News / Become a Friend of those with dementia
AS PART of a nationwide initiative to help communities better understand and cope with dementia, Shetland’s dementia advisor Ann Williamson led a one-hour interactive information session for library staff on Friday.
This session was the most recent in a series run by Alzheimer’s Society’s Dementia Friends, a government funded initiative, which aims to transform the way people nation think and talk about dementia.
Williamson was keen to emphasise the importance of turning an increased understanding of the condition into action.
“If people in the community know more about dementia, they can help others.
“This might mean having the confidence to go and speak to a woman who is wandering around looking lost, or simply having more patience with the man in front of you at the checkout who is taking a long time to get the right money sorted out,” she said.
At the same time, the very existence of such information events might be reassuring for people who have dementia.
At the end of the session, Williamson distributed “Dementia Friend” badges: when worn by the public, those with dementia (and their families) may feel more confident that they are supported in the local community.
One of the key messages of these information sessions is that dementia is not just about memory loss.
However, as Williamson pointed out, Alzheimer’s disease (a type of dementia) usually starts with people noticing that their memory of recent events has become less than reliable.
To illustrate the effects of dementia on a person’s short-term memory, Williamson used an analogy involving a tall, thin bookcase.
She asked participants to imagine that the bookcase contained the memories of a person in their eighties.
The lower shelves of the bookcase contained childhood memories, the middle shelves contained memories from middle age and the shelves at the very top of the bookcase contained memories of recent events.
Williamson asked participants to visualise what would happen if someone shook the bookcase.
“All the books on the top shelf – the most recent layer of memories – would become dislocated, while the books on the bottom shelves would remain in place. Dementia has this dislocating effect on recent memories.”
The condition often results in a loss of language. Williamson illustrated this with a story she’d heard from the daughter of woman with dementia. This woman, who had been visiting her mother in hospital, was a little surprised by her mother’s frequent requests for eggs.
However, during her mother’s stay in hospital she dutifully supplied her with eggs – until the day when someone walked down the ward carrying a tub of ice cream. Her mother pointed at the ice cream with a longing look and said “Eggs”.
Dementia affects each person in different ways. As well as losing language, people with dementia can lose motor control and have difficulty in sequencing procedures such as getting dressed and making a cup of tea.
Some also begin to find judging distances difficult.
Despite the challenges faced by people living with dementia, Williamson wanted to promote a positive message: “Someone can live with dementia for a good number of years and still have a good quality of life”.
Williamson went on to note that one of the bonuses of this more positive outlook is that people who have noticed changes in their memory may be less frightened to seek diagnosis.
She added that there are many misconceptions about dementia: “If we can view dementia as a disease – in the same way that people view kidney or liver disease, then it becomes less a case of Granny being difficult.”
Dementia Friends has visited schools and businesses around Shetland in order to provide information sessions and promote understanding.
Genevieve White
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