While we support those living with dementia and their carers every day, #WorldAlzheimersDay is an opportunity to raise awareness, share stories, and further support those affected by the disease on a global scale.
Our CEO, Isobel Jones, has written a piece to commemorate the campaign:
Dementia, as we know, is on the increase; 1 in 2 of us are affected by it. Dementia is a condition that unfortunately isn’t curable. It is misunderstood, perceived to be an older person’s condition and is often just associated with memory loss.
But dementia is not something we should accept as old age. It is not something that can continue to be ignored and swept under the carpet. The more we talk about it, the more we can support people to live as well as possible. So much is being done to make our society more dementia friendly, but it’s time we make dementia a priority.
At Alive, we are passionate about lighting up later life. We want to bring joy to those who are living with dementia. And we do.
Take Betty, for example. She is a regular at our allotment. She’s been coming since the beginning. She lights up when she opens the gate, and begins to water. It’s her job and her purpose. She is now living in a care home, but she still comes every week. Our sessions are her constant and her joyful moments of the week.
Take John, for example. He is a regular at our Dementia Meeting Centre. He lives alone and felt isolated and lonely. His social circle had dwindled since his diagnosis. But here he finds support, camaraderie and friendship with other men living with dementia. They play skittles, pool, laugh about the things they can’t do and congratulate each other on their achievements. They often joke that it’s like they are down the pub for 5 hours every week.
They are living well together. But we need to create more opportunities like this.
We need to understand dementia, and break down stigmas and misunderstandings. At a meeting this week with a corporate partner, I was thanked by a member of staff who said we had completely changed the way she saw dementia. “I thought it was just old people who forgot things. Now I understand, I realise it’s so much more than that and I need to change my approach.”
We all need to change our thinking and support those who are living with dementia to lead lives as full as possible. It’s time to act on dementia, it’s time to act on Alzheimer’s.