Practical care to deal with life’s problems
Dementia is often thought of as something that affects the elderly, but it can strike even relatively young people with devastating consequences.
Lester Clark was 59 when he was diagnosed, bringing life-altering challenges for him and his wife, Diana.
The support of Sam, a Dementia UK Admiral Nurse, has helped get the couple through.
Lester was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia, an uncommon form of the condition, which tends to emerge at a younger age.
He had been referred to a memory clinic, which provides a range of support for people with dementia, when the Clarks were introduced to Sam.
Diana recalls: “Sam made little suggestions for making life easier. For example, Lester would wear the same clothes for days on end and wouldn’t let me wash them.
“She suggested I get loads of clothes that were exactly the same and swap them around when he was in bed.
“That’s what Admiral Nurses do – they help you isolate each tricky little problem and come up with a plan.”
When Lester needed to move into residential care, Sam helped Diana choose a home near their residence in Romford, London, that would suit him best.
“There is no glossing over the difficulties this condition brings, but Sam has been by my side through the different stages of Lester’s dementia.
She helps me be kind to myself,” adds Diana.
There are in excess of 850,000 people currently living with dementia in the UK, but unfortunately that figure is set to rise to more than one million by 2025.
To cope with this, as well as providing Admiral Nurses, Dementia UK can help by providing advice leaflets, videos and webpages to guide patients, their families and professionals through more than 200 sub-types of dementia.
Dementia UK relies solely on donations. A gift in your Will can help its Admiral nurses support more people when they need it most.
Learn more by visiting dementiauk.org/giw, emailing giftsinwills@ dementiauk.org or calling 0300 365 5500.