( CNN ) -- The sea is a demanding environment , so people always ask , `` How are you able to sail if you ca n't see ? '' The answer : I have an acute `` spacial '' awareness and directional ability , and I use the wind 's varying pressure and patterns of waves to determine the direction I 'm headed . The truth of the matter is at night on the sea , everyone is blind . When the darkness takes over , it can be the most frightening or peaceful of times . A time when you can be at one with the ocean and your vessel , whether a totally blind sailor like me or blessed with 20/20 vision . When I became completely blind in 1984 , I first thought sailing would no longer be possible . Then I was introduced to a program called `` Challenged America , '' which is designed to teach people with disabilities of all kinds how to sail . I realized it was something I had to be a part of , and I welcomed one of my truest passions back into my life . Having logged thousands of coastal and offshore sailing miles in my youth , I 've been able to add to my experience by sailing and racing on the West Coast with `` Challenged America . '' This includes being the captain on two trans-Pacific races from Los Angeles to Honolulu . Ultimately , my blindness is n't my biggest challenge when I take to the open sea -- it 's my type 1 diabetes . Many people do n't realize the daily , if not hourly requirements that people with diabetes face . But it 's a disease that when properly managed can be nothing more than something you live with , rather than something that determines how you live . I did n't discover that I had diabetes until 1968 , when I awoke from a diabetic coma in a military hospital in South Vietnam . As an infantry sergeant , I went unconscious during battle , was presumed dead and placed in a body bag . Fortunately , two days later , an alert medic who was putting toe tags on dead soldiers felt my pulse still beating and immediately rushed me to the hospital . I credit diabetes with saving my life , as I later learned that many soldiers in my outfit were killed or wounded . Advances in diabetes have come a long way since then . It 's technology like my waterproof Animas insulin pump and new therapies and treatment that have made my journey to this point possible . Even when you are at sea , controlling your diabetes is so much easier than just a few short years ago . Today I 'm grateful for the life I 've been given . I hope that how I 've lived and what I 've accomplished serves as inspiration for the disabled and the millions of Americans touched by type 1 diabetes every day . Through the `` Challenged America '' program , I vow to strive for more . I am proud to say that this program not only introduces adaptive sailing to people living with disabilities , but also goes far beyond and has led to opportunities for further education and employment for many individuals . I hope that in sharing my story I motivate others to find a way to make their dreams and passions a reality . My next goal : to sail around the world either solo or with a crew of sailors with disabilities .
Urban Miyares has been legally blind since the 1970s . Miyares teaches people with disabilities to sail with the Challenged America program . Comment: