Paving the way for sufferers of Young Onset Dementia on #YODA Day

Dementia is a term usually used when speaking about people who are 65 years and older, but sadly it can happen much earlier and there are people in their 30s and 40s who are currently being diagnosed with this disease.

Within just the Hull and East Riding area there have been just over 200 people diagnosed with Young Onset Dementia yet facilities are predominantly geared towards a much older demographic and a real need has been identified for this region to address this.

Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust has pledged to create a new role within their services which gives a focus on Young Onset Dementia ensuring the Trust can provide individuals diagnosed with age-appropriate help.

Imagine finding out that you have dementia at the age of 35, you have a young family and a mortgage to pay, the way in which you receive the news of your diagnosis is going to hit you very differently than the way it might at age 75. The help and services needed by those suffering with young onset dementia is quite different and so Humber Trust is taking action.

Diagnosing Young Onset Dementia is particularly difficult due to the requirement to rule out a variety of other potential causes of symptoms and this can take years. But for those that can take medication to alleviate the symptoms, they need access to that medication as early as possible so it’s important for more interventions to happen earlier.

The Trust has joined forces with Dementia Forward and on Young Onset Dementia Action Day on 24 October 2023, known as #YODA, they are promoting the cause of people who receive this diagnosis and the music single written especially for the day to create awareness will be released on Spotify for free from today.

Download the song U&ME which is written and sung by Scott Quinn here. The song also features Jonathan Beardsworth on guitar, whose words about his own diagnosis of young onset dementia were the inspiration for the lyrics.