Crocheting with Glaucoma

One of the activities that helps me to cope with glaucoma and manage stress is crocheting. I learned how to crochet from my mom. She first showed me how to do a single crochet stitch, which is the easiest to learn when you’re starting out. Later, I became interested in learning how to complete more patterns.

When I wanted to learn to make a granny square, my mother pointed me to a YouTuber named Charlotte, The Nervous Knitter. I love Charlotte because she goes very slow when you’re learning a new pattern, which is very helpfulfor a crocheter or knitter with glaucoma! I also got into the Afghan stitch, which is my favorite after the granny square because I love that the pattern is like a mountain. I alwayslove learning new patterns.

With my crochet hook, yarn, and yarn holders, I love making colorful baby blankets and hats for babies in the hospital that need something to go home with. I crochet potholders for an organization called Meals on Wheels that helps older people who are in need of essential items to thrive. I made a blue and white blanket for my glaucoma specialist and she loved it! Since glaucoma makes it harder for me to see dark or complicated yarn, I prefer my yarn to be colorful, thick, and easy to work with — not too thin for me to see and feel. I use colorful hooks that I can see well, and vibrant yarns that bring out the cheer in my work. I use a yarn holder when I crochet to help avoid getting knots in my yarn. If I get fatigued from crocheting for a long period of time, I take a short break to rest my eyes before resuming another project. I belong to a crocheting and knitting group with my friends at church where we make various things for different causes.

I like to buy my crocheting items at Michaels. I buy yarn at Michaels, Hobby Lobby, Walmart, or Ollies. My favorite yarns (Red Heart, Caron Cakes, Loops and Threads) help me to see the stitches that I am doing. I encourage glaucoma patients that crochet to try out the Caron Anniversary Cake and Chunky Cake yarn. It’s easy to see, colorful, and you can work with it without trouble using a colorful hook that you can see.

You can crochet if you have glaucoma, but you need to accommodate it with accessible materials to help you crochet items for yourself and others. This year, I plan to learn how to read patterns with my magnifier, and to watch more videos for crocheting blankets and hats. For me, crocheting is a great way to relieve stress from glaucoma!

Article by Jasmyn Polite. Posted on February 24, 2026.