Alzheimer's Society Podcast

For our latest Dementia together podcast we spoke to Michael Keenan, who is 62, lives in Omagh in Northern Ireland, and has young-onset Alzheimer’s. We chatted to Michael twice – in mid-2021 and early 2022 – to find out more about his life and the challenges he’s been facing during the pandemic. Despite enduring a difficult time, Michael believes that better days aren’t too far away and can’t wait to get back involved. Your donations play a vital role in ensuring people affected by dementia are aware of the services offered by Alzheimer’s Society, especially in what is a difficult time for everyone. To donate, visit alzheimers.org.uk/give or call 0330 333 0804.

For our latest Dementia together podcast we spoke to Pete Middleton, who is 67 and lives with his wife Pam near Kettering in the East Midlands. Pete was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in January 2019, which forced him into early retirement. As Pete explains, he bounced back by using his experiences of dementia to support the work of Alzheimer’s Society, even though some of this has been disrupted, like so much else, by the COVID pandemic.

When you’re caring for a person with dementia it can help you to find the right support. This will help you to live well. This track summarises some of the key ways that carers can get support.

Communicating together can become more difficult over time, as the person’s dementia gets worse. This track summarises tips for carers to help them communicate clearly and calmly.

Having dementia doesn’t mean you should feel ill or low. You should see the doctor if you’re feeling unwell. Being ill can make dementia worse. Being active can help you to stay independent and keep in touch with other people.

As we hopefully continue to emerge from the Covid pandemic, many of us will be looking forward to returning to something resembling normal life. But for Michael Andrews that may no longer be possible. Michael is 61 and has a rarer form of dementia called posterior cortical atrophy, also known as PCA. Hear about his ongoing attempts to navigate the challenges of the pandemic and the changes he’s experiencing in himself.

Having dementia doesn’t mean you need to stop doing the things you enjoy. This track has tips that can make it easier to live with memory loss.

Planning ahead means sorting out things like money, wills and powers of attorney. This track explains some of the ways you can plan ahead if you're affected by dementia.

When you have dementia, it helps to find the right support. This will help you to live well. This track summarises some of the main sources of support for people with dementia.

There is no cure for dementia yet. Some symptoms can be treated with drugs. This track summarises the main drug treatments for dementia.

There is no cure for dementia yet. There are ways of treating some symptoms without using drugs. This track summarises the main non-drug treatments for dementia.

This track summarises the important information you might need to know about the signs and symptoms of dementia. It signposts to more detailed information, if you need more.

This track summarises the important information you might need to know about dementia. It signposts to more detailed information, if you need more.

Alzheimer's Society's helpsheets are short and simplified summaries of our most popular information. Each helpsheet covers a single topic. There are ten topics in total. We’ll upload the audio versions for a couple of topics a week. If you'd like to know more about a topic, each helpsheet mentions our factsheets or booklets, and their codes. These have more detail and information in them. Make a note of the title and code. You can find them on our full list of publications: https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/get-support/publications-factsheets/full-list

With the pandemic ongoing, our Dementia together podcast interviews continue to take place by video call. In early November we spoke to 82-year-old Musharraff Ali, who has Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia, to hear about his experiences of living with the condition. As you’ll hear, the fact that Musharraff was prepared to discuss his dementia so openly shows just how far he has come since his diagnosis in 2014.

For the latest episode of our podcast, we speak by video call to Vesna, who has vascular dementia. Vesna lives in Bromley in south east London, but was raised in the care system in Manchester. She tells us about the challenges of her early life, the support she’s had during the coronavirus pandemic, and how she refuses to be defined by her dementia diagnosis.

The coronavirus lockdown has paused many activities that have helped Barney Thompson come to terms with having dementia with Lewy bodies. We spoke to Barney, who lives in Northern Ireland, by video call over a period of months, as he discussed dementia, driving, Alzheimer’s Society support and his attempts to help others who have a diagnosis.

Diagnosed with dementia while still in her 40s, Amanda Quinn wants others to know they have a voice.

Having feared the worst after his dementia diagnosis, Masood Qureshi is now focused on changing people’s perceptions.

Gordon Lambert is doing everything he can to help himself to live well with dementia.