A BRAVE daughter
has told how her mum was diagnosed with dementia at only 53 years old.
Greenock woman Carrie Ann Sheekey has spoken out about the
devastating impact her mum Helen Leighton’s condition has had on their family
and the difficulties they have faced.
Mum-of-two
Carrie is now taking on the charity Kiltwalk for the third year in a row in a
bid to help raise more awareness and fund research into the disease.
Three years
after she was finally diagnosed, her mum Helen now needs round-the-clock care.
She has spent
the last two months in hospital and will now be going into a nursing home.
Along with
step-dad Malcolm, Carrie Ann is determined to carry on fighting for Helen and
hopes to help other families who are suffering as well.
Carrie Ann, 35,
a support worker for care organisation Turning Point Scotland said: “When my mum was diagnosed with early onset
dementia we realised that there was very little for her.
“All the other
services are geared towards people much older than her.
“It came as a
shock to us all how little is out there.
“My mum had been
having tests for years but because she was so young it took a long time to get
there.
“But she finally
had a CAT scan which revealed shrinkage in the brain and was diagnosed with
Alzheimer’s.
Carrie Ann and
her step-dad first started noticing changes in Helen as far back as 2009.
Care worker
Carrie, of Stafford Road, said: “It started with forgetting things like her
keys. But she would leave her car somewhere and then we would spend hours
looking for it.
“At first the
doctors thought it was depression. My mum had to deal with two losses in a
short space of time, when my grandad died and then my mum lost her best friend.
“They thought it
was the grieving process and then depression. Her symptoms were very close to
anxiety.
“My mum
definitely knew something was wrong. Her personality started to change.”
As a result of
spending so much time researching possible causes and dealing with the impact
of her mother’s illness, Carrie Ann decided she wanted to become a mental
health professional.
She added: “I
did so much research into mental health as I tried to find out what was wrong
with my mum that I decided I wanted to be a nurse.
“I am now in my
third year at Caledonian University.
“I have found it
hard at times. When I am on dementia wards it feels too close to home.”
Helen, now 56,
also worked as a carer for Quarriers and Inverclyde Council.
Carrie Ann said:
“My mum was so kind and caring. She is very sensitive and that made her a great
carer.”
Together Carrie
Ann and Malcolm have cared for Helen every step of the way. Malcolm,
54, who has been married to Helen for 18 years, said: “The only word for it is
devastating, absolutely devastating.
“I am lucky
because I am young enough to care for Helen.”
Malcolm, who
also worked as a carer, has had to give up his job but because Helen is under
65 she is not entitled to free personal care.
He said: “We
just wouldn’t be able to afford the cost of the care. It is something that
affects so many people.”
Carrie Ann’s
charity walk will raise money to help other local families who have to face up
to the devastating impact of dementia.
She said: “All
the money I raise will go towards the Inverclyde branch of Alzheimer’s Scotland
so that there can be more services for people with early onset dementia.”
Courageous
Carrie Ann will be supported on the 23-mile Kiltwalk trek from Glasgow to
Balloch onSunday by her husband Andrew, 37, and her two children Aidan, 12,
and Molly, 10.
Step dad Malcolm
said: “I am so proud of Carrie Ann and everything that she does for her
mum.”
SOURCE: Greenock Telegraph, Susan Lochrie
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