Dementia

Dementia:

What is Dementia?

Dementia is a term used to describe a range of disorders or conditions that are affecting the brain. There are several types of dementia, the most common and well known one is Alzheimer's disease. You can have Dementia at any age, not just as you get older, and everyone diagnosed with dementia will experience their own unique symptoms

What are the most common types of Dementia?

The most common types of Dementia are as follows:

Alzheimer's Disease - symptoms are usually mild to begin with and then worsen over time. (Difficulty with language, depressed or agitated and may withdraw from family and friends, memory lapses, problems with special awareness, difficulty making decisions, problem solving and/or disorientation of time or place, a person not recognizing a familiar face.)

Vascular Dementia - caused by small blood clots preventing oxygen getting to the brain. (Progression can be quite erratic as a person my not have a series of blood clots for sometime. People suffering will usually appear to be 'getting better', this is usually temporary, as the damage to the brain can eventually lead to difficulties; e.g. with daily living, attention, memory, decision making and motivation.) 

Frontotemporal - More common under the age of 65. Frontotemporal Dementia represents a group of conditions which are caused due to nerve cells in the brain dying and the nerve pathways becoming damaged in the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain. (Behavioural Variant Frontotemporal Dementia symptoms can be: changes in behavior or personality, apathy, obsessive or repetitive behaviours, loss of empathy, changes in appetite, difficulties making decisions, problem solving and concentration.)(Primary Progressive Aphasia, which consists of Semantic Dementia and Progressive Non Fluent Aphasia can have the following symptoms: language difficulties, speech or grammar problems, reduced understanding and difficulty recognizing familiar faces or objects.)

Dementia with Lewy bodies - Dementia with Lewy Bodies is caused by a build up of clumps and proteins in nerve cells in the brain, known as Lewy Bodies. (Symptoms of this are: fluctuating alertness, confusion and concentration levels, memory issues, mood changes, struggling with problem solving, spatial awareness, difficulty doing everyday tasks, tremors, slower movement, sleep disturbance, unsteadiness, an increase in falls and visual hallucinations.

 

Although there is no known cure for Dementia just yet, there is still support out there for you, anyone looking after someone with Dementia and anyone looking for more information. Here are some services here to help with Dementia:

Local Services:

• Huntingdonshire Dementia Action Alliance  - Dementia Action Alliance brings together leading organisations across England committed to transforming health and social care outcomes for people affected by dementia. Dementia Action Alliance captures and promotes best practice, enabling it to benefit many more people. They do this through member Action Plans. These are made public on their website. Members come together to share best practice and learn about the latest trends and innovations from across health and social care. We enable this through our events programme that includes roundtables, conferences and webinars. Members come together to influence system-wide change and campaign on major issues within health and social care affecting people living with dementia.                                        
• Dementia Carers Support Service - The Dementia Carers’ Support Service (DCSS) provides support for carers of people with dementia throughout the journey of their caring role. This is achieved by linking current carers of people with dementia with those who already have first-hand carer experience. These experienced carers are a befriender or buddy and become Dementia Carers’ Support Volunteer.                        
• Dementia Support Service Cambridgeshire - The Alzheimer's Society dementia support workers offer information and practical guidance to help you understand dementia, cope with day-to-day challenges and prepare for the future. They offer information to people who are worried about their memory and ongoing support to people affected by dementia face to face, over the phone or in writing.                                                                                                                                                                
• Peterborough Dementia Action Alliance - Dementia Action Alliance brings together leading organisations across England committed to transforming health and social care outcomes for people affected by dementia. Dementia Action Alliance captures and promotes best practice, enabling it to benefit many more people. They do this through member Action Plans. These are made public on their website. Members come together to share best practice and learn about the latest trends and innovations from across health and social care. We enable this through our events programme that includes roundtables, conferences and webinars. Members come together to influence system-wide change and campaign on major issues within health and social care affecting people living with dementia.                                             
• Love to Move - Love to Move is a seated exercise and movement programme, packed with fun, music and laughter and specially designed to help improve the fitness of mind and body. This exercise programme is unique in the UK and proven to have significant physical, emotional and cognitive benefits for all participants, particularly those living with dementia. Each session lasts one hour and is delivered by an experienced and enthusiastic tutor.                                                                                                                                                                            
• Dementia Compass - Founded in 2010, Dementia Compass works to support individuals with a cognitive impairment and their families and care partners. We are a volunteer-led, not-for-profit organization based in Cambridgeshire, England.                                                                          
• Dementia Compass - D'Music'a Community Choir - We welcome anyone who loves music, especially those with memory challenges. We are a group consisting of individuals diagnosed with a dementia or mild cognitive impairment, their care partners and people who are keen on singing, having fun, and supporting opportunities for people living with dementia.

