Contented Dementia Trust

Contented Dementia Trust The Contented Dementia Trust promotes lifelong well-being for those with dementia and their carers through the application of their SPECAL method.

What is the SPECAL method? Dementia is best understood, for the purposes of managing the condition, as the random failure to store in the memory system the facts of what has just occurred in the person’s life, whilst still storing feelings in the usual way. The SPECAL method uses the analogy of a photograph album to describe how normal memory works, the impact of ageing and the single dramatic cha

nge that occurs with the onset of dementia. Once this analogy is fully understood, the way is open to restoring and sustaining quality of life for everyone concerned. To find out more about the Trust and the SPECAL method visit www.contenteddementiatrust.org

I was talking to someone the other day whose Mum has been diagnosed with dementia and she said they would keep her in he...
19/06/2026

I was talking to someone the other day whose Mum has been diagnosed with dementia and she said they would keep her in her own home as long as possible 'as that's where she feels most safe'.

I confess I felt exactly the same about Dad (he had Lewy Body dementia) but gradually, I noticed he became worried about strangers he felt he could 'see' in his garden:

❓Why were they there?
🤔 Were they up to no good?
❓Did I know who they were?
He was going to have to go and confront them ...

So, off he'd go into the garden - not a good idea, as another Lewy Body trait for him was a Parkinsonian gait, so he shuffled on the uneven paths 🫣 ... and of course, the strangers would have 'gone' by the time he got there.

And I began to realise (with SPECAL's guidance) that he felt increasingly stressed by the need to guard his property and his possessions, all the time being very aware he wasn’t able to 'keep on top of things.'

Fast forward to the nursing home (where he felt that I was staying, too, like a hotel) and he wasn't at all perturbed by the people he saw outside in the gardens, as they were not his responsibility any longer.

He felt happy to sit with his paper and a cup of coffee while they got on with whatever they needed to do.

For me, that changed what I felt 'home' actually meant to him, from 'his house' to 'somewhere he feels secure, where everything makes sense.’

On Tuesday, we talked about Keep It Simple and Single for someone with dementia (K.I.S.S - because the more words you us...
18/06/2026

On Tuesday, we talked about Keep It Simple and Single for someone with dementia (K.I.S.S - because the more words you use in a sentence and the more topics your sentence touches upon, the less likely it is that enough words will be stored to be comprehended by them, which will leave them feeling discombobulated.

It's also important to observe how long it takes someone with dementia to verbalise (or react to) something, or how long it takes them to respond to one of your comments, so you can adjust your communication speed to match theirs.

This will not only enable a better chance of meaningful, less stressful engagement, but it will give the person with dementia confidence that they are not being rushed 🙂

The SPECAL method is rooted in person-centred, rather than clinical-centred, care.This was written by USA-based Esther H...
17/06/2026

The SPECAL method is rooted in person-centred, rather than clinical-centred, care.

This was written by USA-based Esther Heerema on the topic and for me, sums it up very well:

"Person-centered care is a way of providing care to people by focusing on the person's uniqueness and preferences, instead of the disease, its expected symptoms and challenges, and the person's lost abilities.

Person-centered care recognizes that dementia is only a diagnosis and that there is much more to the person than just a diagnosis."

'Dispatches from the e-Bike Front' 🚴🚴🚴A mid-week catch-up with John, our intrepid fundrasier ..."LEJOG day 8/18. Stoke o...
17/06/2026

'Dispatches from the e-Bike Front' 🚴🚴🚴
A mid-week catch-up with John, our intrepid fundrasier ...

"LEJOG day 8/18. Stoke on Trent to Wigan. It started so well! Big fry up at the Stoke Hilton. Warm, mostly dry weather, and a nice route through Staffs, Cheshire and into Lancashire, mostly avoiding busy roads and with glimpses of nature’s beauty. And the North’s posher suburbs (Wilmslow had a fine show of top end sports cars!). I rode along the Mersey for a few miles, and today’s canal was the Bridgewater. Then it went wrong. The so-far-excellent route took me onto a cycle track for the last 5 miles of my 60 today. Knackered, I found myself on a winding, muddy, pretty technical mountain bike track, a maze of narrow overgrown paths. I got lost and frustrated! It delayed me an hour, but I settled in Dave’s spare room on a housing estate near Wigan at about 6. I’ve used the hot tub in his shed, but will keep my bedroom door locked tonight…"

"LEJOG day 9/18. Wigan to Lancaster. So I’m half way! 9 days and 528 miles done. Dave was really helpful again this morning - so I feel bad 🫢. A fairly urban morning, a mix of roads and industrial canals. Then a more rural Lancastrian afternoon. It actually got quite hot! Enjoy the canal photos - I may have done most of them. The Leeds & Liverpool and the Lancaster canals today. Reached my destination (Hest Bank, on the coast near Lancaster) early today - about 5pm. Lovely B&B, bed and ale pie with mash at the pub, heading back for an early night; it’s a big one in the Lakes tomorrow."

