8.07.2015

Fundraising for Alzheimers Society

This is a bit of a change from the usual clothes wish list blog posts I normally do but, this is very important to me.

     In September I will be taking part in a Memory Walk to raise money for Alzheimers Society and I'm doing it in memory of my lovely Grandad. I set up a JustGiving page for any donations, I would love to reach my target of £100 and hopefully get over my target amount. 
It would be amazing and I would appreciate it so much if anybody reading this post could donate just a little, if you would like to my JustGiving page
is www.justgiving.com/katiesmemorywalk2015/

Here's a bit of information about Dementia for people wanting to know more:
What is Dementia?
Dementia is a term to describe symptoms such as memory loss and having difficulties with thinking, problem solving and language. It also can also change the persons behaviour and mood. The changes start off small but, over time becomes severe enough to affect daily life. How quickly dementia develops is down to the individual person.
The most common types of Dementia are Alzheimer's Disease, Vascular Dementia, Mixed Dementia (Alzheimer's Disease & Vascular Disease), Dementia with Lewy Bodies and Frontotemporal Dementia.

The number of people will Dementia is estimated to be around 850,000 in the UK.

Who does it affect?

It affects both men & women and mostly people that are ages 65 and over. However, there are more that 40, 000 under the age of 65 have Dementia in the UK. 

What could donated money go towards?

- £5 could pay for one person to attend a half hour session at a monthly Dementia Café, providing information and support for people with dementia and their carers.
£10 pays for someone with dementia to enjoy a Singing for the Brain session, boosting their confidence and well-being.
- £20 could pay for 100 copies of Understanding and respecting the person with dementia - one of the Society's most requested factsheets.
£30 allows a person with dementia to attend weekly Dementia Cafe sessions for a month where they can meet others, share experiences and feel less isolated.
£50 could fund a PhD researcher for one day to continue vital research into understanding the causes of dementia, how it can be treated and, ultimately, to find a cure.
£120 could pay to run Talking Point for one day - the Society's 24/7 online community for all people affected by dementia.


My Story

My Grandad was never officially diagnosed with Dementia but, a number of doctors had said that he showed symptoms. At one point he did forget who I was which was so difficult but, I was lucky enough that he did have good days as well bad where he would still love a good laugh, this normally involving doing very silly dances. He did struggle with what definitely seemed like Dementia, having days where he would often just want to sleep and would barely talk to any body, which was unusual for my Grandad who often was a rather chatty person. In February was taken to hospital as he was very confused about what was going on & who people were, which showed signs that he could have a urinary tract infection (this causes sudden & severe confusion known as 'delirium'). Unfortunately, his health deteriorated rather quickly whilst in hospital with him refusing to eat and drink which I think is due to Dementia. Sadly, my lovely Grandad passed away on the 7th of March (the night before my 21st birthday) and I've felt heartbroken ever since.

I will always remember my Grandad as being my number one fan especially when it came to my artwork and how his face would light up when I would come & visit him when I returned home from uni for the weekend or holidays. I miss him so very much!

If you would like to donate please go to my JustGiving page
Also, if you want to know more about Alzheimer's Society and Dimentia head to 
www.alzheimers.org.uk/ which is where I got all my information.
Thank you for reading this post, I know it's been a bit of a long one but, I found that this writing this post was very important.
Love from
Katie
x

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