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Coping with dementia
FORMER GP, Dr Jennifer Bute, who was forced to retire because of Alzheimer’s disease, has now written a book about the condition. She will be signing copies at Sandford Station retirement village’s Christmas fair on December 1st, with proceeds going to the Great Western Air Ambulance. She lives in the dementia village there. She has gained an international reputation by making videos and giving lectures about the disease – and previously launched a dragon cartoon aimed at a younger audience, which now has subtitles in several languages and is very popular in China. Her own website www.gloriousopportunity.org shows a poignant video about her own struggle to cope with dementia. She said: “I had to take early retirement but passionately believe a lot can be done to improve things and was asked for a book explaining how I came to be who I am and use my inside medical knowledge to find strategies to slow down the deterioration and to help others.” Jeremy Hughes, chief executive of the Alzheimers Society, said: “All too easily many assume that living with dementia is one long term steady decline. Jennifer’s insightful book debunks that myth. “Whether through her own experiences or those of others she opens our eyes to everyday life with dementia. How in so many ways we can make life better, or sadly how, sometimes inadvertently, we can compound the difficulties that inevitably come when living each day with dementia. “Her own gruelling journey to get a diagnosis, even as a GP, is a wake-up call to the NHS. The anchor of faith will resonate with many, as does the need for faith groups to embrace not exile those in their community with dementia. We should all read and learn from Jennifer and turn that learning into action.” Her book Dementia from the Inside a doctor’s personal journey of hope is published by SPCK and available from Amazon.
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MENDIP TIMES • DECEMBER 2018 • PAGE 91