Dementia Action Week (UK) 18-24 May: Sharing our experiences to raise awareness.
Heartfelt empathy and support. Carer Mentor supports Dementia Action Week
Hello! If you’re new to Carer Mentor, welcome! Thank you for being here! You can read why I’m publishing Carer Mentor here: Who Started Carer Mentor and Why?
The Carer Mentor website is a hub of tools, resources & insights, as well as a community support network. A portal of hope ❤️ Start exploring here.
Dementia Action Week (UK) 18-24 May
Dementia Action Week is an awareness campaign led by Alzheimer’s Society (UK), bringing people and organisations together to act on dementia.
The theme for Dementia Action Week 2026 (May 18–24) is centred on raising awareness, improving diagnosis rates, and promoting early intervention. The Alzheimer's Society campaign- Forget Me Not appeal—highlights the critical need for timely diagnoses and challenges stigma
The Diagnosis Gap: “1 in 3 people living with dementia do not have a formal diagnosis, which prevents them from accessing necessary care and treatment.”
Dementia Action: Act now to support those living with dementia and their caregivers.
Raising Awareness: Sharing personal stories as part of the Forget Me Not campaign or with your friends and family helps everyone recognise early signs and understand how to support others.
What support is available, where and how: no one has to be alone. Talking and connecting are essential, whether that’s a dedicated Dementia organisation, someone else diagnosed with Dementia or a carer. Sharing our experiences of what’s worked for us can help someone else.
Care to share your Dementia story in the comments?
Tell us about something you’d share with someone who’s just been diagnosed or with their carer? What’s helped you and why?
OR
What would you describe as meaningful support for you today? What do you want your friend or someone else to know about what helps you.
Together, we can raise awareness and open up discussions about Dementia. Let’s offer each other support.
My Father had a litany of health issues that were destabilised by a major hospitalisation in 2015: congestive heart failure and rheumatoid arthritis were compounded with a diagnosis of vascular dementia and then bladder cancer.
It was heartbreaking to see the proud, gregarious, highly intelligent man who knew numerous languages lose his ability to reason from A to B to C, lose his sense of time and space, and shrink inward. We were able to care for him at home until he passed in 2020. It was a rollercoaster with accelerated declines, yet we still had small, precious moments together—bittersweet joy.
Carer Mentor supports Dementia Action Week
The Carer Mentor Website (desktop version) has a dedicated Dementia section with an Anthology of people’s experiences, ideas and reflections. This is a simple, easy-to-access reference that anyone can turn to when they’re looking for empathy and some comfort and inspiration. The image below shows the top navigation bar and the drop-down menu of Dementia resources.
The Dementia Anthology
This anthology offers readers access to a diverse collection of dementia experiences - from those with mild cognitive impairment or dementia, as well as caregivers.
You can find it in the "Dementia" section of the Carer Mentor: Empathy and Inspiration website.
Watch or listen to diverse Dementia experiences
Dementia UK has videos and a podcast that share the stories of carers and people with Dementia. Here are a few episodes:
Tommy lives with Alzheimer's disease. Andrew is the primary carer for his mother, who was diagnosed with vascular dementia in 2020.
In this candid pub conversation, the two talk about their respective dementia journeys -- one from the perspective of someone living with the condition, and one from the carer. They touch on the fear that so often accompanies dementia, rolling grief, dealing with guilt, and their hopes for the future.
You can find the podcast on Apple or Spotify (click image-link)
Hear first-hand stories from people who have experienced dementia, alongside life-changing advice from our dementia specialist Admiral Nurses.
Penny’s story about moving her Mum into full-time care.
Penny’s mum Rosemary was diagnosed with mixed dementia (symptoms of more than one type of dementia). Penny was organising increasing paid care support at a distance, and there were continuous recalibrations as Rosemary’s needs increased.
Penny and Rosemary’s podcast: Discovering Dementia (17 May 2017 - 25 April 2024)
Elene’s story about when dementia care doesn’t reflect your culture.
Elene found that she needed to provide meals for her mother in her care home. The ‘system’ was standardised for efficiency and practicalities, it didn’t cater to person centred care - to someone who’d never had turnips and parsnips before, she wouldn’t eat that, she wouldn’t get the nutrition she needed.
Black, African and Caribbean Communities Admiral Nurse clinics provide culturally informed, culturally sensitive advice.
Find support for you or someone you know
Dementia UK, Admiral Nurses webinar April 2026 (14 April 2026). It’s a useful video by Gemma Conway and Julie Reid, introducing Dementia UK and the role of Dementia Specialist Admiral Nurses. They share the range of support services available across the UK and specifically in Scotland. These services are for anyone who is affected by a dementia.
I recommend watching the video particularly at 11:10 when they share information about how to access the services: free consultations via video-link, or telephone calls with a Dementia UK Specialist Nurse
United Kingdom
Carers UK: For unpaid carers with expert information, advice and support. A Carers discussion forum (anonymous participation). Campaigning to make life better for carers
mobilise ‘Together we care and thrive’
Dementia UK Specialist Nurse support: What is an Admiral Nurse, and how can they help?
Alzheimer’s Society (UK)
Alzheimer’s Society Caregiver Guide Caring for someone with dementia Click here
ReMind UK: an independent charity getting ahead of dementia
Our vision is a world where early intervention wins to improve the lives of millions more people across the world. Dementia should be diagnosed early and accurately, with a range of treatment options as well as the right support available.
United States
Memory Cafés Support groups.
Dementia, Creativity and Music shares articles about how we can use art and music to connect with our loved ones.
Please like ‘❤️’ the article to guide others here.
If you know someone who could benefit from these resources, please share Carer Mentor with them
Please share this article so others can find these resources. Thank you!
My grandpa was diagnosed with dementia in 2000, but the doctor didn’t tell us much more than that, and no one knew what to ask. That’s why I’m such an advocate for caregivers asking questions and learning as much as they can about their loved one’s diagnosis. We navigated everything on our own until hospice joined us. He passed away a month later in 2005. Now I know he should have been diagnosed much earlier, but his confusion was said to be from hearing loss. Now we know that hearing loss is a contributor to dementia and often a misdiagnosis of dementia.
Victoria, what you wrote about your dad. How everything started unraveling after the hospital. He spoke how many languages, and that's what goes first. Brutal.
Vascular dementia after that kind of hospitalisation, it's not what anybody reaches for first. Everyone's chasing the heart, the kidneys, checking for cancer, you know, the usual circuit. Meanwhile the mind dimming sits there quiet, until something actually breaks. By the time someone finally hands you a diagnosis, you've already spent months wrestling with the whole thing on your own. No paperwork. Just you and it.
Which is why Dementia Action Week lands funny this year. NHS quietly chucked the dementia diagnosis target out of last year's planning. Wait times from referral are 151 days now, up from 124. Some regions people are stuck for nearly a year. The campaign pushed more people through the GP door, fine. And then? The queue behind that door hasn't moved. In some places it's longer.
But your dad got to stay home. That's not nothing.
Bittersweet joy, like you wrote. Yeah.