-768x488.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113625\/Connie-lead-photo-tiny-150x95.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113625\/Connie-lead-photo-tiny-200x127.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-23609\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">After going blind in 2003, Connie Parke learned to &#8220;see&#8221; faces with her hands. Parke recently got her sight back and treasures seeing the faces of her grandchildren both with her eyes and her hands. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Connie Parke used to live in a two-stoplight town in Montana.<\/p>\n<p>Yet, even in a place she knew so well, she started getting lost.<\/p>\n<p>Over five months back in 2003, her vision in both eyes got so bad that she couldn\u2019t work, couldn\u2019t drive and was accidentally setting fires when she tried to light the antique gas stove in the old miner\u2019s cabin she shared with her husband.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI lost my sight so fast that I was hurting myself,\u201d said Parke, now 57.<\/p>\n<p>An eye doctor in Montana told her she had detached retinas and there was nothing he could do.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI pretty much stopped going to doctors at that point,\u201d Parke said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"su-youtube su-u-responsive-media-yes\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"400\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/kqCcse3Monc?mute=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen allow=\"autoplay; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture\" title=\"Seeing the Light | Connie Parke | Harry Mack x UCHealth | Ep. 008\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<h2><strong>Now a blind woman: braille, a cane and a guide dog<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Distraught, Parke decided she better learn how to live as a blind woman. There was no school for visually impaired people near her, so she and her husband moved to Colorado, where their daughter lived.<\/p>\n<p>Parke worked hard in blind school in Denver and learned how to use a cane, read Braille and get around walking and riding buses.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_23615\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-23615\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-23615 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16121041\/Connie-with-dog-tiny.webp\" alt=\"A woman hugs her boxer dog. The dog wears a black service harness because it used to be the woman's service dog when she was blind.\" width=\"640\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16121041\/Connie-with-dog-tiny.webp 1200w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16121041\/Connie-with-dog-tiny-300x193.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16121041\/Connie-with-dog-tiny-1024x660.webp 1024w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16121041\/Connie-with-dog-tiny-768x495.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16121041\/Connie-with-dog-tiny-150x97.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16121041\/Connie-with-dog-tiny-200x129.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-23615\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Connie Parke with her service dog. As a blind woman, Parke used to rely on Talulah May to safely escort her around Denver. Now that Parke has gotten her sight back, the boxer has evolved into a beloved pet.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Even so, depression overwhelmed her at first and no one would give her a job.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI worked all my life, but nobody could see past the cane,\u201d Parke said.<\/p>\n<p>She was used to being an independent woman who worked hard and cared for her family.<\/p>\n<p>Then, thankfully grandchildren started arriving. Altogether, Parke has five granddaughters and three grandsons. She and her husband also took in her great-niece and nephew when their parents needed help. And they co-parent three granddaughters in their home with their son. The children brought joy and purpose to replace Parke\u2019s hopelessness.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_23611\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-23611\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-23611 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113716\/Connie-grandkids-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Connie Parke used to be blind woman, but recently got her vision back. Here she is pictured with multiple grandchildren.\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113716\/Connie-grandkids-tiny.webp 1200w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113716\/Connie-grandkids-tiny-300x200.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113716\/Connie-grandkids-tiny-1024x683.webp 1024w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113716\/Connie-grandkids-tiny-768x512.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113716\/Connie-grandkids-tiny-150x100.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113716\/Connie-grandkids-tiny-200x133.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-23611\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Connie Parke treasures her eight grandchildren and a great-niece and nephew, whom she and her husband adopted. Being at the center of a busy family helped Parke cope with depression after she went blind. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>She couldn\u2019t see the babies, but got to know and love each one individually. As she learned to do in blind school, she mapped each of their faces with her hands. She felt their dimples, the shapes of their noses, the space on their foreheads and on their eyelids. She called it \u201cthe touch of sight.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She and her husband also got a boxer puppy and trained Talulah May to be Parke\u2019s service dog.