In a doctor’s office at Southampton Hospital in 2009 Jerry Bradley was given the devastating news that Irene, his wife of 25 years and the love of his life, was suffering from dementia.
It was a bolt from the blue. “Irene had been unwell for some time but dementia never entered my head,” he said. “We thought she was suffering with severe depression.”
Driving home later that day Jerry made what was to become a life changing decision. “I vowed that I would start writing my memoirs so that if I ever became ill with dementia my memories would still be there for me.”
Over the following years, while caring for Irene, Jerry completed his life story and, since her death in 2015, has gone on to publish two novels to raise money for Dementia UK. He is currently writing a third.
Now living in Lindfield with daughter Hannah and son in law Pete, Jerry recalls his journey from racing car mechanic, market trader and locksmith to full time carer, and describes how his newly discovered passion for writing and raising awareness of dementia brought him back to life.
Continue reading the full and amazing story in this month’s (March) Lindfield Life Magazine.