They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder — but that has a different meaning for one young couple.
Sophia Corah lost her vision at 18, suddenly waking up with poor eyesight in May 2017 and being declared legally blind in August 2017.
The teen was later diagnosed with keratoconus, according to South West News Service. The condition occurs when the clear, dome-shaped front surface of the eye thins and gradually bulges outward into a cone shape, according to the Mayo Clinic.
“At first I thought it was an allergy attack or something,” the now 24-year-old told SWNS.
“I drove to school and realized my eyesight was going when I couldn’t read the paper,” she continued. “It was so scary, and I think I sobbed for six months.”
Despite her condition, Corah attended Adams State University in Colorado and was studying psychology when she met Christian Corah, now 25, and they immediately felt a connection.
The pair were close friends at first — with Christian supporting Sophia as her condition deteriorated — even researching the disease and discovering a surgery that could help her regain her vision.
After helping raise around $19,381 in only five weeks for the multiple procedures — which would stop the cornea from bending out of shape — Corah was able to have the operation in October 2018 and fully regained her eyesight in August 2019, according to SWNS.
“My vision slowly started coming back, but it was very gradual while I healed,” Corah said.
“I was able to start wearing … [scleral] contacts, which meant I could see, but it was very intense, and I could only wear them for a few hours at first.”
Keratoconus is characterized by the thinning of the cornea and irregularities of the cornea’s surface. The cornea is the clear, outer layer at the front of your eye.
The middle layer is the thickest part of the cornea, mostly made up of water and a protein called collagen.
Collagen makes the cornea strong and flexible, and helps keep its regular, round shape. This healthy cornea focuses light so you can see clearly.
With keratoconus, the cornea thins and bulges into an irregular cone shape, resulting in vision loss.
Keratoconus generally begins at puberty and progresses into the mid-30s. There is no way to predict how quickly the disease will progress, or if it will progress at all.
The disease typically affects both eyes, with one being more severely affected than the other.