Inspirational speakers share their experiences of living with dementia

It was organised by Burley-in-Wharfedale Dementia Action Group to mark Dementia Action Week (May 15-21).

Attendees were all keen to increase their knowledge and share experiences about living with dementia.

Listening to people with dementia is really powerful and three guest speakers were on the programme.

Wendy Mitchell (Image: Ian Lamond Photography)

Wendy Mitchell, diagnosed with young onset dementia in 2014 and author of Sunday Times best sellers ‘Somebody I Used to Know’ and ‘What I Wish People Knew about Dementia’, spoke very movingly about how she focusses on the things that she can do, rather than dwelling on the things she can’t.

Now something of an international celebrity, and determined not to let dementia win, she looks for solutions when faced with difficult situations, always living in the moment, and with such a great sense of humour.

Derek Clegg and Michael Andrews each described their personal journey towards getting a diagnosis, the challenges and hurdles, and how the experience led to a strong commitment to promoting dementia-friendly communities.

They are both members of ‘Face it Together (FIT), Bradford’, an involvement group for people with dementia who work to help the local community, businesses and organisations understand what it is like to have dementia and how they can best support people. One of their achievements has been to work with First Bus, looking at the problems with, and how to improve bus timetables.

Susan Collins, of Burley-in-Wharfedale Dementia Action Group, said: "All three speakers have developed imaginative coping strategies to help them maintain their independence and are passionate advocates of how to live as well as possible with dementia. We are grateful to them for sharing their stories."

Dementia action week this year had the theme of dementia diagnosis. With a sustained drop in dementia diagnosis rates, the Alzheimer’s Society undertook research to understand the key barriers to and benefits from getting a diagnosis. As well as misconceptions around memory loss being a normal part of ageing, they found that being in denial and specialist referral times are the biggest barriers to getting people to seek a diagnosis.

A timely diagnosis not only gives a better understanding of the condition and what to expect, but also helps in making decisions about treatment, support and care.

Burley-in-Wharfedale Dementia Action Group is a voluntary organisation, convened in 2015 to raise awareness and understanding of dementia.

For more information visit: www.burleydementiafriends.weebly.com, www.facebook.com/burleydementiafriends, email dementiafriendlyburley@gmail.com or phone 01943 864424.