Catherine Loveday, Professor in Psychology at the University of Westminster, has joined forces with Psychotherapist Sonia Beldom to launch Mempathy, a podcast about dementia-related memory loss. Inspired by her years of research into memory and her mother’s personal experience with dementia, the series offers expert advice and practical solutions for carers.
Professor Loveday began to notice early signs of Alzheimer’s disease in her mum fourteen years ago, after spending much of her academic career researching memory loss and ageing. Over the past years, she has tried and tested several different evidence-backed ways to support her mum’s memory and reduce the associated anxiety, developing a range of valuable techniques to help cope with dementia-related memory loss.
After hearing her mother tell people how lucky she is to have a daughter who not only has concrete practical suggestions, but also understands what memory loss feels like, Professor Loveday felt the need to share her advice with other families, carers and health professionals who may not have the same insight. Through combining academic expertise with personal experience, Professor Loveday’s podcast aims to increase understanding of memory and help listeners find their own ways through dementia.
Each twenty-minute episode in the new series sees Professor Loveday talk with friend and Psychotherapist Sonia Beldom about a different issue commonly faced by people with dementia, explaining why these issues happen and offering expert solutions to help. In Mempathy’s first episode, Professor Loveday talks about how and why sleep can be disrupted by memory loss and provides evidence-based tips to get sleep patterns back on track. Other episodes will explore important issues like whether to correct someone with memory loss when they get their facts wrong, and how to spot the early signs.
About the series Professor Loveday said: "Having researched memory for so many years it felt kind of ironic that my mum developed Alzheimer's disease, but in fact it put me in a unique position to help her, and I am now really committed to sharing this more widely."
Professor Loveday’s work on the podcast directly contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3: Good Health and Well-being. Since 2019, the University of Westminster has used the SDGs holistically to frame strategic decisions to help students and colleagues fulfil their potential and contribute to a more sustainable, equitable and healthier society.
Find out more about Psychology courses at the University of Westminster.
Listen to the Mempathy podcast.
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