I am 17, and provide care for my father. My father has Alzheimer’s
disease and is now in an advanced stage which requires 24
hour care.
When he was 54 he was forced to retire as
an electrician as he could no longer perform his job because
of his memory loss. He was also a wonderful pianist, accompanying
my mother who was a successful opera singer.
He went through many changes in personality
from being a quiet gentle person to becoming very aggressive
and having dreadful hallucinations. The medication to calm
him down unfortunately caused his legs to weaken and consequently
he could not walk anymore.
Since then he has been confined to bed and
is now totally incontinent and cannot do anything for himself.
My mother had to give up her singing career to care for him.
She would like them to be together until the end.
My life as a young Carer has been an educating
journey. We took dad on a few holidays. It was very interesting,
scary and frustrating at times. Getting him on and off public
transport, escalators and tender boats could be quite funny
as when we were in Venice he hesitated so much that the boat
attendant just picked him up and carried him aboard.
We have never really looked at dad as being
disabled. We’ve had a lot of laughs with him and at
him concerning his Alzheimer’s. My mother has shed many
tears and her health and back have certainly suffered over
the years but as she says, at least she has him!
We try to live as normal a life as possible.
I am a Peer Leader for the Young Carers raw energy program
and this has been incorporated into my Community Studies.
I have an optimistic outlook on life and don’t feel
that I’ve suffered any deprivations as a result of my
father’s illness.
I try to live life to the full and help
my mother as much as I can. I have a great circle of friends.
I very much enjoy the raw energy events. It is very interesting
associating with other young Carers and being made aware of
some of the dire situations that other families experience
in their caring role. I am sure that the knowledge that I
will gain from this my first summit will allow me to have
a positive input into any further programs or events that
the raw energy program may provide.
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