Specialist Service

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Psychotherapy and counselling can give much needed dementia support by providing people with the opportunity to speak in confidence about the issues that might be troubling them. Talking therapies can help people come to terms with a dementia diagnosis, identify ways to live with the condition and it can also help with related symptoms of anxiety and depression.

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How Can Dementia Counselling Help?

Counselling is an effective tool for dementia support. The person with the condition and their family can come to terms with a traumatic and life-changing diagnosis.

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There is plenty of advice available for families dealing with dementia. The problem with advice found in books, leaflets and on the Internet, is that it is very general.

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How Do You Know That It Will Apply To You?
Dementia is inconsistent by nature - what works one day might not work the next. For this reason, it can be beneficial to have an expert work with you to get to grips with the unique patterns of your or your loved one's condition.
 

Counselling does not claim to be able to treat or cure dementia, but it can effectively manage it. Dementia counselling can help those with the condition and families together...
 

• Find ways to make life as normal as possible

• Understand the nature of the condition

• Come to terms with changing roles within the family

• Learn to get to grips with everybody's emotions

• Address deeper questions, such as identity loss and social stigma

• Come to accept a new identity

• Find a pathway through the health system.

Counselling can help by providing support for people living with dementia (and their families), as well as helping them discover ways of coping in the longer term.

In my experience, carers of people living with dementia can experience a high level of stress and anxiety. Many carers can feel guilty for seeking support. What is important for carers to remember is that they did not choose to be in this position, neither is it their fault!

With the additional burden of caring for someone, it is easy to neglect oneself. This is a false economy in terms of one’s own well-being and can cause dangerous health issues, such as high blood pressure (hypertension), and stroke, as well as other issues.