Welcome to Unconditional, our real-talk video series on chronic illness. From the challenges of diagnosis to the beauties of recovery, we’re asking people to give it to us straight. Each episode offers a space to ask questions, feel hopeful, and learn how others are navigating life unconditionally.
“I, to this day, still have no official diagnosis. I am a little mystery,” says Chandler Plante, an assistant editor at PS. Plante lost half her vision in November 2022 due to a mystery illness that stumped six hospitals, countless doctors, and one very confused 22-year-old.
“Some people say that I have Long COVID, they say that I have autoimmune issues, but no one really knows why I ended up losing my eye,” Plante says. In 2023, she went through immunotherapy treatments for a year as a mass of inflammation grew and started to push her eye about 26mm out of her face.
By then, her life had changed completely, as she recounts losing “all independence.” She was forced to quit her job in New York and move back home with her parents while undergoing treatments including high-dose corticosteroids and radiation. At the same time, Plante began posting videos on TikTok about her health. In looking for community, she wound up connecting with supportive followers who were inspired by her optimistic approach to life.
The more she shared, the more comfortable she became – eventually learning to embrace her changing eyeball through makeup videos. Her favorite: a sparkling teardrops tutorial she created in 2023 that reached over 500,000 people and was flooded with hundreds of positive comments. “Your energy, your light!” one person wrote. “Not only do you have infectious positivity but you bedazzled the F out of it,” said another. “I’m SO inspired, I have a ‘special’ eye too,” said one more.
With that, Plante started using her eye as a canvas and eventually began feeling more like herself. “I can still feel beautiful, even if I wasn’t completely healed, even if I didn’t have all the answers,” she says.
Fast forward to today, Plante has since had her eyeball removed and found her new normal. She’s moved back into a solo apartment and is exploring self-expression through dance. “It’s made me a lot happier as a person,” Plante says. “It’s helped me enjoy my life in such a deeper way.”
Press play to learn more about Plante’s chronic health journey.
Genevieve Farrell Roston (she/her) is an award-winning filmmaker and the director of video at PS. She oversees the Webby-nominated PS Fit video series, which makes fitness fun and accessible. She has more than 10 years of experience in the entertainment industry. A certified personal trainer, she loves running, Pilates, and rest days. As a mom of two, she is an avid reviewer of children’s gear and products.
