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Four people in the early stages of dementia will tell their stories on the Red Nose Day twitter feed today.
In a Comic Relief first, the nation will gain a unique insight into the lives of Jo, Phil, Anne and Tommy, from the challenges they face to the often surprisingly uplifting realities.
There is no cure for dementia but Comic Relief uses cash raised through Red Nose Day to help fund 50 groups across the UK where people with dementia can meet others with the condition.
The four contributors are members of these groups. Jo is a 60-year-old grandmother from Stockport who has early onset Alzheimer’s and Phil, 62, from Bedford, got married after his diagnosis. Anne, 56, from Glasgow, has a rare strain of dementia, the same type as author Terry Pratchett, and Tommy, 62, from Liverpool is a passionate dementia campaigner.
Jo will explain how she stays active. She said: “My husband and I are keen runners, I keep a shoe box with all my medals which gives me a big sense of achievement and physically it is really important as running gets more oxygen to your brain so it stops the old brain cells withering away so quickly.”
Tommy will also talk about how his relationship with his wife of 44 years has been affected. He said: “I say things I wouldn’t normally say and without thinking, like ‘that meal is horrible’ or ‘that dress doesn’t look nice’. The emotions I once had have gone and I lack the same empathy with people that I once had. I don’t feel like embracing anyone, I don’t give hugs.
“When I am with other people with dementia, we all share the same language and understand each other. It’s the only time we do have empathy, we don’t have to tell each other how we feel because we know.”
Actors Jim Broadbent, Tony Haygarth and John Partridge and TV presenters Fiona Phillips and Richard McCourt all have experience of the condition and will also share their perspectives. Tony, who has dementia, will visit a Red Nose Day funded project that holds activities helping people with the illness to keep their minds active through pet therapy, gentle exercise, art and gardening.
Jim, who is a dementia campaigner, said: “My mother lived with Alzheimer’s for the last couple of years of her life. People like her need support to be able to live as well as possible for as long as possible and the main burden of that will fall most often on close family members.”
You can follow the stories via @rednoseday and the hashtag #dementiadiaries.