<\/p>\n<p>Parke carved out a life as a blind woman at the center of a busy family.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>A stunning discovery about cataracts<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Fast forward to 2018. Parke\u2019s husband saw his primary care doctor and mentioned that he was having some trouble with his eyes. The doctor urged him to see an ophthalmologist. Then Parke\u2019s husband said his wife was the one who really needed help with her eyes. The doctor encouraged Parke to go for a checkup at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/locations\/uchealth-eye-center-anschutz-medical-campus\/\">UCHealth Sue Anschutz-Rodgers Eye Center<\/a> at the Anschutz Medical Campus.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_23617\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-23617\" style=\"width: 200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-23617\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16121543\/SooHoo-head-shot-tiny.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16121543\/SooHoo-head-shot-tiny.webp 500w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16121543\/SooHoo-head-shot-tiny-200x300.webp 200w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16121543\/SooHoo-head-shot-tiny-100x150.webp 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-23617\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dr. Jeffrey SooHoo did surgery and helped Connie Parke get her sight back. She had been blind for 15 years.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>She reluctantly agreed and there, she met <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/provider\/jeffrey-soohoo-md-ophthalmology\/\">Dr. Jeffrey SooHoo<\/a>, who is an associate professor in the <a href=\"https:\/\/medschool.cuanschutz.edu\/ophthalmology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">ophthalmology department at the University of Colorado School of Medicine<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>SooHoo examined Parke\u2019s eyes and found that she was indeed almost totally blind. Even so, SooHoo had a surprising diagnosis for Parke. He didn\u2019t see any signs of complications like a detached retina. Instead, he found that Parke had one of the most common problems for adults with vision problems: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/services\/eye-care\/cataracts\/\">cataracts<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>And he thought surgery could help her.<\/p>\n<p>Parke was skeptical that she\u2019d ever see again and hesitated to have surgery.<\/p>\n<p>Still, she had little to lose. Her vision was so bad that she could only see some light and a kaleidoscope of geometric shapes.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_23610\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-23610\" style=\"width: 400px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-23610\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113713\/Connie-braille-tiny.webp\" alt=\"A once blind woman shows off her devices for learning Braille.\" width=\"400\" height=\"265\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113713\/Connie-braille-tiny.webp 1200w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113713\/Connie-braille-tiny-300x199.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113713\/Connie-braille-tiny-1024x678.webp 1024w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113713\/Connie-braille-tiny-768x508.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113713\/Connie-braille-tiny-150x99.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113713\/Connie-braille-tiny-200x132.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-23610\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">After going blind, Connie Parke moved from Montana to Colorado and attended blind school in Denver. As a blind woman, she learned to read Braille, but she now sees 20\/20 after surgery. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>So, she scheduled cataract surgery on her right eye for Nov. 12. The surgery is usually relatively straightforward and quick. It often only takes about 15 minutes for each eye and is the most common surgery performed in the U.S.<\/p>\n<p>SooHoo sent Parke home with a patch over her eye and instructed her to come back the next day.<\/p>\n<p>When Parke returned, the nurse pulled off the patch and Parke burst into tears.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI could see her face. I saw her wrinkles and her eyelashes,\u201d Parke said. \u201cThey started examining my eyes and had me look at the eye chart and I could read 20\/20. I was speechless and in tears.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Parke went from skeptical to ecstatic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s my hero,\u201d Parke said of SooHoo. \u201cI honestly didn\u2019t believe he was going to give me sight. I was so afraid. It\u2019s a miracle.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"su-youtube su-u-responsive-media-yes\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/d1HXLO7nEX8?autohide=2&amp;autoplay=0&amp;mute=0&amp;controls=1&amp;fs=1&amp;loop=0&amp;modestbranding=0&amp;rel=0&amp;showinfo=1&amp;theme=dark&amp;wmode=&amp;playsinline=0\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen allow=\"autoplay; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture\" title=\"\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>Thrilled with the results in her first eye, Parke scheduled the surgery for her second eye as soon as she could, Nov. 26.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI had total faith. I couldn\u2019t wait to get the second one done. It was a miracle,\u201d Parke said. \u201cI call them my bionic eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2><strong>From a blind woman to a 20\/20 grandmother<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>SooHoo said he\u2019s used to having patients marvel at their results. But, he\u2019s rarely had a patient experience such a dramatic change overnight like Parke did.