Cycling NI for Alzheimers

Life is hard knowing you have very little fond memories of your granny. Everyone around me stays with their grandparents, goes out on day trips, and relies on their grandparents.

My granny Ann was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimers at a very young age, around the time I was born. I never got to truly know her. The granny I want to remember the one that went out on caravan weekends, the one that would come and sing happy birthday at birthday parties. Not the helpless one that lay in the same bed for 2 years in a nursing home, unable to acknowledge anyone, the one that was sleeping all the time, the one that couldn't tell me if she was in pain.

When I was little, I would go and visit my granda and granny, and granny was walking about and talking. Things slowly started to change. Soon, my granny lost the ability to walk and was bedridden ever since. However, that didn't mean she wasn't my granny. when her speech went. It was clear that the mental decline was imminent. The worst feeling is realising your granny doesn't know who you are and would soon forget you.

Since granny was bedridden, there were carers needed every 4 hours, and within those 4 hours, my granda would take care of granny. However, Grandad would soon be her full-time carer, and he devoted his last years of his life caring for his beloved wife, my granny Ann. I rarely saw Grandad outside of his house as he was always occupied with granny Ann. One day, he passed in his sleep, which meant caring for my granny was going to be hard. The only option resulted in her going into full-time care at a nursing home.

With nobody in the house that my granny and grandad would call home, it seemed strange. It was very quiet, no music being played, no TV switched on.

My granny spent 2 years looking at the same wall in the same room in a nursing home. nurses coming in and out to feed her, care for her needs.Whenever I visited, the changes were drastic. We knew that the day she would pass would be soon.

Three weeks ago, my Granny Ann passed, just a week before my holiday. I felt I needed to help and raise awareness, support, and donations towards Alzheimers society. The weight was overbearing while on holiday, I knew there was something I could do to help. I searched online and soon learnt that gofundme can help gain sponsors and fundraising for all types of things. Just the one I'm fundraising money for is very personal, not just for me, but my family, and all the people that are dealing with Alzheimers right now. I've been through it, the pain of slowly watching your granny die due to an uncurable disease. Nobody should have to go through that. Please Join me as I cycle 100 miles around Lough Neagh on the 25th of August, until then I will be training around Northern Ireland pushing through my juvenile arthritis raising money for Alzheimers society.