We see with our eyes … right?

Well, not exactly.

In 2012, over the course of 72 hours, Vanessa Potter dramatically lost her sight.

Going blind led Vanessa to turn science sleuth and reinvent herself as Patient H69. As she slowly recovered she began to reveal the reality behind her unique experience.

Opening her eyes onto an unrecognisable black-and-white world with mutating shapes and colours that crackled and fizzed, Vanessa’s recovery turned into a mission to unearth the incredible science behind how and why we perceive the world as we do. Thanks to cutting-edge research she was able to recreate her bizarre and otherworldly visual landscape as a series of remarkable digital images. In this book, we follow the story of Patient H69 as, with the help of neuroscientists from the University of Cambridge, she learns the science of herself, making discoveries that will go on to change the direction of her life.

Vanessa’s account is raw and candid, taking us through the trauma of her sudden sight loss and the impact it had upon both herself and her family. It shows how this remarkable woman opened doors by transforming her terrifying experiences into a scientifically fascinating endeavour.