Earlier this month was World Mental Health Day, an awareness-raising event designed to increase the profile of looking after our mental health. I’m a firm believer that just as we all have physical health problems, either sporadically or continually, so mental…
Tag: fear
Coronavirus and being isolated from a loved one
Last month I wrote about the coronavirus pandemic and answered two questions families supporting a loved one are grappling with: How do we hand-wash more and how do we self-isolate? For families who aren’t in the same household, however, they…
Driving, dementia, and doing the right thing
Whenever dementia diagnosis is discussed, one of the major barriers that explains why people delay seeking a diagnosis is the fear of giving up driving. It is understandable and something I can relate to. I live in a very rural…
Supporting a person with anxiety
Anxiety is commonly mentioned as one of a raft of symptoms linked to the development and progression of dementia. It is thought that dementia can both exacerbate anxiety in those who have a history of being anxious, and also bring…
Celebrating longevity
Hearing the tributes this week to Reg Dean, the gentleman who had been the UK’s oldest man until he passed away at the tender age of 110 years and 63 days, reminded me of the amazing stories behind the faces…
My dementia wish list
Welcome to 2013, the beginning of another new year and no doubt another set of targets for the tick box culture in health and social care. 2013 promises to be an important time for dementia, with the need to build…
NCD (Otherwise known as dementia)
It was only ever going to be a matter of time before the increased profile of dementia brought about a renaming of it. Thanks to the American Psychiatric Association (Representing 36,000 physician leaders in mental health) their newest version of…
Fear factor
Reading how frightened people feel about spending time with someone who has dementia, even when they are related to them, seems so incredibly sad to me. Perhaps it is because I can honestly never remember a time when I was…
Putting your head above the parapet
Anyone who knows me will confirm that I am not afraid to speak up, firmly but fairly, if something is wrong. With TV programmes and magazines extolling the rights of the consumer, complaining about goods and services is something most…
Dementia’s emotional rollercoaster
Living with dementia is one of the toughest challenges any family can face. Emotions become raw and brutally exposed, and the constant question of, “Why did our loved one develop this?” is a harrowing, often daily, exercise in trying to…
Continuity is key
Last week a story hit the headlines about how Jeanette Maitland’s husband Ken, who was living with dementia, had been given 106 different carers during the last year of his life. Mr Maitland, from Aberdeen, had been allocated two carers…
