Do you enjoy being able to read?? Are you taking educational courses? Do you have a job that requires reading? Are you interested in reading for religious or spiritual purposes?? If so, then you might enjoy the challenge of learning Literary Braille. But you will need to be patient — like any new skill, it can take a while to learn — maybe a year of weekly lessons, but it will be well worth the time investment.???

People who can benefit from learning braille include those who are unable to use low vision devices, such as magnifiers or CCTV's for reading and writing.?

Learning braille as an adult is similar to learning a language but in a totally different format!? In addition to memorizing the dot configurations of the alphabet, numbers, punctuation and the contractions, you will also need enough finger sensitivity to feel the dot combinations.?

Although there are materials available in 'jumbo dot' form (and these can be helpful to someone who has poor finger sensitivity caused, for example, by diabetes), the range of materials available in this format for reading is quite limited. It was because of this limitation that an organization called The National Large Cell Braille Foundation (NLCBF) was founded.

Alternatively, if you have minimal use for reading and writing except for preparing shopping lists, labels, brief notes then you may find the Alphabetic Braille (as discussed in "What Is Braille?") is sufficient to meet your own needs.

The choice is always yours…don't be pushed into learning braille simply because you're now 'registered blind.'?? The learning and using of braille can be a wonderfully liberating experience — providing you have a need for it — you want to do it — and you're willing to invest the learning time!