Dedication. Introduction. 1. Before the onset. 2. Summer 2008: There's something the matter with me. 3. Summer 2008: First visit to the doctor - ""Go for a walk"". 4. Why is early onset dementia slow to be recognised? 5. Spring 2009: University hospital - Waiting and hoping. 6. The diagnosis - I feel as if I'm falling. 7. About Lewy Body dementia and how it has been for me. 8. Summer 2009: At rock bottom - and first aid from the Alzheimer's Society. 9. Doing battle with the bureaucrats. 10. Appointment for assessment. 11. Autumn and winter 2009: Helen Merlin - ""Speaking for myself"". 12. Shame or difficulty in being open about the symptoms. 13. January 2010: ""THIS MAKES SENSE!"" - I step out of the shadows. 14. March 2010: Thessaloniki - on my own. 15. My everyday life and how I cope with it. 16. March 2010: I am elected to the board of the Munich Alzheimer's Society. 17. Spring 2010: The media. 18. Speaker at a congress on dementia: Why many people I speak to declare that I am well. 19. July 2010: At the golf course. 20. Why it's wrong to compare people with dementia to children. 21. Things that I would like people to do when interacting with people with dementia. 22. Invisible hurdles in everyday life. 23. Conferences - Talks - Events. 24. Visibility and the ""Dementia Card"". 25. Mulling over my favourite topics. Acknowledgements. Afterword.
Description
'Helga writes of the trauma of diagnosis, and seeking support. Yet her fighting spirit meant she became a great advocate for living positively with dementia. This book is a testimony to her amazing resilience, despite her daily battles with this invisible condition. Helga is a true dementia expert!' - Christine Bryden, author of Who Will I Be When I Die?, Dancing with Dementia, and Nothing About Us, Without Us!
'Speaks truth to power: listen, learn, ACT!' - Professor Peter Mittler, CBE, Human Rights Advisor, Dementia Alliance International