Third of dementia sufferers apathetic

A third of people with dementia feel apathetic and want to give up after deteriorating mentally and physically during the coronavirus lockdown, research from a charity suggests.

A similar proportion now do not feel confident going outside as restrictions begin to loosen, according to a survey of 1,831 people with dementia and their carers in June.

Nearly half (45%) of respondents said lockdown has caused their mental health to deteriorate, while one in 10 (11%) have lost friends since the social distancing conditions were imposed, the Alzheimer’s Society said.

And 46% of unpaid carers said their loved ones are now feeling stressed, anxious or depressed.

The charity’s support services have been accessed more than half a million times during lockdown, with 15,000 calls to the Alzheimer’s Society’s dementia connect support line.

Dementia and alzheimer’s disease is the most common pre-existing condition in almost 20,000 care home residents who died with Covid-19 between March 2 and June 12, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The charity says the suspension of normal life and the knock-on effect of the virus on mental health “has likely resulted in the massive increase of ‘unexplained’ non-virusrelated deaths”.

Unexplained “excess” deaths of people with dementia were 83% higher in England and 54% higher in Wales in April, the charity added.

The survey also revealed half of people with dementia have had fewer in-depth conversations than before lockdown.

Three in 10 people with dementia have gone at least four days without having a conversation lasting more than five minutes – rising to 46% of those living alone.

One in eight (12%) revealed they have gone a whole week without spending more than five minutes talking to someone.

Chris Maddocks, 64, who had to give up her job after being diagnosed with dementia in 2016, said she has struggled with her memory, concentration and confidence since lockdown began.

The former police officer has also become very sensitive to noise and very anxious.