Local Dementia Cafés:

A Dementia Café is a café that people suffering with dementia can visit and be social, along with their friends, families and carers. The cafés are relaxed are give people the opportunity to talk with staff and other people about dementia whilst having a cup of tea and cake. Some cafés host regular talks by a range of local services who promote wellbeing and safety.

• Forget Me Not Café - Alex Wood House Nursing Home, 3A Fortescue Road, CB4 2JS, Cambridge
• Dementia Café Ramsey - Rainbow Surgery, Stocking Fen Road, 1B Stocking Fen Road, Ramsey, PE26 1SA, Huntingdon
• Dementia Café St Ives Cambridgeshire - St. Ives Free Church Market Hill, PE27 5AL, St. Ives
• Synergy Café, Thorpe Hall - Thorpe Hall Hospice, Thorpe Road, PE3 6LW, Peterborough
• Dementia Café March -36 High Street, PE15 9JR, March
• Dementia Café Ely - Ely Methodist Church, 15 Chapel Street, CB6 1AD, Ely 
• Dementia Café Wisbech - Robert Hall Centre, St. Augustines Road, PE13 3AH, Wisbech

 

National Services:

• Dementia UK - This site offers support and helpful information about dementia and how you can get in touch for more help and info.
• Alzheimer's Research UK - Alzheimer’s Research UK is the UK’s leading dementia research charity, dedicated to causes, diagnosis, prevention, treatment and cure. Backed by our passionate scientists and supporters, we’re challenging the way people think about dementia, uniting the big thinkers in the field and funding the innovative science that will deliver a cure.
• Alzheimer's Society - This site has great information about getting help and getting involved in supporting people with Alzheimer's.
• Age UK - Age UK's vision is to make the UK a great place to grow older. They do this by inspiring, supporting and enabling in a number of ways.
• Carers Trust Cambridgeshire, Peterborough and Norfolk - We support family carers of all ages across Cambridgeshire, Peterborough and Norfolk. We also offer flexible, professional care services to adults and children with a range of disabilities and health conditions.

Mental health challenges are common but help is available and with the right support many people recover completely. Check out our Support Services Page for lots of services who are local and national!

 

*Some information gathered from www.nhs.uk and www.ageuk.org.uk/.

Long-Term Conditions

Managing your Well-Being with a Long-Term Condition:

Living with a long term health condition can take its toll on your mental well-being. Long-term conditions can lead to frustration, anxiety, low mood and other mental health challenges. If you live with a long-term health condition it does not mean you will suffer with mental health challenges, everybody had mental health and we all cope with stress and things like health conditions in our own ways. 

 

Managing your well-being with diabetes:

Having the long-term condition of diabetes means that you have to juggle managing your condition along with everyday life. This can be very overwhelming, stressful and can cause frustration. Changes in mood are very common because of this. Research suggests that if you have diabetes, you are more likely to experience challenges with anxiety and depression.

National clinical health guidelines have demonstrated that cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is useful for people who are struggling with managing their diabetes. CBT can enhance peoples’ understanding of diabetes care and has also been shown to improve mood and glycaemic control.

Finding Support

NHS Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Talking Therapies works alongside and collaborates with GPs, hospitals, diabetes specialist nurses and consultants. We will help you recognise if you are experiencing anxiety or depression and how this might affect health and management of your diabetes. Therapists have training and experience in working with people with diabetes and other physical health conditions. Together, we will be able to talk about the range of therapy options that would be most helpful and suitable for you.

