Carey Mulligan recalls grandmother’s death in emotional Alzheimer’s appeal

Carey Mulligan has recalled her late grandmother’s final days in an emotional appeal for volunteers to help those suffering with Alzheimer’s disease.
The Great Gatsby star, 32, lost her grandmother, whom she knew as ‘Nans’ earlier this year (17), after a 16 year battle with the brain disease, which destroys sufferers’ memories and cognitive functions.
Writing in British newspaper The Times, she shared her memories of her relative’s battle with the disease and how carers helped in her final days.
Carey explained, “The progression of the disease meant that by the time I was in my mid-twenties she wasn’t able to communicate much beyond a few words, and largely in Welsh, her mother tongue.
“She spent that time in the most wonderful nursing home with carers who infused her days with as much love, joy and tenderness as humanly possible. The day she died two of them came in on her day off to sit with my mum at Nan’s bedside. They stayed for more than three hours.”
Carey is an ambassador for the Alzheimer’s Society, who in the U.K. have launched Dementia Friends, an educational programme where members of the public can learn how to help someone suffering from Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia.
Urging people to sign up for a session, she added, “I would encourage you to find a session locally, take a friend and go along. It’s an engaging and fascinating experience, and despite believing I knew pretty much all there was to know about living with dementia, I walked away with a totally different perspective.”
The programme ultimately aims to encourage people to stay in touch with a person suffering from dementia and volunteer for organisations helping sufferers.
Explaining that Alzheimer’s “doesn’t take away the person you love” Carey said she would still see flashes of her grandmother’s old personality – despite the disease.
“She was still my grandmother and she still appreciated and needed the love and care her family could provide,” the actress added.