Alzheimer's Society Podcast

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.

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

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

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.