Thursday 27 April 2017

Travelling with Mild Cognitive Impairment


As many readers know Mummy was diagnosed with Mild Cognitive Impairment when she was 22 so over the last 15 “ish” years Mummy has found ways to cope and continue enjoying all life’s wonderful moments.

Blogger Babies, Mummy and Daddy love to travel, we live to embrace other cultures, beliefs and way of life.  With Mummy’s MCI travelling can be quite demanding, more than it would for other seasoned travellers this is because all new experiences demand more of us cognitively and involves doing a nonroutine activity.

Often travelling makes Mummy feel rushed and out of control which takes more out of her than normal daily tasks.  Mummy thrives day2day as she has a familiar routine, this means less confusion and consistency but when travelling this all changes it causes distress that may result in unusual symptoms and causes anxiety.

As a family, we have almost got travelling together down to simple moments, which reduces anxiety and confusion

1.     We allow ourselves extra time, the benefit of this is that it cushions the feelings of being rushed and out of control
2.     Daddy takes control, Mummy gets to do all the fun things like packing and making lists but at the airport it’s Daddy who is in charge.
3.     About two weeks before travelling we sit together and plan our personal itinerary and Mummy puts it all together in a lovely timetable with pictures, especially if she needs to remember where she’s staying.
4.     We print copies of our travel itineraries and parking instructions
5.     Daddy resets all the clocks and alarms to make sure Mummy doesn’t get confused about time differences. This doesn’t always work because of the normal routine Mummy follows but it does help.
6.     We also book Airport assistance, as this means that Mummy has extra support through the airport, and a week before we travel we contact the airport directly to explain exactly what Mummy needs.
7.     Mummy has a travel wallet which contains details on where we are staying and who to contact.
8.     We avoid long haul flights that require connections and tend to visit places Mummy went to prior to MCI this keeps travelling familiar and carries memories Mummy can relate to.

But most importantly 9. We travel during the time of day that is best for Mummy.

Just because Mummy has MCI, doesn’t mean she can’t enjoy life to.  Mummy believes in living life to the fullest and we like that.  When Mummy doesn’t like the changes, or gets confused Daddy calls them Mummy Adventures and we get to explore and experience everything from a new perspective.

Travelling with someone who has MCI, Dementia or Alzheimer’s can be challenging but with proper pre-planning and preparedness it can still be fun, safe and enjoyable.  We hope you found our family’s way of traveling useful and that you too can find what works for you.

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Wednesday 26 April 2017

Rehab 4 Addiction

The Dementia Mummy and Blogger Babies are pleased be supporting Rehab 4 Addiction
Rehab 4 Addiction who are Imparting valuable advice for people seeking drug and alcohol rehabilitation
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At Rehab 4 Addiction we pride ourselves on the quality and depth of advice we provide to those seeking recovery from addiction. Our admissions team treat drug, alcohol and behavioural addictions. Our advice is free to the public and impartial. We provide speedy admissions into rehabilitation centres throughout the United Kingdom. In fact, we organise rehabilitation programmes throughout the world including Thailand, South Africa and Australia.
No matter how lost you feel we can help. We offer admissions and aftercare support to thousands of addicts throughout the United Kingdom each year. Our relapse rates following rehabilitation are amongst the lowest in the industry. We believe this record is due to the impartial and independent nature of our service. We make sure sufferers begin a rehabilitation programme which caters to their specific needs.
To get things started call today on 0800 140 4690. The journey into recovery starts with a phone call. Everything else is taken care for you. Once you call we conduct a short but vital assessment. This determines the rehabilitation programme we recommend. If your loved one requires help but is not ready to accept this help we offer an intervention service.
Our rehabilitation partners are located throughout the United Kingdom. If you wish to locate a centre near you simply complete the postcode lookup finder above.
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Monday 24 April 2017

Alzheimer's & Dementia Weekly: What is MCI (Mild Cognitive Impairment)?

Alzheimer's & Dementia Weekly: What is MCI (Mild Cognitive Impairment)?: DIAGNOSIS VIDEO: Worried about memory? Many people notice serious memory and thinking slips, though the problems don't get in the way o...

Coping with Mild Cognitive Impairment



It’s not widely talked about, MCI is often over looked because people like me can live relatively normal lives.

Blogger Babies MummyThis is me, I was diagnosed with MCI at only 22 years old and I have had to relearn how to live my life despite it.

