Carer; Scotland

Tommy became a full-time carer for his late mum, Joan, who had vascular dementia. Tommy’s motivation as a carer came from the love he had for his mum and he would do it all again in a heartbeat, but his experience has shown him just how tough it is to live with dementia and how many struggles it can bring.

Tommy has been collecting carer’s life stories to raise awareness and feels passionate that no one should have to face the confusion, loneliness, and isolation of dementia alone.

Since Tommy’s mum’s passing in September 2012 after five years of caring for her, he has been working on The Dementia Carers Voices project with the Health and Social Care Alliance engaging with carers, collecting their life stories, and raising awareness amongst health and social care professionals on both dementia and caring.