As reported by BY JANA BARNELLO, WGME WEDNESDAY, JULY 20th 2016

WELLS (WGME) — The old idiom goes “seeing is believing.” A Brunswick woman believes she will see again with an experimental surgery.

When you work somewhere long enough, you learn every corner of your office. After six and a half years working at Village Candle in Wells, Charlene Ouellet knows her corner, like the back of her hand. It’s especially impressive when you realize, she can’t see it.

“It feels like if you were wearing a pair of sunglasses that are very, very dark and they were all smeared,” Charlene said.

Ouellet has Usher’s Syndrome which is a genetic, degenerative disease that affects her hearing and sight. She is now deaf and legally blind.

Hearing aids help Charlene, but not much is helping her vision, nearly 25 years since her diagnosis,

“I was dealing with a lot of anxiety, a lot of panic attacks. It’s a frightening place to be, no vision, no hearing,” Charlene said. more…

For the full story visit: http://wgme.com/features/dirigo-stories/dirigo-stories-brunswick-womans-search-for-sight

Charlene Hopes Surgery Will Restore Vision

As reported by Tory Ryden , WCSH 8:00 PM. EST July 13, 2016

BRUNSWICK, Maine (NEWS CENTER) — A Brunswick woman is counting down the days until she undergoes an experimental surgery next month she hopes will restore at least some of her vision.

Charlene Ouellet was born with Type 2 Usher Syndrome–a rare disorder that compromises both hearing and vision.

“I ended up going into my doctor’s office in my 20’s because I was tripping on the file cabinets at work,” Ouellet explained. “I couldn’t find anything. Everything was always so dark when I came from outside. They kind of just threw the bomb at me and said, you know, you’re going blind.” more…

For the full story visit: http://www.wcsh6.com/life/brunswick-woman-to-undergo-stem-cell-transplant-for-eyesight/272011172