 

Managing your well-being with a heart condition:

People living with heart conditions typically experience higher rates of mental health challenges. Some research suggests that you can be three times more likely to suffer with anxiety and/or depression if you are living with a heart condition. Anxiety is the most common symptom (77%) and over half (51%) of people with a heart condition experience symptoms of depression. Despite these strong feelings, many people do not speak to anyone about the emotional or psychological impacts of having a heart condition.  

It can be really helpful to talk with someone about your heart condition. Improved management of stress and depression can help support future changes to your physical and emotional health. This in turn will help to improve your cardiovascular risk profile and lower your risk of further cardiac events.

Finding Support

NHS Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Talking Therapies works alongside and collaborates with GPs, hospitals, diabetes specialist nurses and consultants. We will help you recognise if you are experiencing anxiety or depression and how this might affect health and management of your diabetes. Therapists have training and experience in working with people with diabetes and other physical health conditions. Together, we will be able to talk about the range of therapy options that would be most helpful and suitable for you.

 

Managing your wellbeing with Respiratory Disorders:

People living with COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) or other chronic respiratory diseases can find themselves feeling low and/or anxious. Research shows that people with COPD are 2.5 times more likely to experience depression and anxiety than the general population. Symptoms such as breathlessness, coughing and fatigue can contribute to feelings of stress, anxiety or depression. These feelings can lead to reduced activity levels, which may worsen your condition.  Cognitive behavioural therapy techniques have proven to be successful in psycho-educational breathlessness/health promotion groups as well as individually  in primary and secondary care, with positive outcomes on: psychological wellbeing, coping strategies and use of health services.

Finding Support

NHS Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Talking Therapies works alongside and collaborates with GPs, hospitals, diabetes specialist nurses and consultants. We will help you recognise if you are experiencing anxiety or depression and how this might affect health and management of your diabetes. Therapists have training and experience in working with people with diabetes and other physical health conditions. Together, we will be able to talk about the range of therapy options that would be most helpful and suitable for you.

 

Who is NHS Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Talking Therapies for? Is if free? And how can I refer myself?

The service is for people aged over 17 years who are normally resident in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough who are registered with a GP in one of these areas. We do not have an upper age limit.

The service is free of charge as it is an NHS service.

You can refer yourself Here! You can also call their self-referral team on 0300 300 0055 and they will guide you through the process, let them know that you have a Long-term Condition. The telephone line is open from 9am to 5pm Mon-Fri.

NHS Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Talking Therapies provides psychological therapy that recognises the difficulties for some patients with long-term physical health conditions including COPD, Diabetes and Cardiac disease including heart failure.

NHS Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Talking Therapies aims to help you to improve your well-being, support you to manage your health problem and help you to look at how you can live your life in a more positive way.

We offer a range of treatment options including courses as well as individual therapy, which case take place via the telephone, online or face to face depending on the treatment you receive. The type of therapy we predominantly use is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (see therapies section).

We are based in a variety of locations across the county to make access easier, including at our base sites in Huntingdon, Cambridge, Wisbech, March and Peterborough.  We also work out of many GP surgeries, various rooms in the community such as libraries and some hospital settings.  However, we do not see people in their own home.

*Some information gathered from www.nhs.uk and www.ageuk.org.uk/.

Retirement

Retirement is a big event in our lives, for some people is will be a great time. But for some people it can also feel like we’ve lost part of our identity.

When it comes to retiring there’s often quite a few questions we would like answers to, which is why we’ve put together the most popular ones here for you.

Question: What age can I retire at? And can my boss/employer force me to retire at a certain age?

Answer: You can retire at any time you wish, there is no limit to when you can or can’t retire. Your employer cannot legally force you to retire at a certain age anymore; Age UK’s campaign caused the ‘Default Retirement Age’ law to be scrapped in 2011, which means you can continue working if you want/need to.

Your employer can however force/ask you to retire under the law when a valid reason has been given, for example:

·         If the job has, by another law, had an age limit set.

·         If your job requires you to have specific physical abilities and mental abilities.

Should you be forced to retire by your employer then they will have to give you some notice and they will also have to follow fair procedure.

Employers will still have the right to make dismissals and redundancies if you’re not completing your job roles/duties to the correct standard. These decisions must be based off criteria, regardless of age.