<\/p>\n<p>He had been careful not to promise perfect results. So the outcome was a joy for patient and doctor alike.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_23613\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-23613\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-23613\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113723\/Connie-husband-tiny.webp\" alt=\"A woman gazes adoringly at her husband.\" width=\"640\" height=\"451\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113723\/Connie-husband-tiny.webp 1200w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113723\/Connie-husband-tiny-300x212.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113723\/Connie-husband-tiny-1024x722.webp 1024w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113723\/Connie-husband-tiny-768x541.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113723\/Connie-husband-tiny-150x106.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113723\/Connie-husband-tiny-200x141.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-23613\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Connie Parke, once a blind woman, hadn&#8217;t seen her husband&#8217;s face for 15 years. He supported her throughout her blindness and now the two dream of opening a Christmas tree farm.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI was just as surprised as she was. She has completely normal vision now. It\u2019s literally 20\/20,\u201d SooHoo said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have a lot of meaningful patient experiences, but this is one that really stands out in terms of making a difference in someone\u2019s life,\u201d he said. \u201cThe relationship between a physician and a patient is really powerful when they trust you. We go to school for a long time to do what we do. There are difficult days too. But this is one of those sustaining and transformative experiences that reminds you why you do what you do and why it\u2019s such a privilege.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Along with removing cataracts, SooHoo placed what is known as <a id=\"\" href=\"\/services\/eye-care\/cataracts\/\">intraocular lens or IOLs into both of Parke\u2019s eyes<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey are made of plastic and stay in the eye forever,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>SooHoo said it\u2019s a shame Parke lived with her cataracts longer than necessary. He urges anyone with poor vision to keep seeking help if they get a diagnosis with a poor prognosis.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_23612\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-23612\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-23612\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113720\/Connie-hug-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Connie Parke poses with one of her granddaughters.\" width=\"640\" height=\"438\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113720\/Connie-hug-tiny.webp 1200w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113720\/Connie-hug-tiny-300x205.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113720\/Connie-hug-tiny-1024x701.webp 1024w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113720\/Connie-hug-tiny-768x525.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113720\/Connie-hug-tiny-150x103.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113720\/Connie-hug-tiny-200x137.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-23612\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Connie Parke and her husband are helping raise three granddaughters and love spending time with all of their family members. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cMake sure you do your due diligence and get a number of different opinions,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>While cataract surgery can be done in most places around the country, SooHoo said he loves practicing medicine at a cutting-edge eye center.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are used to seeing unusual cases. People send us stuff they don\u2019t understand. We have access to an interdisciplinary crew of experts from a variety of fields. I can get five people to put their heads together on any case. You can\u2019t get that in most places. That\u2019s the power of a big academic health system,\u201d SooHoo said.<\/p>\n<p>Following her surgeries, Parke is sensitive to light, so she keeps sunglasses handy. She also sometimes sees purple halos that she finds quite beautiful. SooHoo said those side effects should diminish over time.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe couldn\u2019t see for 15 years and her brain is getting adjusted to having a new piece of plastic in the eye,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>No longer a blind woman: \u2018The best is yet to come.\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Tears of joy and astonishment often stream from Parke\u2019s eyes.<\/p>\n<p>Her vision is like a new toy. She loves noticing the simplest things like the beauty of an evergreen branch outside her window, a bird bobbing around on it or the pattern in a floor tile.<\/p>\n<p>When she walks out of her house, she reflexively reaches for her cane, then puts it back. Talulah\u2019s black service vest still sits ready by the door, but Parke no longer needs a service dog. Talulah kept Parke safe for years and now gets to enjoy relaxed walks, couch surfing and snuggling with her family.<\/p>\n<p>Parke meanwhile finds herself drinking in the faces of her children and grandchildren.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI remember having my first granddaughter and that sweet, chubby face. But I never saw the younger ones,\u201d Parke said.