My first week in my new home

Think I have overdone the unpacking, sorting and painting of furniture this week and slept most of yesterday!

Things are sorted out in my new flat and looking nice and I am now getting used to living alone again.    I have noticed as I have been trying to organise new Doctors, Opticians and the like, how on a good day I am more than capable, on a wobbly day, I can be a bit befuddled.   I know that I need to keep in check my awareness of making good decisions, because I know that at some time that I will become less able to take the right one.   I need help putting my new TV together (putting the stand together and setting it up), but am so aware that I must be careful about who I go to for help.  I do not have the strength to screw the stand together so a handy man should be able to do that, but who do I know who to choose?   These are real worries.

I have talked to my bank and thankfully they are fully ‘dementia aware trained’ and was given some excellent advice as to how to manage my money safely.   Thank you and well done NATWEST Bank!

I have painted my new (second hand) furniture with chalk paint and am well pleased with how they have been transformed.  My pictures are up, and almost all of the boxes are empty.

I have finally managed to settled down to begin reading again, my absolute pleasure!

I follow a blog by Pippa Kelly and she writes about “Dementia Friendly.  What does it really mean?”   (click the title which is the link to take you there) which is spot on.   I love how she questions what it means and then shows us by recounting it in action.

For us who are living with dementia, wearing a badge, proclaiming you are dementia friendly is not enough if you have no idea how to implement it.   It means, writing things down for us, giving us clear instructions, signposting clearly and  repeating everything.   I always comment that I may look as if I will remember or understand everything, but that is a mistake to make, because in reality I will not remember what you said, or your instructions.

I am resting up this weekend and doing some more reading as my head is not ready to take on the world quite yet.

Author: Gill

I photograph things that take my eye. View all posts by Gill