I first started displaying symptoms when I was 18 years old, and my GP actually said to me it was all in my head and prescribed antidepressants.  The symptoms I started with were relatively small individually you’d not recognise a connection but when listed together it became obvious that there was an underlying issue.

·        I started to forget things more regularly than a normal person
·        I was missing appointments and engaging with friends.
·        I would forget what I was saying half way through saying it, this was made worse by not being able to recall words I needed.
·        I suffered awfully with anxiety (I’ve still not learnt to manage this)
·        I became overwhelmed by things like making a decision or a change in my routine
·        I was (and still can be) irritable all the time, small issues became massive issues.

So, what is MCI?

MCI is Mild Cognitive impairment and it is an intermediate stage between the expected cognitive decline of normal aging and the more-serious decline of dementia. It can involve problems with memory, language, thinking and judgment that are greater than normal age-related changes.  So, to be symptomatic at 18 was unusual, but not unheard off or rare.

If you have mild cognitive impairment, you may be aware that your memory or mental function has "slipped." Your family and close friends also may notice a change. But generally, these changes aren't severe enough to significantly interfere with your day-to-day life and usual activities.

Mild cognitive impairment may increase your risk of later progressing to dementia, when I visit the doctors now this fact is written all over my record in red.  Dementia is caused by Alzheimer's disease or other neurological conditions. But some people with mild cognitive impairment never get worse, and a few eventually get better.  I have really good days when I am literally a fully functional member of society.

Despite the MCI I have held a career, I started out nursing, moved to Admin and became a Senior Administrator within the NHS for both the Adult and Children’s Safeguarding Teams.  I have married and I have two gorgeous little boys (Blogger Babies).

Increasing Cognitive Impairment

Sadly, my MCI is actually getting worse.  My father (Grumpy) has had to move in to support me.  I know rely on having a routine and lists for everything.
·        I make lists of everything I have to do, these are stuck to a door in the kitchen so that I can clearly see them.  I also have a menu for the month planned so I know exactly what we are eating and I can plan accordingly.
·        When I have to learn something, new I write little help guides – an exact step by step process, which has become useful when I temp as the next person can come in and pick up where I left without too much difficulty.
·        I have the same daily routine which I stick to, small changes to the routine can send me into a complete melt down.
·        I have people, friends and family remind me.

How I feel about MCI

MCI, when I was first diagnosed I was lost, I literally thought that my life was over.  The plans, hopes and dreams I had for the future were now out of my grasp.  I wallowed in self-pity for about 6 months, until my family and friends became tired of the same old same old and started demanding I do more.  Get of the house have some fresh air…

My life isn’t over, it’s taken about 15 years to appreciate that fact.  The odds are good when you think that only about 10-15% of people with MCI progress to Alzheimer’s.  I appreciate that there is still a chance I could be one of those but it’s not happened yet so I’ll worry about that when I get there (if I remember!!).  And the Mayo Clinic article states that some people actually get better.

In England, according to Ken Clasper, who was originally diagnosed with LBD and then, after 10 years, was re-diagnosed with MCI, the National Health determined that those with diagnoses of dementia who were still able to function at some higher level were reduced in their diagnosis to MCI.  While perplexing, it does make sense on some levels.    There are other issues this brings up, but for the purposes of this blog and post, I’d like to keep it simple.

What I can still do…

I like to think that I can still do all the things that really matter, I enjoy spending time with friends and family.  I might forget to call and it might be months before I do but luckily, I have brilliant friends who just pick up as if we spoke yesterday.

I write this blog, and I support a fantastic charity – The Edith Ellen Foundation, hence the name of this blogspot.  With their support and guidance I can raise the awareness and profile of MCI.

The Edith Ellen Foundation are campaigners and world changers, they are working to ensure that Care in homes and the community is given with kindness, dignity and respect you can follow them on twitter @edithellen2013.

Awareness

More need to be done to get awareness and understating of MCI out into the world.  More information needs to be given and more recognition than it has at present.

All most everyone knows about Dementia and Alzheimer’s and there are dozens of charities out there raising awareness for them, MCI may not be dementia but it does still involve memory and day2day living.

I feel my own Dr treats me with contempt when it comes to this illness because so little is understood and Dr’s are not willing to look further to explore the cause of it.

Is there anyone else out there?

Sometimes I feel truly alone with this diagnosis, I’ve never found a support group – there are thousands for the individual issues like counselling for the depression and anxiety but nothing that covers the whole diagnosis.

I would like to be the person who raised the awareness of MCI by sharing this article you too can help make that change and raise awareness.