May Barbour(and Otto)-remembering Douglas-part two LifeStory

In the second part of our conversation about living with dementia, with Otto still listening and making his presence heard,  May talks about the loss of communication with Douglas and how she felt they had lost much of the laughter in their lives. As Douglas lost interest in many of the things he had loved doing, the day-to-day routine dominated and May's own health did suffer. May movingly describes how Douglas's death was not so distressing for her, as the man she loved had already disappeared. His funeral, held when there were limits on numbers due to Covid, was only the family, who had been with him and cared for him during his dementia journey and May feels that was right for Douglas and for her. Although May's grief about Douglas's death is fresh, she is also grieving about the last years they had together. May also comments that the condition runs in Douglas's family as two of his brothers as well as his mother, also had dementia .As there is an increased risk of inheritance with Alzheimer's this is something that may affect their children in the future. A point about which May feels strongly, is that families should be helped to understand the diagnosis and its implications, to enable them to be able to support their partner or parent living with dementia. There is no doubt that May's story will resonate with others who may have experienced, or be experiencing, similar circumstances and emotions