Sue Last

tide Advisory Group Member

"tide helped me stay connected to life beyond dementia"

About Sue… 

I have a nursing background and was also a commissioner of services for older people.   I thought I knew a lot about dementia, but it wasn’t  until I was  living with it that I began to truly understand what it’s really like. I first realised John wasn’t his old self when he just wasn’t processing information....it wasn’t that he was forgetting things...we all do that!   But it was the fact that he wasn’t comprehending and processing that rung the alarm bells with me.   However it took the GP more than 12 months to refer him to the memory clinic and a further 12 months before a final diagnosis of mixed dementia.  

I first became involved with tide in 2018 .  I undertook the training Presenting to Influence and subsequently was involved with dementia awareness training sessions that were mandatory for all staff at our NHS hospital trust.   Then came Lockdown and we resorted to Zoom!!   We met weekly for coffee mornings and quizzes which were great for keeping in touch.  Tide also provides an interesting and very helpful Development Programme that I have accessed

Although everyone who is living with dementia is on their own very individual journey  tide has provided me with a network of people who understand, who listen and who are supportive.