JOHN POPS' STORY...
ONE DAY A LONG TIME AGO, IN A LIFE FAR FAR AWAY... WELL, 2017 TO BE EXACT, AN ANGEL WHISPERED THE WORD 'DEMENTIA' INTO MY EAR. YOU CAN WATCH MY SERIES OF VIDEOS THAT CAPTURES HOW I DEAL AND JOURNEY WITH THIS DISEASE ON THE YOU-TUBE CHANNEL BY CLICKING THE LINK ON THE FRONT PAGE. (or if you cant be bothered to find it.. here is the link; https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCR3fOTrTZ7JVQnLujb9_aKQ. )
WHAT I DID BEFORE...
I started my career in horticulture and was a successful landscape gardener in the Bristol areas and later a handyman. When I started to forget tools and materials it became clear that life wasnt going too greatly and I didnt know why. Following 2 years of tests and scans etc I stopped working in 2019 following a diagnosis of PPA or Primary Progressive Aphasia Dementia. I look at it as a 'sideways' step in my life, NOT the end!
WHAT I DID AFTER D-DAY... (DIAGNOSIS DAY).
Finding out and studying as much as possible gave me the drive I needed to build the emotional tools needed to travel with this disease safely..
Enrolling in and becoming a pro-active member of studies with Bristol, Leeds Beckett and Sheffield Universities started to give me back my purpose in the comunity.
I dived head-first into this apparently barren arena in the hope of helping to find the elusive cure and get the message out there that there is far more to the person than the Dementia.
WHAT I AM DOING NOW...
I absolutely LOVE visiting schools and colleges chatting with students of all ages from 6 years upwards.. truly rewarding, even when they ask innocently but brutal questions like' "John, when are you going to die...?" My answer being; "Not today".
Building my You-Tube Channel of short videos for students who study age care and dementia. @minusmymemory if you are interested...?
Writing the second book of Mr. Sloop stories as he also journeys with his own Dementia and how he hilariously gets around the issues that memory loss brings.
WHAT I PLAN TO DO IF CAPACITY ALLOWS...
... Continuing to add to the videos on You-Tube if capacity permits and people can still understand what on earth im saying...!
Sending articles into local newspaper offices in the hope they print something that sparks further attention to this terrible disease.
I am determined to shout this message out from all corners of my day until a cure is found, not for me, but for generations to come.
Learning the Ukulele and joining choirs is also a fun thing and keeps me off the streets...!
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