Family, Friendship, and Grit: Thriving Through Blindness with Laura Bratton

In this episode of The Art of Imperfect Adulting, host Amy Stone chats with Laura Bratton. Laura shares her deeply personal journey of losing her vision as a teenager, navigating grief and identity, and building a life grounded in grit, gratitude, and purpose. Together, they touch on adapting to traumatic change, the power of support systems, and practical ways to embrace a new normal—no matter what life throws your way.

About the Guest:

Laura Bratton is a psychologist, theologian, author of "Harnessing Courage: Overcoming Adversity with Grit and Gratitude," and founder of Ubi Global, where she coaches and speaks on resilience in the face of adversity. Despite losing her vision to a rare retinal disease in high school, Laura is passionate about helping others find strength while moving through periods of change, loss, and uncertainty.

Main Topics Covered:

• Laura’s diagnosis and gradual loss of sight during her teenage years
• The emotional and practical realities of adapting to sudden life changes
• Navigating grief, depression, and anxiety as a young adult
• The critical importance of support systems: family, friends, teachers, and guide dogs
• How mindset, grit, and gratitude facilitate healing
• Accommodations and adaptations in school and college
• Building a life of purpose: studying psychology and theology, writing a book, and launching Ubi Global

Quote from the Episode:

"When we face change, when we face loss, when we're in the midst of grief, that's intense courage to choose not to be overwhelmed and shut down by the grief, by the loss. So that's why the title [of my book], Harnessing Courage, was very deliberate, very specific." — Laura Bratton

Timestamps:

00:00 – Amy introduces Laura and kicks off the conversation

00:12 – Laura describes her roots in South Carolina and self-care through nature

01:39 – The journey of being diagnosed with a rare retinal disease

03:54 – The grieving process and the emotional reality of losing vision

09:37 – The role of family and zero prior experience with vision loss

11:17 – School accommodations, learning braille, and technology access

13:45 – Support systems and Laura’s rearview realization of her mindset shift

18:24 – Practical school adaptations and learning to accept “being different”

21:14 – Navigating social transitions in college and finding confidence

23:10 – Deciding on psychology and theology as college and graduate studies

27:32 – Why Laura wrote "Harnessing Courage" and the meaning behind the title

30:43 – Founding Ubi Global and using her lived experience to support others

34:15 – Where to find Laura and connect with her work

35:00 – Fun rapid-fire questions: favorite foods, books, and bucket lists

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