Woman with early onset dementia: 'I want to prove I can run London Marathon'

A 62-year-old woman with early-onset dementia is on a mission to challenge people’s perception of the condition by running the London Marathon in April 2018.

Sue Strachan, who is known by friends and family as ‘Strawny’, was diagnosed with vascular dementia in 2014.

The retired publishing sales rep was advised by doctors to take up running to help manage her condition, and by attempting the London Marathon she hopes to raise awareness and cash for dementia research. She has raised a total of £3,000 for Alzheimer’s Research UK so far.

However, the marathon plans started from humble beginnings. Ms Strachan says: “I did the NHS Couch to 5k programme. I started off walking for a minute, running for a minute and built it up to 30 minutes of running. My ambition was to run a half marathon before I was 60 and I did that in October 2015.

“When I completed it, I said I was never going to do something like that again, but over time I realised I wanted another challenge and decided to apply for a place in the London Marathon.”

After using a chainsaw, I walked into the room and said, ‘where am I?’

Ms Strachan lives in Herefordshire with her partner Sheila and lurcher dog Saffy.

Her diagnosis came after she had an episode of amnesia where she lost a day’s memory; she had just cut down a tree with a chainsaw. She says of the incident: “During that 24 hours I drove from Herefordshire to Surrey to stay with friends and I cut down a holly tree in their garden with my chainsaw. I don’t remember any of it. I just walked into the room and said, ‘where am I?’.

Doctors said Ms Strachan would probably recover from the TGA and should get normal function back, but after several months it became clear that something wasn’t right. She says: “I wasn’t able to articulate properly, I was struggling to find words, I was repeating myself constantly and my concentration was just out of the window”.

All these things led the future marathon runner to go back to the GP for a series of tests, which were explained to her by a clinical psychologist. Ms Strachan says: “She asked me fairly early on ‘if you were to get a diagnosis of dementia, would you want to know?’ I thought that was a ridiculous question as I thought ‘absolutely I’ve got to know what I’m dealing with’.”

Ms Strachan wasn’t so confident though when she did finally receive the news.

“When she actually told me, I felt like I’d been punched in the stomach. At the same time, though, I was relieved, as I knew something was wrong with me and now I could put a name to it.”

Preparation for London Marathon: ‘I’ve only got lost once so far’

There are around 850,000 people in the UK with dementia, of which around 20 per cent have vascular dementia, the second most common form behind Alzheimer’s Disease, according to charity Alzheimer’s Research.

Around five per cent of people with dementia are 'early-onset', which is essentially people diagnosed under the age of 65.

When Ms Strachan tells people she has dementia, they are usually surprised. She says: “My symptoms are not always obvious when people meet me. I think I don’t really fit people’s views of what someone with dementia is like.”

Ms Strachan’s condition means she often gets tired easily, and her short-term memory problems and loss of sense of direction require that her running routes must be meticulously planned beforehand. She says: “I have to ensure I plot my routes before I go. I stick to the same routes around where I live. I know all the landmarks on the routes, but I often can’t remember the order they come in. However, I’ve only got lost once so far and although it was upsetting I got re-oriented and made my way home okay.”

‘There will be lots of tears at the finish line’

The progression of Ms Strachan’s condition has been gradual thus far, but the unpredictable nature of vascular dementia means she wasn’t sure she would be able to make it to the start line when she originally signed up. However, she has made great progress in her training and has vowed to give everything she can to complete the epic challenge.

She says of the London Marathon: “I don’t care what time I do it in, but I’m determined to complete it. There will be a lot of tears at the finish line and probably a few on the way round as well.”

Kenneth Foreman, senior sporting events manager at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: “We are in awe of Sue for taking on the London Marathon and raising so much money for pioneering dementia research.

“Her story is a powerful challenge to the common misconception that dementia only affects the elderly. She’s proof that while a dementia diagnosis is devastating, people with dementia can lead fulfilling lives.

“The vital funds raised by Sue and the hundreds of people running for Alzheimer’s Research UK will power world-class dementia research projects to help us in our mission to bring about the first life-changing dementia treatment by 2025.”