"Tomorrow's profile. (see photos) That’s a hill! I’ll be climbing Shap fell 😳"

Good luck, John! ❤️ If you'd like to support John's generous fundraising on our behalf, here's the link:
https://www.justgiving.com/page/john-pettit-4

🤔❓ How can SPECAL's version of K.I.S.S allow for more effective communication? As we know, new facts are gradually bein...
16/06/2026

🤔❓ How can SPECAL's version of K.I.S.S allow for more effective communication?

As we know, new facts are gradually being stored less frequently by someone with dementia.
It helps to bear in mind that words are also facts, and are therefore being stored haphazardly, too.

You've probably heard the acronym KISS used in a work scenario where the last ‘S’ stands for stupid, but the SPECAL sense version, the final ‘S’ stands for Single.
Keep It Simple (&) Single.

The more words you use in a sentence and the more topics your sentence touches upon, the less likely it is that enough will be stored to be comprehended by the person with dementia – which will leave them feeling discombobulated.

For instance, “I’m going to get some eggs” is far preferable to:

“I have to post Simon’s birthday card later on, so on my way to the post office I’ll stop off at the SPAR and buy some eggs for lunch tomorrow.”

The first one is short and to the point, the point being getting eggs.

The second includes a person’s name, a birthday, something happening later, the post office, the name of a shop, a purchase, some eggs, a meal and tomorrow.
Even without dementia, if asked to repeat this list later, it will take some mental searching to do so, as our brains will tackle each bit separately.

And as we age, our rate of retrieval of information slows, so the less we have to search for, the better.
The person with dementia is no different in both these respects AND has to grapple with the disability of dementia as well!

So Keep It Single & Simple makes SPECAL sense (and not just for those with dementia ... 😊 )

A reminder for any carers in the Lyme Regis area next Monday 22nd - come in and say hi at Waffle Lyme Regis if you can 😃...
15/06/2026

A reminder for any carers in the Lyme Regis area next Monday 22nd - come in and say hi at Waffle Lyme Regis if you can 😃

I'll be there for cuppas and a chat anytime between 10am and 2pm ...

A wish for the week ahead from Nanea Hoffman… 🙂
15/06/2026

A wish for the week ahead from Nanea Hoffman… 🙂

🚴🚴🚴 Dispatches from the e-Bike Front - updates from our fundraiser, John Pettit ... LEJOG day 6. Gloucester to near Kidd...
14/06/2026

🚴🚴🚴 Dispatches from the e-Bike Front - updates from our fundraiser, John Pettit ...

LEJOG day 6. Gloucester to near Kidderminster. Another flat day today, and the weather has turned! Warm sunshine and the usual (🙏🏻) following wind. I was joined by Rosie’s beau, Ecky, from Gloucester station for 2/3 of the ride. Fun to have some company, and boy chat, but that means fewer photos I’m afraid! A mix of gently rolling Gloucestershire lanes and some more canal paths, with a couple of cheeky cafe stops for essential sports nutrition 😉. I’m feeling good, lots of energy, very positive and excited about the rest of the journey. First day off tomorrow, so I splashed out on an altogether nicer guest house - which is gorgeous!! Next post on Sunday…

'Just been working out the numbers so far; 347 miles, 17,000 feet of climbing (5,200m), 28 hours in the saddle 😳. I do have a little motor helping, although with 28kg of bike and 15kg of kit/luggage, that’s like cycling up hills on a 6kg road bike with a 10-year-old on your back. So no motor guilt 😂'

LEJOG day 5/22. Clevedon to Gloucester. Honeymoon over with a rainy cold start working alongside/under/over the M5 and through the Avonmouth industrial landscape. But that’s Great Britain, right? Got to take the rough with the smooth. It dried up this afternoon and there were some lovely sections of South Gloucestershire lanes and then the Sharpness canal into Gloucester. It made for a mix of photo moods! Still feeling good and strong. Arrived earlier today so I’ve managed to start my book!

Thank you, John! ❤️ If you'd like to support John's generous fundraising on our behalf, here's the link:

https://www.justgiving.com/page/john-pettit-4

It's so important that we do this for those starting out on the road we've already travelled, as those ahead of us did, ...
12/06/2026

It's so important that we do this for those starting out on the road we've already travelled, as those ahead of us did, thanks be to them ... 🙏❤️

One of the things I found hardest to understand (or maybe, to accept? 🤷‍♀️) at the beginning was that it was I who had t...
11/06/2026

One of the things I found hardest to understand (or maybe, to accept? 🤷‍♀️) at the beginning was that it was I who had to change - Dad couldn't.

And sometimes, if I'm honest, I felt angry that I could no longer go to him with my troubles and ask his advice.

Then I began to understand that actually, using the SPECAL method to guide me, I could give him the kind of gift he had given me when I was little: reassurance, understanding, love, answers and help.

But yes, it took a while to get there.

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Unit 2, Bruern Home Farm Yard, Bruern
Chipping Norton
OX76QF

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