 

Question: Have I got to tell my boss/employer about my retirement plans?

Answer: In short no. You do not have to tell your employer about your retirement plans if you do not wish to; however, some employers will ask about your plans as they will be interested in when you plan on leaving the business.

Retiring takes a few months or more of planning, research and discussions. Everyone take this at their own pace and that is okay, it’s a big life event that will cause a lot of changes. For more information about what lifestyle changes you may come across, visit the Age UK website.

 

Question: If I continue to work, will I still get a State Pension?

Answer: You can claim your State Pension when your reach your ‘State Pension Age’. This is determined from your date of birth and your gender. You can find out your State Pension Age here on the GOV.uk website.

When you are getting closer to your State Pension Age you will be given the option to either claim your State Pension payments or delay them. You can still claim your State Pension whilst you’re working; however, some people like to delay their payments until after they have finished working as this means they often won’t have to pay income tax on it.

You can also have a workplace/private pension scheme. This can have a different age as to when you can start receiving it, this can also be whilst you’re still working. Every workplace/private pension scheme will differ from one another so you should ask your employer about how your pension is affected if/when your work arrangements change or if you continue to work past your State Pension age.

 

Question: Have I got to continue paying tax if I continue to work past my State Pension Age?

Answer: Once you’ve worked past your State Pension age you will no longer have to pay National Insurance; some employers will need some proof of age so they can stop National Insurance tax from being deducted from your pay.

Depending on your income, there is a chance you will have to continue to pay income tax on your total income. Your total income will include your State Pension, workplace/private pension and your workplace salary. Some people like to delay their State Pension until they have finished working in order to possibly pay less tax.

 

For more information about retirement, you can visit GOV.uk and Age UK.

*Some information gathered from www.nhs.uk and www.ageuk.org.uk/.

Who Can Help?

If you are worried that you or someone you know may have a mental health challenge, visit your GP for support and you can access the following websites for more information:

• AgeUK - Age UK's vision is to make the UK a great place to grow older. They do this by inspiring, supporting and enabling in a number of ways.
• Alzheimer's Society - This site has great information about getting help and getting involved in supporting people with Alzheimer's.
• Dementia UK - This site offers support and helpful information about dementia and how you can get in touch for more help and info.
• NHS Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Talking Therapies - (Self-Refer) - Offer support to those aged 17 and over via a range of brief supported self-help and talking therapy options. The service usually helps people with mild to moderate mental health issues, including depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, panic attacks, phobias or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. You can self-refer to the service by calling 0300 300 0055 or you can self-refer here.
• MindEd For Families - MindEd for Families supports parents and those caring for children and young people in their family when they are concerned about a young person’s mental health or well-being. They also provide support for older people and their families when they are concerned about mental health and well-being, either their own or other family members.
• Contact The Elderly - Supported by a network of volunteers, Contact the Elderly organizes monthly Sunday afternoon tea parties for small groups of older people aged 75 and over who are dealing with loneliness and social isolation.
• The Silver Line - The Silver Line is the only confidential, free helpline for older people across the UK open every day and night of the year. Our specially-trained helpline team offer information, friendship and advice, link callers to local groups and services, offer regular friendship calls and protect and support older people who are suffering abuse and neglect.
• Independent Age -  As well as offering regular friendly contact and a strong campaigning voice, Independent Age can provide you and your family with clear, free and impartial advice on the issues that matter: care and support, money and benefits, health and mobility.  
  A charity founded over 150 years ago, we’re independent so you can be.
• Friends of the Elderly - We are dedicated to providing individual care with dignity that meets your needs. We employ an informal, relaxed approach to ensure that we maintain our home from home feel, but we always deliver our care with absolute professionalism. Our homes provide residential, dementia, nursing and respite care.
• The Women's Institute - The WI plays a unique role in providing women with educational opportunities and the chance to build new skills, to take part in a wide variety of activities and to campaign on issues that matter to them and their communities.

Mental health challenges are common but help is available and with the right support many people recover completely. Check out our Support Services Page for lots of services who are local and national!

*Some information gathered from www.nhs.uk and www.ageuk.org.uk/ and the services listed.