Somebody that I used to know

Description

When Wendy Mitchell was diagnosed with dementia at the age of fifty-eight, she had to say goodbye to the woman she once was. Her career in the NHS, her ability to drive, cook and run the various shades of her independence were suddenly gone. Yet Wendy was determined not to give in. She was, and still is, propelled by a need to live in the moment, never knowing which version of herself might surface tomorrow. In this phenomenal memoir the first of its kind Wendy grapples with questions most of us have never had to consider. What do you value when loss of memory reframes what you have, how you have lived and what you stand to lose? What happens when you can no longer recognise your own daughters, or even, on the foggiest of days, yourself? Philosophical, intensely personal and ultimately hopeful, Somebody I Used to Know gets to the very heart of what it means to be human. It is both a heartrending tribute to the woman Wendy used to be, and a brave affirmation of the woman dementia has seen her become.