This year’s World Alzheimer’s Month campaign is focused on raising awareness. As the hashtag #AskAboutDementia makes clear, it’s about encouraging people to ask questions, with the aim of tackling the stigma and misinformation that still often surrounds dementia and enabling everyone to access the information they need.
So, it’s fitting that in this blog we’re talking to Dudley Pearce, a long-time friend of ADSS and an active dementia advocate in the Medway area. Dudley received his diagnosis in 2013. “There’s a long history of heart disease in my family,” he says. “I’d been into hospital for a quadruple bypass, and it was while I was getting over that that I first noticed I was having problems with my memory and thought processes. I was referred to the memory clinic in Rainham and they told me I had vascular dementia.”
Initially, the impact was devastating. “At first it felt like a death sentence,” he says. “But as time has gone on, I’ve educated myself about the condition and found out about all the ways you can manage the underlying risk factors like high blood pressure and high cholesterol. And I’ve learned about the importance of keeping active and occupied, too.” 
Dudley’s first step towards coming to terms with his diagnosis and rebuilding his life was to join a peer group run by the Alzheimer’s Society. There, he made friends with Lorraine Brown, an Alzheimer’s Society ambassador. Together, they were able to support each other – but also push to make the world a better place for other people living with dementia.
“The first challenge we tackled together was with the local bus company,” says Dudley. A lot of older people and people with dementia rely on public transport and we thought it should be easier to use. As a result of the pressure, we put on them, they rolled out a dementia awareness training programme for their drivers.”
Want to know more about dementia awareness training? ADSS can provide support with dementia awareness training and there are also lots of great resources available online at Dementia Awareness, Alzheimer’s Research and the Young Dementia Network.
That was just the beginning. Dudley and Lorraine began speaking to local groups and societies, and even to students on medical and social work degrees. They acted as secret shoppers, providing recommendations on how the local shopping centre could be made more dementia-friendly, and delivering dementia awareness training to shop staff. Dudley was also active in the Dementia Engagement and Empowerment Project (DEEP), which brings together groups of people with dementia from around the country to share their experiences and lobby for change.
Then came the opportunity to start working with ADSS, helping to shape a new set of services for people with dementia in Medway, including peer groups where people with dementia can support each other. “It’s been an amazing opportunity to put my knowledge of the local area and my own lived experience to use,” says Dudley.
As well as providing advice and consultancy, Dudley is a regular speaker, sharing his experiences and encouraging people to take advantage of the activities and support available in the area. Earlier this year, he attended a Dementia Summit, alongside colleagues from ADSS, where he spoke about his experiences and lobbied local health and social services to make changes to the diagnosis pathway.
“I say to people, you have to put yourself out there,” he says. “Don’t hide away at home. Join the clubs, go to the events. And don’t be afraid to tell people you’re living with dementia. My message to anyone worried about getting a diagnosis would be, don’t be in denial. I know that’s easy to say. But if you open up, and share your problems with other people, it takes a weight off your shoulders. It does you good – and it means you can do good for others too.”
ADSS is here to help and support, whatever you need to #AskAboutDementia. Our Dementia Coordinators provide practical and emotional support for people living with dementia and their carers across the Kent and Medway regions. We also run a range of services in the community, including our Memory Cafés and drop-in sessions where local experts can answer your questions about living with dementia. Contact us to find out more.