‘My Mum’s Story’

Abstract

The following paper concerns culturally Deaf people, who are Sign Language users, and who develop dementia. A first person narrative account from a Deaf daughter of her Deaf mother’s dementia (‘My Mum’s Story’) is the main focus of the paper. It is preceded by a Foreword designed to equip the reader with the background to Sign Language and Deaf culture, in order better to contextualize the significance of dementia and its effects for this community. Both pieces, from different perspectives, focus on: the problematic nature of recognizing dementia amongst Deaf people; the paucity of appropriate diagnostic, care and support services; the different considerations for Deaf people approaching dementia as patient or carer; the challenges to service providers and researchers. The first person account was originally produced in BSL (British Sign Language) and translated for written publication purposes.