Unlike Alzheimer's which is a disease, dementia is a condition commonly, but by no means always, associated with the ageing process. Until relatively recent times, you had little or no choice when signs of dementia were spotted and family were unable or unwilling or sometimes both to provide care; you were moved into a care home. Thankfully things have moved on and it is generally accepted now that you will live a longer and a happier life if you stay at home in familiar surroundings.

There are many symptoms of dementia, the first of which is usually loss of memory but don’t panic if you keep losing the car keys, this happens to all of us even when we are in our twenties! Dementia becomes more problematic when the condition actually starts to disrupt your everyday life.

One of the main concerns you may have about getting older is the cost of care. The traditional institutional solution was not only traumatic but hugely expensive. Being uprooted from everything you loved, your neighbours and your home and moved to an unfamiliar place surrounded by unfamiliar old and sometimes disabled folk coupled with the exorbitant bill could hardly have been ‘good’ for your health.

Today there are a wide range of caring solutions which can be designed to suit your particular and specific needs and can be monitored on a regular basis all from the comfort of your armchair.

A good care provider will assess your symptoms by way of a detailed consultation with you and then look for the perfect match. There are lots of options. A part time carer will come in as and when required and help you with basic assistance like running errands, doing the shopping or cooking the odd meal for the freezer. A Housekeeper can look after the home, keeping you up to date with bills, making everything clean and tidy, just the way you like it to be.

You may need to have live-in help if you need a little extra support. Whatever the option, the idea is to make your life as enjoyable, affordable and comfortable as it should be. Don’t miss out on your social life, your hobbies or those trips to the cinema, keeping up appearances is important, as are those all-important phone calls.

A good care provider such as Guardian will carefully vet the person they recommend and all the necessary checks such as DBS clearance, a first aid certificate as well as FIAB and or OCN approval will be mandatory for all staff.

The signs of dementia whether they are problems with thinking or reasoning, difficulty in planning your day, issues with familiar tasks, searching for that elusive word or name or just losing those wretched keys again don’t necessarily mean its time to sell up and move out.