There is no dignity in this Alzheimer’s parade

john ward

I'm sure Ms Sarler is right...but with Alzheimer's,the family is doomed to watch every stage of decay. I write about my father's condition, but the only revelatory part is the demonstration of government hypocrisy and cynical spin surrounding the whole area of dementia care.
Bleeding all over the carpet helps nobody - but looking underneath the carpet is very important.
www.notbornyesterday.org

John

Take daily curcumin (componentof curry)

the tablets are large and awful

but they work!

henry martin

This is a relevant and compassionate article, and one of the best I have read. I fear dementia more than cancer.

Lucy Harington

Thank you Carol Sarla for this sensitive and challenging article. Yes, I can see victims of dementia seem to be paying twice for their terrible affliction. But, thinking about it, in addition, they may often be paying thrice because of the Government"s gerontophobic social policy. How else have we accepted that when dementia patients can no longer be cared for by their families and are means tested for residential care, interest earned on their life savings are calculated by social services at the nominal rate of 10% even in this present financial crisis, including that paid by premimum bonds or ISAs, which for the rest of us are tax free. Is this why the Government are suggesting that awareness of dementia should be taught in schools so that the young will learn to despise the old, even more than many do already, so that official discrimination against dementia victims may even become to seem deserved?

annabel frost

Thank you Carol Sarler for this timely reminder that our last duty to a person loved but diminished is discretion. From the age of 13 I thought Iris Murdoch's novels were brilliant. The last three should never have been published. Bayley meant well but he should have hidden her and her later work from public view.

David Short

If it's so wrong to parade the humiliations of Alzheimer's sufferers in the public papers, then why is it right for Sarler to repeat them second hand in the Spectator?

I hope she donated her fee to charity.

AM

I agree with Ms Sarler. Poor Mrs Suchet has her problems paraded in public without her knowledge or understanding. Meanwhile Mr Suchet gets bag loads of sympathy. But did he think to consult with Mrs Suchet's first husband about he might feel too? Referring to her forgotten past life must have been so painful for him - but did Mr Suchet stop to consider that when pouring out his grief so publicly?

J

I agree with AM. Very sad for all concerned but he shouldnt have gone public like that. Not very dignified

CT

I agree with both these people. Sorry for them both but he shouldn't have done it.

KM

Does anyone actually believe that John Suchet's decision, or any other of these celebrities, to speak out about dementia was easy? Do you really think he didn't consider his wife, Bonnie's, feelings? Toil over whether she would have done the same if the roles were reversed? Mr Suchet spoke out because he wanted to highlight the help that he had from his Admiral Nurse, who are supported by the charity for dementia. He wanted all people affected by dementia to be aware of this wonderful charity and the work that they provide - without Government funding, I might add. Without brave people like him speaking out, dementia would still be taboo - let's bring the topic out of the shadows and into the light!

May I also correct Carol Sarler's figures - there are not 700,000 living with Alzheimer's in the UK. There are 700,000 living with dementia, of which there are over 100 types, the main ones being Alzheimer's, vascular dementia and lewes bodies.

Alan G. Ampolsk

Am coming late to this discussion but have just come across the article. Sorry, can't agree. My objections are here: http://www.metaphorcountry.com/dementia_nights/2009/08/why-blog-alzheimers-the-myth-of-dignity.html