“How a son’s viral videos give hope to families dealing with dementia,” by Marisa Dellatto, New York Post

“When Simon McDermott’s father, Ted, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2013, everything changed. ‘It was a wake-up call,’ Simon, 42, tells The Post. It made him realize that ‘Dad’s not going to be around forever.’ It was also the beginning of a dark time for the family. As Ted’s condition worsened, he became aggressive — a common side-effect of the degenerative brain disease. … Amazingly, Ted could still remember the words to … old songs. Simon noticed he even seemed happy when he was singing. So Simon began creating ‘Carpool Karaoke’-style YouTube videos of them belting out standards such as ‘Beyond the Sea’ and ‘Quando, Quando, Quando.’ The series quickly went viral — their most popular video has more than 4.5 million views — and has raised more than £250,000 for Alzheimer’s Society. In November 2016, Simon and his father were awarded a Pride of Britain Award for their fund-raising efforts.”

LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform):

There aren’t a lot of dementia stories with humor and joy, but here’s one. Give yourself a break and click through to “Volare.”

How a son’s viral videos give hope to families dealing with dementia

#goldencareagent
#dementia