One mum got to enjoy one last day of “freedom” before her two children told her about her Alzheimer’s diagnosis.
Linda Sutherland, 68, suffered short temper, weight loss and memory loss, but as it happened in the wake of losing her husband Ronnie, 66, doctors thought it was just depression.
But Linda’s son Graeme noticed something more was up when he took her to Harry Potter studios for her birthday and she became irate when she couldn’t push the button to take a photo.
After the trip, he took her to the doctors and Linda's two kids were told she suffered with a progressive stage of Alzheimer’s.
Heartbroken, Graeme and sister Kirstin, both 31, decided to give their mum one last day of “freedom” before breaking the news to her about her diagnosis.
Graeme, a claims manager, said: "My mum had been receiving counselling for depression but nothing was getting better - it was getting worse.
"I took her to London for her birthday. I knew something wasn't right. She was wearing dirty clothes, she had lost a lot of weight and she was getting upset easily.
“It was a shock when we were told she had Alzheimer's, especially after we got told she hadn't got it to begin with."
WalesOnline reported how on the family trip to London in 2016, he noticed his mother spraying deodorant in her shoes, wearing unclean clothes, and she could not understand how to press a button when on a trip to the Harry Potter Studios.
After the trip they headed to the doctors, and after calling up the doctors, Kirsten was told the tragic news about her mum’s diagnosis.
Graeme said: "Kirstin wanted to give her one last day of being carefree.
"I think my mum knew. She was upset about it but straight away very cooperative and helped us see what support is out there. The way my mum reacted she knew something wasn't right - this was the final confirmation."
Graeme and his sister, started taking turns caring for their mum, with one of them being by her side 24 hours a day.
He said: "It was very challenging. It made us grow up very quickly. It has made me realise that life is way too short. It has drained me and my sister quite a bit both physically and mentally.
"We were in our early 20s at the time. We lost a large sum of our life but I wouldn't change it for the world."
Linda has been in a care home for around a year now, and Graeme described it as “difficult” to watch someone he loved suffer with such a disease.
He continued: "I know I have a parent, but she is no longer there. I go to see her between two and three times a week. There is someone with her every single day. She is fine being alone, but you can't help but feel guilty.
"On reflection, it was more of a selfish point of view that we didn't want my mum to go into a care home - it is better for her to be in a home.
“I think her condition got a lot worse during the pandemic. I saw a rapid decline in her. She is now losing her speech. She speaks like the characters from the Sims game - making words and noises that don't make sense."
Graeme said it isn't all "doom and gloom" and that his mum is living life "blissfully unaware" of what is going on.
He said: "We do have good times. She is getting worse but she is very happy - she just sits and watches TV, sings away and gets involved with activities."
Graeme is an Alzheimer Scotland social ambassador and is trying to raise awareness on his TikTok @graemefs.
He said: "Alzheimer's always falls under the radar as an old persons disease but it is really common now. It is getting younger and younger with Bruce Willis being diagnosed it is coming into the mainstream.
"Sadly, it is just something that not many people know about, I want to educate people on the different stages."
