Even after thirty plus years I can still recall the excitement of my Nan coming to live in our family home.
I was only 6 years old at the time and although I knew she suffered with Alzheimer’s, mercifully my age and immaturity prevented me from fully understanding why she behaved in the way she did and how this must have devastated my Dad, her son.
My Nan was a constant playmate for me and my younger brother. She was also ‘Neighbourhood Nan’ to many of our young friends who lived in our street, genuinely believing that they were all her grandchildren too! She was endlessly patient when it came to our improvised dramatic performances, poetry recitals and ‘not-so-creative’ writing! She really was the best.
Life with my Nan, however, was not always plain-sailing. More often than not she was confused . . . often happily but occasionally this manifested itself in aggression. My Mum, who had given up her job to care for my Nan, often bore the brunt of this.
Alzheimer’s robbed my Nan of her dignity and although I was probably shielded from much more, some of the low points I do recall include my Nan:
•    Washing her hands in the toilet bowl.
•    Sleeping in the family dog’s basket.
•    Inviting door-to-door sellers into our house.
•    Leaving the house in the early hours in sub-zero temperatures in her nightclothes.
•    Hitting my Mum and accusing her of stealing from her.
It is testament to the love and support provided to her by my family, in particular my Mum, that I have always felt that the six years that my Nan lived with us, prior to her death in 1991, actually enriched my childhood. This experience provides part of the motivation for choosing to run the Virgin London Marathon for Alzheimer’s Research UK.
The other reason I have selected this charity is in support of gold medal winning Olympian, Imran Sherwani. Imran was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2019 and has recently been announced as a spokesperson for Alzheimer’s Research UK. My connection to Imran is that I work with his wife, Louise, in the Safeguarding Department for Staffordshire Police. Louise is so much more than a work colleague and I am privileged to call her a close friend. I am in awe of the way she is dealing with Imran’s diagnosis and the manner in which she cares for him . . . with love, patience and humour. These are qualities which extend to the way she interacts with her work colleagues despite the challenges of her own personal life. She is truly remarkable and I have so much love and respect for her.
Like me, I am sure that Alzheimer’s will have touched your life through a family member, friend or work colleague. Please donate whatever you can to the research of eradicating this terrible disease and providing hope to sufferers, like Imran, and those who love and care for them.