<\/p>\n<p>Seeing her own face, on the other hand, was a shock and somewhat depressing. In her mind, Parke still imagined she looked exactly the same as she did in her early 40s. She\u2019s a tiny spitfire who\u2019s youthful and full of energy. But seeing some gray hairs and wrinkles in the mirror has been hard.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_23614\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-23614\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-23614 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113726\/Connie-mirror.tiny_.webp\" alt=\"A former blind woman looks into a mirror to see her own face.\" width=\"640\" height=\"439\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113726\/Connie-mirror.tiny_.webp 1200w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113726\/Connie-mirror.tiny_-300x206.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113726\/Connie-mirror.tiny_-1024x703.webp 1024w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113726\/Connie-mirror.tiny_-768x527.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113726\/Connie-mirror.tiny_-150x103.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113726\/Connie-mirror.tiny_-200x137.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-23614\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Getting her sight back has been emotional for Connie Parke. After not having seen her face for 15 years, looking in mirrors was tough. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>She also had never seen the home that her husband picked out in Aurora and, when her vision returned, she didn\u2019t like seeing dust or walls in need of fresh paint.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe first two weeks after my right eye surgery, I scrubbed every heater vent in the house. I made everybody nuts. Not everything in life is beautiful,\u201d Parke said.<\/p>\n<p>But most things in life are stunning, especially her family members.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_23608\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-23608\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-23608\" src=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113620\/Connie-big-family-tiny.webp\" alt=\"Connie Park poses for a family picture with her children and grandchildren.\" width=\"640\" height=\"467\" srcset=\"https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113620\/Connie-big-family-tiny.webp 1200w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113620\/Connie-big-family-tiny-300x219.webp 300w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113620\/Connie-big-family-tiny-1024x747.webp 1024w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113620\/Connie-big-family-tiny-768x560.webp 768w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113620\/Connie-big-family-tiny-150x109.webp 150w, https:\/\/uchealth-wp-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2019\/04\/16113620\/Connie-big-family-tiny-200x146.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-23608\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Connie Parke and her husband (center) pose with their children and grandchildren. They dream of owning a Christmas tree farm someday. Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon for UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Parke is incredibly grateful to her daughter, Barbara Urban, 37, who patiently helped her mom move to Colorado and adjust to being blind. Parke\u2019s husband, Rob, has been equally supportive. Connie and Rob now dream of moving back to a more rural location. They\u2019d love to find some land with a small lake.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI want to wake up and fish. I want to wake up and kayak somewhere in Colorado,\u201d Parke said.<\/p>\n<p>Even when she was blind, Parke was game for adventures. She\u2019d go out kayaking in Cherry Creek Reservoir with Rob. He\u2019d paddle nearby and she\u2019d navigate by following his voice.<\/p>\n<p>Now, the two dream of starting up a Christmas tree farm. Rob has a big beard and a twinkle in his eyes and would eagerly serve as the resident Santa Claus on the farm.<\/p>\n<p>The couple can\u2019t wait, too, to do more traveling. Connie was always willing to go on adventures with her family. But, it was tough not to see the beauty that the rest of the crew was drinking in.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy husband took me to Yellowstone and he saw bears and all those animals. And I saw nothing,\u201d Parke said.<\/p>\n<p>The Parkes have relatives in Oregon and also took two family trips to the coast in recent years.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI really want to do those trips all over again,\u201d Parke said. \u201cI want to see the waves and fish and clam.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe best is yet to come.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Connie Parke used to live in a two-stoplight town in Montana. Yet, even in a place she knew so well, she started getting lost. Over five months back in 2003, her vision in both eyes got so bad that she couldn\u2019t work, couldn\u2019t drive and was accidentally setting fires when she tried to light the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2123,"featured_media":23609,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[4221,848,4805,9167,3631],"class_list":["post-23603","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-cataracts","tag-eye-care-ophthalmology","tag-eye-conditions-our-treatments","tag-specialized-services","tag-uchealth-sue-anschutz-rodgers-eye-center"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.4 (Yoast SEO v27.4) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Blind woman gets her sight back - UCHealth Today<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Connie Parke started losing her sight in 2003. 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