A CARER has spoken about his experiences looking after his mother-in-law who has Alzheimer’s.

Peter Mules, 60, from Climping, cares for Jean Dinham, 83, full time.

Peter relies on Sage House in Tangmere, a hub for the charity Dementia Support, to offer help and assistance while caring for Jean.

And he spoke out as the charity appealed for support itself this Christmas.

Dementia Support was forced to close all its face-to-face services throughout the first national lockdown.

The Argus: Peter Mules has received support from Sussex charity, Dementia Support.Peter Mules has received support from Sussex charity, Dementia Support.

In September, it reopened its Day Breaks service at Sage House, which became a lifeline for Peter.

He said: “When you are caring for someone 24 hours a day, it’s very difficult.

“Jean needs someone to talk to all the time so it can become a bit wearing.

“Sage House gives us a break.

“Yesterday was a classic example, Jean attended Sage House for the day and came out as happy as Larry, full of beans.

“She couldn’t actually remember everything she’d done, but she knew she’d had a good time.

“It’s a big relief to be able to take Jean somewhere where the people are so caring and engaging and devoted, it’s a really positive experience for everyone.”

Dementia Support is now hoping to raise money for those who are in a similar position through the Big Give’s Christmas challenge.

The Argus: Jean Dinham receives support from the Sussex-based charity.Jean Dinham receives support from the Sussex-based charity.

The Christmas Challenge is the Big Give’s annual flagship campaign and is the UK’s biggest online match-funding campaign.

From today until next Tuesday, the Big Give will match donations made to participating charities as part of its 13th Christmas Challenge.

Dementia Support has experienced increased demand this year, however lack of funding due to the coronavirus pandemic means they have struggled to keep up.

Sally Tabbner, chief executive of Dementia Support, said: “The impact of Covid and lockdown meant that we had to quickly adapt our face-to-face services to enable ongoing support to people living with dementia, their carers and families.

“As with all charities, we have been unable to fundraise through community events, collections and despite our supporters being incredibly loyal, we know that many of them are also struggling.”

For further information or to donate, visit theBigGive.org.uk