The need for specialist dementia support doesn’t stop during a pandemic
Families facing dementia need support now more than ever to help them cope with the double difficulty of dementia and the coronavirus. Normal support networks such as carer groups, day centres and activities have been shut down. For many family carers, this still means they will get no respite at all – and caring for someone with dementia can be a physically and emotionally challenging, 24-hour-a-day job.
Beryl and Jim
Dementia UK provides specialist dementia support for families, like Beryl and Jim’s, through our Admiral Nurse service.
Beryl says, “It’s a 24/7 day when I’m caring for Jim but sometimes it feels like 48/7. This lockdown has been very upsetting for both of us. Jim doesn’t understand what it is all about no matter how many times I try and explain it to him.
Prior to the lockdown, I had made some lovely friends in the clubs we go to and boy do you need these clubs – you just don’t realise how much they help you at the time. When lockdown was first announced, I made up my mind. I was going to phone up three people, whether that be friends or family. I just wanted to have a chat and a laugh; ask them to tell me what they’ve been doing. I find it really refreshing just to chat to people.
My Admiral Nurse Tracey is one of those people; she listens, she understands and she cares. She says we can always phone her up, and I have done so. I’m so grateful that she has been supporting me and Jim for the last three years. As Jim’s dementia is progressing, it’s so important that I have Tracey to support me so that I can continue to care for him. I love Jim and always will, but there is no denying that life is really tough right now.”
The money you raise will mean more families like Beryl and Jim’s can have the support of a dementia specialist Admiral Nurse – thank you.
£33
could pay for a new Admiral Nurse for an hour, reaching a family in crisis with nowhere else to turn
£70
could help fund a Helpline Admiral Nurse for two hours in the evening, helping carers in crisis, when other sources of support have closed for the night
£140
could pay for in-depth, specialist support from an Admiral Nurse for ten families contacting our Helpline